“Let’s put the fair back in (fair)field” is the slogan for this year’s 3rd annual Fair Trade Fair. The fair is scheduled to take place Nov. 30 at 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. in the lower Level BCC. Students for Social Justice (S4SJ) have been working hard to plan the event and to raise awareness of fair trade on campus.
Fair trade is a term that means buying a product and knowing that most, if not all, of the proceeds are going to the artisans, explains Cristina Richardson ’14, an executive board member of S4SJ. By promoting fair trade, S4SJ hopes to discourage the use of sweatshops and support better work standards for artisans around the world.
S4SJ is working towards a fair trade movement that goes beyond an annual event with an ultimate goal of bringing the humanity back in consumption. But do the students notice the change? “I have definitely seen the coffee in Barone say ‘fair trade’ but that’s the only place I’ve seen it,” says Tori Ready ’14. S4SJ has worked to motivate administrators to always choose fair trade.
But every year the group is presented with a new set of struggles. If there is a change in the food suppliers on campus, like the recent switch from Jazzman’s to Einstein’s, the group has to reorient themselves to the new products.
Sometimes the progress the group has made will hold true to the next school year but sometimes it doesn’t, explains Richardson.
Although the fair trade coffee is noticed, some students say that one of S4SJ’s central projects has gone unnoticed.
Andres Peschiera ’14 has never noticed the Alta Garcia products in the spirit shop or the downtown bookstore but jokes that it might be under all the Vera Bradley products.
S4SJ brought the Alta Garcia products to Fairfield because the company embraced strong labor unions and gave the workers fair wages. By hosting the fair trade event, they hope to support other groups that do the same.
The fair trade will include Nicaraguan handmade ceramic vases, pottery and wooden bowls brought in by the Hearts for Hands group on campus. Jewelry, coffee, scarves, chocolate bars and home goods from Ten Thousand Villages in New Haven, Conn. will also be sold.
When students attend the fair, their awareness may start with a purchase that fits their wants and desires, whether it’s for themselves or a loved one for the holidays. But as students check out the items and they read the pamphlets regarding fair trade, Richardson hopes they will become more conscious consumers.
But after shopping at the Fair Trade event freshmen year, Ready thinks there could be more information. Otherwise “people just think its nice products but they aren’t thinking about where it comes from,” said Ready.
Bringing awareness on fair trade is a difficult task. There are many varying qualifications to fair trade and often times labels can be deceitful, said Richardson.
But there is hope. There is a whole wealth of knowledge out there on fair trade and S4SJ hopes to bring that knowledge to Fairfield.
They are hoping to include biographies on the artisans who created the products. All that matters is that students do the most they can and stay informed, said Richardson.
Buying fair trade means the people who work hard on the products are being respected and compensated for their hard work. And why buy something mass-produced at Walmart when you can buy something handmade and unique, said Ready.
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