Step 1. Spreading the word
- Holding a successful Fairtrade stall
- Sweet Injustice: The chocolate game
- Winning them over: Frequently Asked Questions
- From football to fashion shows: More ideas for Fairtrade events
Step 2. Get Fairtrade products stocked in your school or university
Step 3. Becoming a Fairtrade school or university
Now, you´ve got students interested in Fairtrade and that means a better deal for more producers! You may also have convinced your school/university to sell a few Fairtrade products — again, making sure more producers benefit. This is an excellent start!
But you´re not going to be at your school, college or university forever, and if you want this momentum to continue even after you´ve left, you can campaign for your school, college or university to get official Fairtrade status.
This means getting a commitment from them to stock Fairtrade products in catering outlets (increasing the number and range regularly) and to keep campaigning for and promoting Fairtrade.
The Fairtrade status goals are outlined on the next pages. Fairtrade Status is awarded by the Fairtrade Foundation. To gain this Status the Foundation must be convinced that your school, college or university has achieved all of the 5 goals.
To be successful this campaign will take careful planning and may need to be run for many months. The main thing you need to remember is that this campaign is about institutional change — you will need to persuade the key people who run your school or uni to develop their own genuine commitment to supporting Fairtrade.
This means that you simply have to get these people enthusiastic about Fairtrade. Just pressuring your school or university to agree a Fairtrade policy on paper won’t achieve your ambitions unless there are enthusiastic staff around who want to put the policy into action.
Why campaign for Fairtrade status?
As educational institutions, as an important sector of the UK economy, and as a significant part of local communities, our schools, colleges and universities have a responsibility to promote civic responsibility and consider the social and environmental costs of their choices. Campaigning for Fairtrade status means embedding a commitment to fair trade principles in your school or university’s policy - a fantastic achievement and a lever for further progress as it involves a commitment to continual improvement!
Persuading them to stock and promote Fairtrade helps increase the demand for Fairtrade, meaning more producers get a fair deal.
Additionally, by building awareness among students and staff of the injustices of world trade, and the implications of their buying decisions, Fairtrade empowers people to challenge the way trade currently works. It also gives students and staff a socially-responsible choice to eat some seriously sumptuous food!
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