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Let's be friendsFairtrade fortnight 2009 events and activities - spot your group!
People & Planet groups from schools, colleges and universities across the country celebrate Fairtrade Fortnight
Image © edinburgh uni
Edinburgh uni
They put on an event attended by their green MSP, Robin Harper. Here they show their wholehearted supprt for the banana theme!
Ashville College
Image © Ashville School
Ashville College did a ‘mass banana eating’ to contribute to the World Record Attempt, assemblies, a banana game for the younger years, a pledge for individuals to start buying Fairtrade and filled in Stock it Cards to push their nearby supermarkets into action, as recorded by chair of the college’s Fairtrade Committee Ian Popely. they put all of their actions out to the press in press releases, multiplying the effects massively.
“We are calling on everybody to do their bit and join this every growing global movement for trade justice by taking part in Fairtrade events in Harrogate during Fairtrade Fortnight. Fairtrade is a people’s movement that aims to tip the balance of trade in favour of poor producers. Fairtrade is needed now more than ever and we all have the power to create positive change. We hope that over the next five years we can scale up Fairtrade to benefit even more disadvantaged producers and challenge multi-nationals to change their purchasing power in favour of the poor. There are now over 400 Fairtrade Towns in the UK who have pledged themselves to supporting Fairtrade products and an ongoing programme to raise awareness of Fairtrade.
Two billion people — a third of the planet — still survive on less than $2 per day. Unfair trade rules keep them in poverty, but they face the global challenges of food shortages and climate change, too.
The example of what has been achieved at Ashville in such a short time is proof that we can all make a difference.”
Cardiff University
Amy from Cardiff said they held an event for 50 people as well as much more.
Image © Cardiff Uni
Image © Cardiff Uni
Image © Cardiff Uni
Cardiff People & Planet went bananas for Fairtrade on Wednesday night when Fairtrade banana producer Stephanie Bella Joachim came to give a talk about the impact Fairtade has on her life. After the presentation there was a performance from steel band Divine Steel from Brixton, London, regulars at the Notting Hill Carnival.
Bella is from Dominica, one of the Windward Islands in the Caribbean where 95% of the islands bananas are now Fairtade. She is Chair of her local Fairtrade organisation branch and Secretary of the National Fairtrade Organisation of Dominica. The event was held in the student’s union of Cardiff which is a Fairtrade University. Wales was the first ever Fairtrade country!
The presentation was both informative and entertaining as Bella described how she first became involved with Fairtrade (at first she didn’t want to go to a meeting about it as she ‘doesn’t go to meetings’). She went on to talk about her much loved country and what the community was doing with its social premium including building three pre schools and agriculture for students where they could sell or keep
Richard Huish College
Image © Richard Huish School
Teacher Nikki wrote in telling us that the People & Planet group at Richard Huish College did a whole fortnight of activities.
We sold fair trade food every lunchtime for the 2 weeks and today we handed out 64 bananas for free to spread the word.
Sibford School
Heather from Sibford School in Banbury managed to get some great coverage and raise some much needed funds to support People & Planet’s campaigns.
the banana eating was a great success and we had a piece in the Banbury ‘Cake’ (Newspaper supplement) and Touch radio phoned up and did a little news story on us..! We got some great publicity and I’ll organise to send some money in the way of People & Planet…!
Bath University
The University of Bath is celebrating Fairtrade Fortnight with the announcement that it has achieved official status as a Fairtrade University. The People & Planet group also put on a fantastic panel discussion about free or fair trade.
Image © University of Bath
We are so pleased to be able to celebrate Fairtrade Fortnight as part of a Fairtrade University. Our Go Bananas event will help to raise awareness of Fairtrade products to the University community in a healthy and fun way. It is the last of a whole host of events that we have arranged for Fairtrade Fortnight.
Thomas Tallis School
Seun Fagbohen and Paris Solomon (left and second from left) told us that Thomas Tallis continued their already long list of activities for Fairtrade Fortnight, doing a Yellow Friday, the Fair Trade cafe regrand opening and the banana eating record the next week, and
I’ve recently done, with Paris, school assemblies to promote Fair Trade, using some pictures and information from the Introductory Powerpoint on our your/Fair Trade website, and I was able to get this video recorded and have some pictures taken. I’m trying to set our own ‘FairTrade’ webpage and blog on our school website, where I can put information, documents, references and other stuff on Fair Trade, open for people to look at and comment on.
Coventry University
Liah Maccallam is doing an event next week.
An evening of Fairtrade chocolate and wine in front of a great film. There will be free chocolate, wine and information on Fairtrade. Black Gold is an award winning film on Fairtrade that is literally food for thought.
Coleshill School
Coleshill People & Planet Fairtrade Fortnight Stall 2009
Manchester Met University
Not to be outdone, Manchester Met put on an event for 1000 people, getting them all to eat a Fairtrade banana to contribute to the World Record, and having a day of events and activities.
Well done everyone and please keep the pictures, stories and, well dollars, flooding in. It is campaigning like this that has led to 60 universities and colleges and 200 schools getting Fairtrade status, and Fairtrade taking 15% of the UK chocolate market. Please leave your comments and stories below on what your group has been up to.
