A Fair-y Story

Monday marked the beginning of Fairtrade fortnight, so yes, I am continuing with the theme of "this week it's..." After all, the reason these events exist is to raise awareness of an issue and to inform the general public about ways in which they can contribute. I suppose I am only doing my duty as a blogger by passing information on.

I think Fairtrade, as a concept, affects us all in the UK and beyond. Simply because we are all consumers, and we are always on the hunt for a decent bargain. With the economy in the state that it is, it's only natural to opt for a product which is reliable and affordable. The latter is certainly not often the case with Fairtrade products. From coffee, to chocolate, to cotton, branding something as 'Fairtrade' often involves jacking up the price.

What are our thoughts on this?

People who can afford 'quality' products often shop at luxury stores and therefore pay higher prices for seemingly higher-end items which are sometimes marketed as more ethical, sustainable or Fairtrade. I'll give Marks and Spencers as an example, who, commendably are wholly engaging with the public to create a more sustainable, ethical and environmentally supportive business. Not only through the way the operate, but also through the products they sell. However, I for one can not afford to do my weekly food shopping at M&S- so should we place all responsibility on those consumers, who can afford it, to support the Fairtrade movement? Should the rest of us have to choose between overspending and helping and not?

You may ask, who benefits from my Fairtrade purchase? A list of producers can be found on the website, but in short it depends on the product you are buying. The premium from Fairtrade can contribute to simple things like allowing coffee farmers to afford to grow organically. Often it is used to create sustainable communities and can benefit many families by providing access to clean water and buying bicycle ambulances (Malawi).

A campaign video for Fairtrade mentions the word 'choice' repeatedly, in the sense that 'the right' choice will bring about a positive outcome for someone in the developing world. But should there be a choice...shouldn't everything just simply be Fairtrade?

What a set of questions? And how do you begin to answer them? Thankfully I don't have to, as during my research, I stumbled across a piece of writing that I really wish I had written.  so you may as well read this instead!

The Guardian really are choosing to focus on Fairtrade Fortnight, as they have also posted online the following article: How to teach Fairtrade Fortnight. If you are a teacher, or work in an educational capacity, consider taking a look at the resources available and dedicating some time with your students to exploring how the Fairtrade movement affects their lives.

If you are considering making a few simple changes to your routine and are interested in purchasing Fairtrade alternatives, Channel 4 Food have listed their top-ten favourite products. View them here:

http://www.channel4.com/4food/features/top-ten-fair-trade-products


If you're confused as to what technically counts as fairtrade, visit the website mentioned above, or as always, just look at the WIkipedia site!

Enjoy your week and the next time you buy a banana/chocolate bar or shop in Primark, take a moment to consider who contributed to the making of your product and how fairly they may or may not have been treated. It may not be your responsibility to change the world, but it wouldn't hurt to try.

I spotted this van outside of Guildford station delivering coffee to a local establishment.

Can you help ensure the planet is still here after 2012?

Last week I was freelancing at the Guardian Newspaper. "ooh!" I hear you say. "Going up in the world".  That's right people, check me out. (I'd insert lyrics from Ed Sheeran's "You Need Me" into this sentence if they weren't so outrageous).

Before you get too carried away with my apparent journalistic success know that I wasn't writing material to be published...yet.  I was contributing to the awareness campaign for the Sustainable Business Awards 2012. My supervisor told me to target FTSE 250 companies (that's fine, I'm still not sure what it means either), and to encourage them to consider applying.

Looking at my list of the most powerful people in business and press offices around the country, I was a little overwhelmed as well as somewhat apprehensive. Many of the businesses were involved in housing and the construction industries- exactly the type of companies I would hold responsible for the destruction of our planet with their polluting machinery. The global Law firms were no better in my mind, with their executives jetting across the planet to attend meetings about some corporate violation.

Simply put, I was on my high horse just because I recycle my Heinz tins and Diet Coke bottles. What didn't cross my mind was the fact that ultimately, these businesses have the power to contribute to the planet's conservation in a way that I couldn't even imagine. Many of them are working their way to Carbon neutrality within the next 15 years. Who reading this can say the same? I take pride in the fact that I do not own a car, nor do I view myself as wasteful. I take precautions to choose produce at Tesco which is as locally grown as possible so as to not encourage importation of non-ethically sourced food.

However, I'm a bargain hunter and I thrive at Primark, which although cheap, quite probably has its item produced by underage children in developing countries. I find this to be inexcusable (both my behaviour as well as the concept of sweatshops), so really I realised it was time to not only make people aware of exhaustible nature of our planet's organic supplies, but also to congratulate those who are in fact looking out for our futures.  As I grew more and more tired of repeating the word "sustainability" the more it became apparent that I needed to continue making my phone calls and to inspire industries to continue their good work.

In keeping with my initial post this year, "will you be in a fit state to see the end of the world?" it is profoundly disturbing to think that on average, as a planet we consume over 30% more energy than we are able to produce. Meaning, as we all know, Earth is hurtling towards a global calamity as we will soon enough run out of non-renewable energy sources (gas, oil and all their by-products).

What a conundrum to keep me awake at night.  Especially as it's rumoured that we already posses all the knowledge we need to create technologies allowing us to function in a far more sustainable way. The reasons we don't utilise them is a mystery. Conspiracy theorists won't hesitate to interject and let you know their thoughts on this matter- that Governments across the world would prefer to generate income through fossil fuels rather than invest in renewable and sustainable energies.

It is well known that when I fail to sleep at night, I get testy, grumpy and even a little aggressive. Thus, I considered, for the good of the planet I should share my concerns and findings in the hope that as a collective we may begin to take steps forwards in this race against time.

Below are some interesting nuggets for information about our environmental impact on the Earth:

• Every time you do two Google searches it is the energy equivalent of boiling a kettle (I'm sceptical about this one and want an expert to look into it).
• A typical desktop computer uses about 65 to 250 watts. Turning down the brightness on your laptop screen can save you up to 25% on power consumption which would mean your battery charge will last longer and you’ll be saving the planet
• If the Sahara Desert was covered with solar panels it would power the world 50x over.
• 20 species of animals and plants become extinct each week.
• It takes 4000 years for a glass bottle to decompose.
• 1 million plastic bags are used in the world every minute.
• 30% of the ice cover in the Eastern Himalayas has been lost since 1970.
• If the wind all around the UK coasts was harnessed it would power the UK 3x over.

I'm particularly interested in the concept of solar panels in the Sahara. In my mind's eye I see a scene, the sand dunes, the sun glaring down, camels, Bedouins and solar panels. It's magical. 

So what can you do to help? It's absurdly difficult to know where to start.

That's why, there's a company called START, to take the pressure off and provide some basic tips into transforming your living/working environment.

And then there's the Rainforest Alliance Website that has so much information your eyes may pop out.

Take a look and make some wise choice. Because I have this feeling that if we don't work together and sort things out, 2012- the end of the world may becoming a more credible theory.

Also, in the interest of disclosure, as I wrote this, my laptop was powered by my hamster running in his ball (no, not really, sorry, terrible joke- but those are the kind of energy devices people need to invent).