How has your campaign planned for the beginning of the 2016-2017 academic year?
The fall semester is right around the corner. What have your campaigns planned or are planning in order to hit the ground running with educating and campaigning about fair trade?
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We will start with a committee meeting the 2nd week of Sept. (the committee
was formed last year) On the 16th the editor from the Daily Californian
will be on campus to learn more about a FT school and interview students
and parents that are on the committee. We also signed up for an Equal
Exchange fundraiser for our 5th grades for their camp fund.
On Oct. 8th we are partnering with a run – “The Race to End Human
Trafficking” and on Oct. 16th we host a Fair Trade gift fair and the 5th
grade class will be selling their EE coffee, chocolate and teas. This is
all part of our Fair Trade month activities.
Best,
Anne
—
*Anne PachecoAdministrative AssistantSt. Martin of Tours Academy(619)
466-3241 stmartinacademy. org*
*“If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to
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Hey, there!
Have you seen the new event guide for colleges and universities? May provide some inspiration for the new school year!
Here’s the link: https://fairtradecampaigns.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/FTCU-Event-Guide_FINAL.pdf
Good morning,
I am excited to continue working with the Eco-Rep program this semester,
alongside other student leaders who are also dedicated to raising awareness
about the merits of supporting Fair Trade. I hope to increase our business
with RUNA tea in our campus store so we can start offering tea boxes as wel
as the individual bottles. If you have not heard about the new demand for
guyausa and the amazing opportunities which RUNA has provided for over
3,000 indigenous farmers in the Amazon, I highly recommend checking their
cause out! Offsetting deforestation is crucial in this part of the world so
talking about curbing emissions and climate change is easily tied in with
this specific organization. runa.org
We are about to start offering Fair Trade apparel this semester, due to
student demand and persistence, which is beyond exciting!
I am starting a club called Cultivating Conscious Consumers and hope to
inspire the incoming freshman class to recognize their purchasing power and
contribute to the Conflict Free movement which many of my friends and I are
devoted to. Conflict minerals is a complex issue that is barely talked
about by major media, but the crisis in the Congo has gotten so out of hand
that it has officially been labeled as the rape capital of the world. On
average, 48 females are raped every hour, meaning each day about 1,125
women are sexually assaulted. This club will raise awareness about the
negative externalities of our consumption, while also holding events that
can generate money for a local non profit that works from the bottom up in
the Congo. I volunteer for the Vermont Ibutwa Initiative since they are
helping survivors of gender based sexual violence by providing
transportation to medical services, paying the educational fees for
children who were born from incidents of rape (to assist the children in
breaking the cycle of joining the rebel militia groups who are the ones
raping women to assert their dominance & prevent self organization), and
once the women are feeling well enough, enter them in the sustainable
livelihood programs so they gain financial independence and graduate from
Ibutwa. The founder of Ibutwa is a Congolese refugee himself, who knows how
important it is for businesses to not compromise the local ecosystem.
Ibutwa means *rebirth *in Swahili and that is exactly what we enable for
these resilient women and children. The children who are supported by
Ibutwa are the future leaders of Congo and desire for the genocide to end.
By allowing them to receive an education, we are encouraging them to help
build stronger local economies and end the prevalent corruption.
We hope that connecting college students who are inevitably reliant upon
the minerals that are causing this resource war (Tin, Tungsten, Coltan &
Gold) for our cell phones, laptops, computers and televisions; that they
will also grow inspired to help the conflict free movement MOVE! Buying the
change through demanding goods and services that are not connected to rape,
genital mutilation, childhood slavery, environmental devastation and abuse
is possible! This club will prompt students to create art as a muse to
transmute the negative emotions tied to injustice into paintings, digital
art that raises awareness, songs, poetry, dance and so on. Living in a
college town for the past two years has made me realize that rape is
happening everywhere, not just in the Congo. Representing Ibutwa has
enabled me to invite men into the conversation about safety, consent,
healthy boundaries and the importance of self respect. Although the
severity of sexual violence is no where as severe as it is in the Congo, it
still is happening in Burlington unfortunately. I believe this club can
prevent these instances and get students involved with social and
environmental activism, that is the dream at least. If we are successful
this year, I hope other colleges apply our holistic approach to empower
people to recognize their privileges and break the silence. The power is in
our awareness and hands so we believe it is time to wake up and continue
the conversation about social rights and responsibilities.
Thank you so much for your time and consideration, if you are interested in
learning more about conflict free, check out this website!
http://www.raisehopeforcongo.org/content/conflict-minerals-company-rankings-0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUm9QMTd3Os ibutwa.org
Best regards,
Lily Mason
Environmental Policy
Eco-rep Outreach Coordinator
Sustain Champlain