Fair Trade Project News: Labor-Religion Coalition of New York State

This was one of the chants heard outside the Hershey store in Times Square in a rally against child labor and trafficking on June 8, 2011. Friends of New York Fair Trade including NYSUT's Lee Cutler and Kerry Kennedy, president of the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights spoke out. Click here for the New York Daily News article by Tori Ackerman. Fair Trade Coordinator Anne Kelly's photostream is posted here.

Want to help? Collect petitions
At any event where friends, family and community members gather, collect signatures to Hershey CEO John Bilbrey. Download petitions here [PDF] . Mail or fax your petitions to us. Read our Why Hershey? page for more about the campaign.

TOOLKIT available for screening The Dark Side of Chocolate
Would you like to organize a screening of this important new documentary? To order a copy for a group or class, please send an email to Anne Kelly at fairtrade@labor-religion.org. We ask $6 for processing & shipping.

In addition to the DVD (45 min.), the TOOLKIT [PDF, 10 pgs.] we've put together includes model invitations, a suggested screening schedule, suggested talking points for before and after the film, recommended discussion questions, key concepts (for educators), a sign-in sheet, a Raise the Bar petition (related to the Hershey campaign), flyers about Fair Trade and a listing of additional resources. MORE>

Fair Trade Universities Campaign
Fair Trade universities, colleges and schools harness the power of higher education to raise awareness among students, faculty and staff about the benefits Fair Trade offers to small-scale producers and workers. The goal of the campaign is to embed Fair Trade principles within administrative policy and the social fabric of the academic community. For instance, one key element of the campaign is to ensure that Fair Trade products are sold and served at university-owned and operated outlets. For an two-page handout [PDF], including Criteria for Becoming a Fair Trade University/ College, click here. Visit www.FairTradeTownsUSA.org (universities tab) for more information.

Child labor in the cocoa industry: Reverse Trick or Treating and other ways you can help
New York Fair Trade invites you to participate in a national campaign to raise awareness about child labor and trafficking in the cocoa industry and promote the Fair Trade alternative. Learn about three things YOU can do in the September 2010 issue of the New York Fair Trade E-bulletin [PDF]. To subscribe to the bulletin, send an email to Anne Kelly.

After the Fair Trade Futures Conference
More than 750 people gathered in Boston for the largest Fair Trade conference in North American history from September 10-12, 2010. The Labor-Religion Coalition's Fair Trade Coordinator, Anne Kelly co-facilitated a seminar. Although the conference Web site will no longer be available after Nov. 1, 2010, the list below--"Ten Ways to Transform Our Community" captures some of the possibilities of the Fair Trade movement.

10. Sign up for newsletters from organizations in the Fair Trade movement – You can get regular updates from the conference sponsors.
9. Fair Trade Your House of Worship - Many faith traditions have Fair Trade programs, including American Jewish World Service, Catholic Relief Services, Islamic Relief, Lutheran World Relief, Presbyterian Church USA, Mennonite Central Committee, United Methodist Committee on Relief, and the Unitarian Universalists.
8. Participate in Reverse Trick-or-Treating – Hand out Fair Trade candy and information this Halloween.
7. Seek work or volunteer opportunities in Fair Trade – Fair Trade Organizations always need great people to assist them. See opportunities online.
6. Host an event for World Fair Trade Day in May and Fair Trade Month in October.
5. Start a Fair Trade Organization - Visit www.FairTradeFederation.org/startabiz for tools to get you started.
4. Ask local stores to carry Fair Trade goods - Fill out comment cards; talk to a store manager; leave a message on the shelf; and more. For information on converting supermarkets specifically, visit www.FairTradeYourSupermarket.org.
3. Launch a Fair Trade Towns Campaign - Turn your community into a Fair Trade Town! Visit Fair Trade Towns USA or TransFair Canada for information.
2. Host a sale or fundraiser – Host a Fair Trade sale or fundraiser in your school, home, community organization, or workplace.
1. Shop your local Fair Trade Store or online! - Find a store that specializes in Fair Trade in your area and/or shop online today!

Fair Trade coffee sales steady at EnCon headquarters cafe
Division 169 members of the Public Employees Federation now enjoy Fair Trade coffee at Vinny's Cafe (located at the main office of the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation), thanks to Susan DuBois, a former Division 169 steward and the Labor-Religion Coalition's Fair Trade Project.

"Switching to Fair Trade products is something well worth checking into," DuBois said. "It's become practical, and it's not that difficult."

"We're thrilled with [members'] commitment to social issues. Fair Trade issues, like union issues, are really human rights issues," said Fair Trade Coordinator Anne Kelly.

As part of a tour organized by Equal Exchange, two representatives from CONACADO cacao co-operative in the Dominican Republic visited the Albany area in March 2010. Basilio Almonte de los Santos, an agronomist at CONACADO, and Ramón Matías Frías González, a cacao farmer, member of CONACADO’s Bloque 9, and Secretary on CONACADO’s Board of Directors spoke at Honest Weight Food Co-op, at St. Michael's Church in Troy and met with Fair Trade Coordinator Anne Kelly and friends.

"Now please have a heart and buy only fair trade chocolate"
Several eighth grade students at Brentwood West Middle School in Bayside, NY recently wrote to the CEOs of the Hershey and Nestle Companies urging them to use only Fair Trade cocoa in their candy. [Click here to view samples of their work in PDF form.]

New York Fair Trade Coordinator Anne Kelly visited Brentwood classes in November 2009 to answer students' questions about the daily lives of children in West African countres such as Ivory Coast and Ghana. Often low prices for cocoa force children to work in cocoa production which means that they regularly miss school, perform dangerous tasks and suffer injury and sickness.

Brentwood teachers have developed lessons about Fair Trade through their interaction with New York Fair Trade. To learn more about fair trade resources for teachers and students, see NYSUT's online Social Justice and Labor Center.

Fair Trade Curiculum Resources promoted by NYSUT
The Social Justice and Labor Center section at www.nysut.org includes a newly compiled resource list for teachers who are involving students with Fair Trade. New York State United Teachers, a union with over 600,000 members, has resolved to partner with the Labor-Religion Coalition of NYS to promote and support fair trade and international solidarity. The list is also available here [PDF] and as part of the Resources section on this site.

To remind us of the positive relationships between growers and consumers that are central to fair trade, the above image is now available on a magnet. (Click here to send us a message, and we will mail your magnet.) The magnet was distributed at the Representative Assembly of New York State United Teachers, April 9-12, 2008.

Rehima Hussein, twelve years old in this photo, is one of 15 children. She and her coffee-farming family live in Ethiopia, far from town. Thanks to the economic benefits of Fair Trade, Rehima graduated from high school and now attends college. Fair trade premiums benefit the entire community and allow farmers to support their families. Parents can afford to keep their children in school rather than sending them to work in the fields.

Rehima's family is a member of the Orimia Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union in Ethiopia. “Before Fair Trade, people might walk 15-30 kilometers (9-18 miles) to a nearby school,” said Tadesse Meskela, the cooperative general manager. “Because of Fair Trade, there is now a health center in the village, a school and a clean water station. But this is just a start. There are only four cooperatives that benefit from the school and the health center, and we have more than 100 cooperatives.”

“We don’t ask for charity,” said Meskela. “We ask for the right price for our product.”

The cost of a cup of coffee
Diane DiChiara, a teacher in the Wappingers Central School district writes about her quest for that perfect cup of coffee – fair trade style. Diane is a member of New York State United Teachers which, by committing to promote and educate about fair trade, shows solidarity and support for workers around the world.

Click here to read her article (PDF) from the Wappingers Congress of Teachers newsletter (Sept. 12, 2008). Diane learned about New York Fair Trade at the NYSUT Summer Leadership Conference in August where she attended a workshop titled "Social Justice Issues in the Classroom and Beyond."

During her quest, Diane was informed that all Starbucks coffee is fair trade, though not labeled as such. However, only 6% of Starbucks coffee is certified Fair Trade.

She also mentions Dean’s Beans coffee as a source for internet purchases. Dean’s Beans is a 100% Fair Trade company and a business partner of New York Fair Tradet. If a customer orders by clicking on any Dean's Beans link on this site, Dean will make a donation of 10% of the order total to the Labor-Religion Coalition so that we can continue and expand the work of New York Fair Trade.

NYSUT Task Force member witnesses profound impact of fair trade in the Dominican Republic

As a member of the NYSUT Fair Trade Task Force, Quinn joined LRC staff members Anne Kelly and Maureen Casey and others in a visit to the CONACADO cooperative from April 16-23, 2008. Read more from the September issue of The Voice—"Unions: Cacao farmers deserve fair shake through Fair Trade"

Anne Kelly, LRC Fair Trade Promoter (and photographer), has created a series of posters to illustrate basic Fair Trade principles and show how Fair Trade makes a difference. Click here to see the images and print a set to display. These four photos were taken on a delegation led by Equal Exchange to the Dominican Republic in April 2008. For a more detailed history, visit the Equal Exchange website or go right to CONACADO's website .

A resolution to promote and facilitate the use of fair trade products in the 17 regional offices in the NYSUT network passed at the 2008 New York State United Teachers Representative Assembly in April. The path-breaking resolution also calls on the union to negotiate with facilities housing NYSUT functions to serve only fair trade products during the events.

A grant from the Presbyterian Hunger Program continues to support the growth of the Coalition's Fair Trade Project.

Tthe Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) advocates for fair trade policies and has committed to serving and/ or selling fair trade products in congregations. Voting delegates at the 213th General Assembly (2001) passed a resolution concerning fair trade coffee and tea as well as organic sugar. Visit the Just Trade section of the PCUSA Web site for more.