Website of the week

Fair trade tastes better



This wins the seagreen website of the week award because it suggests such a practical and easy way to make a little ripple and increase awareness / action on Fair Trade.

People drink heaps of coffee out these dayes and while many of us already buy organic, fair trade coffee for home from the supermarket, not very many of us are taking positive steps to encourage cafes to offer the same kind of product when we drink coffee out.

This website is great because not only does it give a great overview of the issues('Why Fairtrade?')but also practical and easy tips for how to influence change in your community.

Letters - remember those, in the old days, people woud write them - are included to print out (just add your name) which give your local cafe owner information and contact details of suppliers. Hey, your letter or friendly verbal suggestion might not make any discernable difference right now, but what if you were the first of 10 people to all suggestthe same thing over the next six months? Said cafe owner may realise that this a business opportunity.

What I also like about this campaign is that it focuses on engaging with people around us (cafe owners / coffee suplliers) and suggesting ways their business could have less of an impact. Suggesting Fair Trade products is obviously just one way - I also dig the idea of talking to the local library about providing recycled paper, suggesting the local cafe use free-range eggs rather than battery ones, suggesting that we use organic wine for our work events... etc. Doing what we can when we can.

Make mine a machhiato! Grazie!

What other products exist and where can I get them?
As well as coffee there is a growing range of Fairtrade certified products available in Australia. Products include tea, chocolate, rice, handcrafts and soccer balls. For more information visit the Fairtrade Association of Australia and New Zealand website.

NB At my work we use organic Australian grown cofffee for the tea room and chemical free (but not certified org) Australian grown tea. The cafe downstairs will be my target :)