The Hands That Feed *3.31.09

Questions and Answers from Community Night

2009-04-07T12:28:00.000-07:00

What can we do to promote and introduce fair trade products on Cedarville’s campus?

HYPERLINK "http://www.sustainabletable.org/schools/dining/" http://www.sustainabletable.org/schools/dining/

http://santacruz.indymedia.org/newswire/display/19015/index.php

Campus Progress ( HYPERLINK "http://www.campusprogress.org/" http://www.campusprogress.org/) offers grants to student groups who campaign for change on their college campuses. They would be more than willing to offer a grant to a student group seeking to turn their campus into a fair trade campus.

Where can we get fair trade products in our community or online?

There are many online resources useful for finding fair trade products in your area. Many people asked about where to buy fair trade clothing. One great and simply way of exercising your purchasing power to benefit the community is through shopping at thrift stores. Many thrift stores are associated with non-profit organizations that give back to the community.

Here are two useful web resources:

Ethicalconsumer.org

Nosweatshop.com

Also, there is a list of local fair trade shops on the back of our program from the event.

How can students or members of local communities start their own buying co-ops?

HYPERLINK "http://www.coopamerica.org" www.coopamerica.org

http://www.ncba.coop/abcoop_ab_success.cfm

How can we effectively fight sweat shop conditions through fair trade?

HYPERLINK "http://www.aflcio.org/corporatewatch/stop/" http://www.aflcio.org/corporatewatch/stop/

HYPERLINK "http://www.nmass.org/nmass/articles/8myths.html" http://www.nmass.org/nmass/articles/8myths.html

HYPERLINK "http://money.cnn.com/2006/05/03/news/international/pluggedin_fortune/" http://money.cnn.com/2006/05/03/news/international/pluggedin_fortune/

What is the relationship between organic and fair trade products?

The terms organic and fair trade are not the same, although often related. Here is the official definition of organic:

Organic: Organic refers to the way agricultural products are grown and processed. It includes a system of production, processing, distribution and sales that assures consumers that the products maintain the organic integrity that begins on the farm. (Organic Trade Association)

Many fair trade products are organic. Pesticides are known to harm harvesters, so if something is not organic, it’s probably not certified fair trade either.

How can farmers and producers get involved in fair trade?

HYPERLINK "http://www.localharvest.org/csa/" http://www.localharvest.org/csa/

What is the Trade Act of 2008?

http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=s110-3083&tab=summary

What is the relation of the fair trade movement to the globalization of trade by multinational organizations?

Globalization in an economic sense is simply the expansion of markets and their interdependence throughout the world. With respect to fair trade I assume when you use the term "multinational organizations" you mean Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs). These often promote fair trade, but they have increasingly been active in lobbying for governmental action, functioning like governments, and even sitting on UN panels and committees sometimes. If you mean multinational corporations, these of course are business firms which do business in many parts of the world, either directly or through subsidiaries. The fair trade movement tends to like NGOs but dislike corporations. They like the NGOs because they are mainly advocacy groups for various causes including fair trade. They don't like corporations because they generally look for the lowest cost producer/provider of crops or goods. This is because they have to compete with other corporations to sell the final product to consumers. There is a perception that these corporations pay only lowest prices or lowest wages if they actually employ people, and that they foster bad working conditions and low wages because they give an incentive to push costs down. (Dr. Clauson)

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2009-03-25T07:40:00.000-07:00

Check out the new promo video

Special Thanks to Benjamin Schmanke

Join the Cause

2009-02-22T19:29:00.000-08:00

Join the Cause on March 31st of 2009, Ekplesso will be holding an event on the campus of Cedarville University to promote, educate and advocate for the process and the products of fair trade. Jacqueline DeCarlo, author of Fair Trade: A Beginners Guide, and Senior Program Advisor on the Economic Justice Team of Catholic Relief Services will be our guest speaker. A panel of professionals, educators, and students will share from their experience working with the fair trade and will be available to respond to audience questions. There will be opportunities for event participants to shop for fairly traded goods and coffee, and fair trade coffee and chocolate will be served as refreshments.

WHO: Ekplesso

WHERE: Stevens Student Center Event Rooms - Cedarville University

WHEN: March 31, 2009, refreshments beginning at 6:30 p.m. and program at 7:00 p.m.

SPEAKER: Jacqueline DeCarlo

Cedarville is making strides to become more aware of Fair Trade, and to make a conscous effort to promote fair trade products. As a student body, we have become increasingly aware of the again atrocity of human trafficking and wish to do something about it. One way we have advanced in this attempt is by selling fair trade coffee products at our on-campus coffee shop.

Participants will attend a seminar by Jacqueline DeCarlo. In addition to the speaker, a panel consisting of six individuals from both sides of the issue will respond to a time of Q/A. There will also be a follow-up aspect of the event, offering participants ways to be further involved/informed of the issue on Fair Trade. Pamphlets will be distributed informing attendees of various stores and businesses supporting Fair Trade, coupons and contacts will be included.

After the seminar part of the evening, there will be a "Fair Trade Fair" consisting of fair trade vendors. All proceeds from the sale will be given back to fight the issue of Fair Trade. Lutheran World Relief (LWR) products will be promoted and sold at this event, as they have been a supporter in our endeavor.

Our hope is that this event will spur the Fair Trade movement on our campus and that tangible changes will be made at Cedarville University and its surrounding communities. We hope to promote good relationships with the surrounding fair trade retailers as well.

2 FREE CEU's (Continuing Education Units) will be provided at the event for those in need!

Be a Supporter of FTC Merchandise

2009-02-21T13:26:00.000-08:00

There are countless ways that you can support the fair trade industry by buying FTC (Fair Trade Certified) clothing, food, coffee, chocolate, gifts and accessories. It can be difficult finding places that support FTC merchandise so we, Ekplesso, have created a list with some supportive FTC retailers. We, Ekplesso, encourage you not to stop with just this list, but to research and discover on your own other FTC retailers. Leave a comment if you find a new retailer and we may add it to the list.

FTC Retailer Lists

Transfair USA

Global Exchange

Local FTC Businesses (In relation to Cedarville University)

Un Mundo Cafe (Springfield)

Stoney Creek Roasters (Cedarville)

Global Gallery (Yellow Springs)

Beans 'N' Cream (Cedarville) - Ask for the fair trade blend.

Online FTC Companies:

Coffe and Chocolates

Sweet Earth Chocolates

Nectar of Life

Higher Ground Roasters

Grounds for Change

Equal Exchange

Clothing and Accessories

Fair Indigo

Common Threadz

No Sweat Apparel

Marigold Fair Trade Clothing

SERRV

Other

Cards from Africa

Speaker Bio

2009-02-21T12:43:00.000-08:00

JACQUELINE DECARLO:

Jackie's professional background is in education and not-for-profit management, and she has promoted economic and social justice within communities around the United States, in Africa, Latin America, and Europe. Originally an elementary school Social Studies teacher, Jackie became involved in international economic and justice work at the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants (USCRI), developing USCRI’s first overseas direct service programs, first for displaced Bosnian refugee youth and then survivors of the Rwandan genocide. Jackie encountered Fair Trade while traveling in Mexico in 1999 and soon thereafter became a volunteer with the Mut Vitz Coffee Cooperative in Chiapas.

Through her travels and explorations Jackie came to understand first-hand the benefits of Fair Trade relationships to both

producers and consumers. Convinced that Fair Trade offers a sustainable and empowering framework for understanding consumption and trade, Jackie returned to the United States determined to help educate other consumers about Fair Trade’s power and potential. She became the director of the newly independent Fair Trade Resource Network in 2001. She led that organization’s growth and development for several years and was co-convenor of FTRN’s Fair Trade Futures conference, which drew 750 participants. Jackie is currently a Senior Program Advisor on the Economic Justice Team of Catholic Relief Services. Jackie also developed her understanding of migrant issues, particularly child labor, while working with fa

rmworkers through a pesticide safety program funded by AmeriCorps and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Jackie’s ongoing commitment to Fair Trade and responsible consumption is nurtured through her place of worship, the Friends (Quaker) Meeting of Washington, D.C. In her free time Jackie enjoys jogging, drumming, volunteering, and spending time with friends and family. In addition to her studies at Agnes Scott College in Atlanta, Georgia, Jackie earned her Master of Science in Administration from University College at the University of Maryland. Jackie returned to Agnes Scott to lecture as the 2007 alumnae-in-residence. Fair Trade: A Beginner’s Guide, Jackie’s first book, was released on May 12, 2007, World Fair Trade Day and is in its second printing.

Check out her blog or send her an email.

Panel Bios

2009-02-21T12:22:00.000-08:00

TAYLOR MINOR:

Taylor Minor has lived in Cedarville for the last sixteen years. He has been married to his wife Amanda for four years and together they have two beautiful daughters, Emma and Madeline. After spending six years in the United States Marine Corp, Tay

lor decided to venture into the coffee industry as a way to culminate the experiences of his travels. Taylor has five years of experience in the specialty coffee industry and is the proprietor of Stoney Creek Roasters, a micro roaster located in Cedarville, Ohio. Stoney Creek seeks to provide its consumers with fresh roasted, superior quality coffee from various regions including a line of fair trade coffee.

If you would like to contact Taylor Minor, you may reach him through email, or you can check out his coffee shop Stoney Creek Roasters online.

NOEL ORTEGA:

Noel Ortega is an organizer that subscribes to many revolutionary philosophies one of which comes from Paulo Freire, which is the idea that liberation needs to come from the oppressed which will in turn not only liberate themselves, but also their oppressor. To achieve liberation activist for social justice need to engage in "praxis." Praxis, Friere defines as a dialectical process between revolutionary theories manifesting into revolutionary action, and from within action one needs to reflect on the outcomes of her/his actions. Reflection is needed to alter or change the theory, which starts the process again. Noel has used this frame of thought to guild him through many of his leadership roles as an activist and organizer.

Noel is co-founder of several student organizations such as Global Resistance Network at Mt. San Antonio College, and Students To End Hunger and Poverty at the University of California, Irvine. He has also taken on leadership roles with Students for Peace and Justice, the Worker-Student Alliance, United Students for Fair Trade, and in 2006 he joined the Student Trade Justice Campaign (STJC). Noel also interned for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), American Friends Service Committee, and Global Justice, and he is a OXFAM America CHANGE leader.

Noel holds two Baccalaureates in Political Science, and Sociology from the University of California, Irvine, where he conducted research on impacts on rural areas from regional free trade agreements between developing countries and developed countries. Noel plans to peruse a PhD. in Political Science with a focus on International Political Economy and a Doctor of Jurisprudence in International Human Rights Law with a focus on Indigenous Land Rights. Currently, Noel serves as the National Coordinator for the Student Trade Justice Campaign. Before becoming the National Coordinator for STJC, Noel held the role of coordinator for STJC's campaign Justice For the Americas that focused on defeating Free Trade Agreements between the United States and Latin America.

ESSAM MIKHAIL:

A graduate of Ohio University (OU) with a BA in Political Science and an MA in International Relations. He became a social activist in college when he and many other people fought the deportation of a Palestinian Christian student for conducting lectures and showing movies at Ohio State University (OSU) on the Palestinian Condition. This Palestinian's family member came to vist from Egypt, bringing with him gifts made by the garbage collectors. Sammy became interested in this because of his background in economic development, which he contin

ues to work with currently. He has since returned to Athens, OH, to help his elderly parents. In Athens he is connected to the Athens Fair Trade Group and later became connected to the OU Fair Trade Group; they made a market in the garbage industry as well as coffee, tea, chocolates and looking into dried fruits and honey.

BETHANY DUNCAN:

Bethany is a senior social work major at Cedarville University and member of Ekplesso, a student organization igniting change by evoking passion. Bethany's passion for social justice was cultivated through early exposure to diversity and culture and a strong commitment to the inherent worth and dignity of each person. Bethany has been researching the issue of Fair Trade for the past year and considers herself a lifelong student to the topic as well as other social justice issues. She is a member of several humanitarian organizations, member of a sex-trafficking focus group with Rahab's Hideaway and a passionate advocate for being a voice for the unheard.

If you'd like to contact Bethany, you may email her at bduncan@cedarville.edu.

MARC CLAUSON

Dr. Clauson was born in Huntington, West Virginia. He has a B.S. in Physics , M.A. in Political Science from Marshall University, Ph.D. work in Economics, West Virginia University, J. D., West Virginia University, M. A. in Historical Theology and Early Christian Thought, Liberty University, M. Th. in Church History, Liberty University, Ph. D. in Modern European Intellectual History and Church History, University of the Orange Free State, RSA. Dr. Clauson currently resides in Xenia. He is married to Jennifer, and has four daughters ages 8, 11, 14, 16. Dr. Clauson is currently the Associate Professor of History, Law and Political Thought at Cedarville University. He has been at CU for 7 years.

If you would like to reach Dr. Marc Clauson, you may do so by email CLAUSONM@cedarville.edu.