15th May 2008 - 00:00
Abstract
Pupils and teachers from schools across the UK will be sharing ideas with Ghanaian school children at a series of Fairtrade school conferences this summer.
Three conferences will be held in Glasgow (12 June), Birmingham (16 June) and London (18 June). Participants will be given the opportunity to share ideas and experiences of achieving and working towards Fairtrade status and developing the Fairtrade Schools scheme.
More than 360 people including teachers and pupils across a range of ages are expected to attend the conferences.
The highlight of the conferences will be a workshop run by two children from the Kuapa Kokoo cocoa cooperative in Ghana. Kuapa Kokoo is a fair-trade co-operative of cocoa farmers that co-owns the UK chocolate company, Divine Chocolate.
Children Stephen Amankwah and Joycelyn Segbedzi, both 14 years old, will be introducing attendees to cocoa pods, the way that cocoa is grown and harvested and will explain how the fair-trade system works for cocoa farmers in Ghana.
Jocelyn commented on the Fairtrade event: "It is a good thing for cocoa farmers. When you sell the cocoa you get a bonus, and fair-trade helps with materials and other things like sending your children to school."
Other workshops will be sharing tips on the best ways to run a fair-trade event, source fair-trade products and incorporate fair-trade into different subject areas on the curriculum.
The Fairtrade Schools scheme is a national initiative established by the Fairtrade Foundation to engage young people in development issues and help tackle poverty through trade.
To achieve status, schools have to meet five criteria, including setting up a Fairtrade School Steering Group, and committing to use Fairtrade products within the school. They also have to write and adopt a school Fairtrade Policy, incorporating Fairtrade into lessons and promote Fairtrade both within the school and to their wider community. Schools must renew their Fairtrade status regularly to prove their ongoing commitment.
More than six Fairtrade primary and secondary schools are already established across the UK and 1,600 more schools are registered as working towards Fairtrade status.
Weblink:
www.fairtrade.org.uk/schools