Islanders shop ethically for Christmas
ISLANDERS are proving themselves as ethical shoppers this Christmas.
Fair-trade distributor, retailer and online store Mondomundi, had its highest sales day ever on Tuesday 22 December.
The biggest sellers included its Worldwide Wildlife Fund (WWF) super soft guinea pig toy an ethical rival to the top-selling Zhu Zhu pets, formally known as Go Go hamsters, this season.
The Zhu Zhu pets have been rationed at island retailers with supplies in demand.
Mondomundi managing director, Phil Soulsby, said his guinea pigs were a thrifty alternative to the hamster craze, with the added bonus that they leave shoppers with a happy conscience.
“They have been a very popular choice for present-buyers, probably the best selling of the WWF range as they are very soft and cuddly for children.
“Our Burt’s Bees range, which is focused on earth friendly, natural personal care, has also been very popular. It is great that so many people are now making ethical choices when it comes to their Christmas shopping,’ said Mr Soulsby.
A percentage of the price of the guinea pig is donated to the WWF, which seeks to conserve not only animal wildlife but habitats, environments and indigenous people. In particular the charity works with local groups to help them earn a living without having to resort to endangering and exploiting the natural world around them.
The Mondomundi St Martin’s store will be open on Christmas Eve with fair-trade food and drink to sample.
For more information on Mondomundi and to browse their wide range of eco-friendly products go to mondomundi.com/store or visit either of their out of town stores based at the Airport or in St Martins.
Issued by Brooke de Laune, Orchard PR, 01481 240600, brooke@orchardpr.com
Mondomundi's Mega Van, a 500cc diesel lightweight delivery truck has clocked up 10,000 miles, although it has taken 3 and a half years with the average journey being not much over a mile. During this time the van has managed to average a staggering 60+mpg, more than treble the mileage that other delivery vehicles, saving over 300 gallons of fuel in the process!!
Over 600 21st Century Leaders in the worlds of fashion, film, television, music and sport, have donated their original artworks and signed messages of hope for the future, to join Whatever It Takes - a unique artwork campaign launched by 21st Century Leaders Foundation, charity registration no. 1061376.
Featuring these artworks on products which are designed and sold under licence worldwide, Whatever It Takes has already raised over $3,000,000 for charity.
Each Whatever it Takes product range raises a minimum amount for 21st Century Leaders Ltd., which donates its net proceeds to 21st Century Leaders Foundation for selected projects, including those nominated by the celebrity artists, in support of key global development causes – poverty alleviation, environmental conservation, and the protection of children. Click here to learn more about the causes we support.
21st Century Leaders Foundation works closely with its partners to develop products and packaging inspired by the wonderful original artworks donated by over 600 21st Century Leaders. Each product is developed in line with our environmental policy and created by manufacturers who work to our ethical trading policy.
Geneva, 22 October 2009 — ITU has given its stamp of approval to an energy-efficient one-charger-fits-all new mobile phone solution. The announcement comes as ITU lobbies hard to have the essential role of information and communication technologies (ICTs) recognized in the draft Copenhagen Agreement as a key part of the solution towards mitigating climate change.
Every mobile phone user will benefit from the new Universal Charging Solution (UCS), which enables the same charger to be used for all future handsets, regardless of make and model. In addition to dramatically cutting the number of chargers produced, shipped and subsequently discarded as new models become available, the new standard will mean users worldwide will be able to charge their mobiles anywhere from any available charger, while also reducing the energy consumed while charging.
The new UCS standard was based on input from the GSMA, which predicts a 50 per cent reduction in standby energy consumption, elimination of 51,000 tonnes of redundant chargers, and a subsequent reduction of 13.6 million tonnes in greenhouse gas emissions each year.
Director of ITU’s Telecommunication Standardization Bureau (TSB), Malcolm Johnson said: "This is a significant step in reducing the environmental impact of mobile charging, which also has the benefit of making mobile phone use more straightforward. Universal chargers are a commonsense solution that I look forward to seeing in other areas."
Standardization of the solution within ITU was completed by Study Group 5 - Environment and Climate Change, and will hasten broad adoption by industry. Based on the Micro-USB interface, UCS chargers will also include a 4-star or higher efficiency rating - up to three times more energy-efficient than an unrated charger.
Barcelona Climate Change Talks
ITU’s participation in the forthcoming UNFCCC Climate Change Talks in Barcelona (2–6 November) will stress the significance of ICTs as a major cross-sectoral tool in reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. A recent study estimated that more effective use of today’s ICTs could help reduce total global emissions by 15 per cent by 2020, representing carbon savings five times higher than the estimated emissions for the whole ICT sector in 2020.
Since the adoption of the Kyoto Protocol in December 1997, the number of ICT users has tripled worldwide, yet the importance of deploying ICTs to significantly cut emissions is not recognized in the current draft text.
Alongside partner agencies, and with the support of UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, ITU will be working closely with conference negotiators in Barcelona to ensure the text that will be presented to the Copenhagen Climate Conference acknowledges the key role of ICTs in finding solutions to the climate crisis. TSB Director Malcolm Johnson will chair an event at the Barcelona Climate Change Talks on 5 November on ‘ICTs and Climate Change’, where ITU and OECD, in partnership with the Global e-Sustainability Initiative (GeSI), will invite top decision-makers from world governments, international organizations and industry to share their views and innovative ideas on new ways of using ICTs to address climate change.
Recent high-level meetings between ITU officials and CTOs from the ICT industry have endorsed ITU’s belief that innovation and technologies are key to achieving ambitious emissions reductions, and have expressed concern that this has not yet been reflected in the draft Copenhagen text (see ‘CTOs urge ITU to lead global standards shake-up.’)
In addition, ITU Members attending the current session of ITU’s annual governing Council taking place in Geneva (20-30 October), endorsed ITU’s work on environmentally friendly technical standards, and urged national administrations to develop proposals related to the role of ICTs in mitigating climate change for incorporation in any new UN Agreement at the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.
The Fairtrade Foundation is celebrating 15 years of the FAIRTRADE Mark with news that the UK Government is to provide £12 million over the next four years in funding to Fairtrade and its international partners in the Fairtrade Labelling Organisations International (FLO) in order to scale up its work supporting farmers in developing countries to access better terms of trade in global markets.
The announcement comes as Fairtrade supporters celebrate 15 years of the FAIRTRADE Mark; the first three products certified by the Fairtrade Foundation appeared on shop shelves in 1994. The products were Green & Black’s Maya Gold chocolate, Cafédirect medium roast coffee and three varieties of Clipper tea.
“Fairtrade products are already a big part of life in the
Today, the
The UK Government investment will cover the period April 2010/11 to 2013/14 as part of an international donor consortium funding package. Other donors include Irish Aid and the Swiss Government. This landmark investment will enable Fairtrade to expand globally and key aims include:
* A 100% increase in the number of farmers in the Fairtrade system to 2.2 million.
* Programmes to increase access to Fairtrade markets for more of the hardest-to-reach producers in the lowest income countries, fragile states and conflict zones, for example Palestine, and increase further the range of Fairtrade products.
* A more than doubling of Fairtrade premiums going back to producers to invest in their own community development projects, to reach in excess of 100 million Euros per year.
* A more than three-fold increase in the global sales of Fairtrade certified products, aiming to reach a value of 9.8 billion Euros by 2014.
‘The announcement is very timely on this fifteenth anniversary and is a fitting tribute to how innovative producers, campaigners and businesses have created the most dynamic movement for better, fairer trade,’ says Harriet Lamb, Executive Director of the Fairtrade Foundation.
‘We’re delighted that, with DFID’s tremendous support, we can look forward to the next 15 years. We’ve come a long way, but there are millions of hardworking farmers, workers and their communities for whom life is a daily battle to survive – and we’re determined to tip the balance of trade in their favour. The scale and significance of this investment is a vote of confidence by the UK Government in the Fairtrade business model as a smart way for businesses and consumers to partner with producers in developing countries to tackle poverty and support more sustainable livelihoods for farmers’.
A recent analysis of published material on the impact of Fairtrade by the Natural Resources Institute, University of Greenwich found that there is a growing body of evidence of the positive impact of Fairtrade for producers in the developing world, from direct and indirect economic benefits through to improving community services as well as its role in strengthening farmers’ organisations, so that they in turn can provide more services to members and help them survive in difficult times.
One of the first Fairtrade certified producers, cocoa farmer Justino Peck, chairman of Toledo Cacao Growers Association, a farmers’ cooperative in southern
Justino says: “Fairtrade has helped us reach and trade with an international market and set a fair price for our products. We have also invested in growing our business and are currently selling all the cocoa we produce to the Fairtrade market giving us a guaranteed income with which to plan a future. The Fairtrade premium has been used to support further education and this year alone the association supported nine more children through high school.”
Today, more than 7 million people - farmers, workers and their families - across 59 developing countries benefit from the international Fairtrade system.
Today over 4,500 retail and catering products have been licensed to carry the FAIRTRADE Mark including coffee, tea, herbal teas, chocolate, cocoa, sugar, bananas, grapes, pineapples, mangoes, avocados, apples, pears, plums, grapefruit, lemons, oranges, satsumas, clementines, mandarins, lychees, coconuts, dried fruit, juices, smoothies, biscuits, cakes & snacks, honey, jams & preserves, chutney & sauces, rice, quinoa, herbs & spices, seeds, nuts & nut oil, wines, beers, rum, confectionary, muesli, cereal bars, yoghurt, ice-cream, flowers, sports balls, sugar body scrub and cotton products including clothing, homeware, cloth toys, cotton wool and olive oil.
The sixth year of Chocolate Week sponsored by Fairtrade chocolate company Divine Chocolate, 12-18 October, is upon us. The UK population consumes £37.5m worth of Fairtrade chocolate per year. This amounts to a staggering 3m kilos of Fairtrade chocolate at an average of 500g per person per year. The popularity of Fairtrade chocolate has risen year on year by 6% and in quarter one of this year we have seen a 5% rise like for like from 2008.
One of the first Fairtrade chocolate products to go on shelf was Green and Black’s Maya Gold chocolate bar 15 years ago, Divine milk chocolate followed shortly after along with other major chocolate brands. There is a plethora of Fairtrade chocolate products, a total of 480, out there from delicious speciality hand made truffles to chocolate bars, advent calendars and much more.
Indulge yourself or treat loved ones to Divine Chocolate’s white chocolate and strawberry truffles, Traidcraft’s chocolate gift pack or Oxfam’s Grand Marnier truffles gift box to list but three of the many Fairtrade chocolate gift packs available. Tuck yourself in at night with Cafédirect’s award winning drinking chocolate from San Cristobal in the Dominican Republic. Or maybe you would rather create your own beautiful chocolate desserts? Visit our recipe page at www.fairtrade.org.uk/products/recipes.aspx or Divine’s at www.divinechocolate.com/recipes/desserts.aspx and cook up a storm in the kitchen with top tips from their professional chocolatiers.
When you do enjoy Fairtrade chocolate this Chocolate Week, the chances are some of the cocoa will have been lovingly grown in Ghana by the Kuapa Kokoo co-operative. First certified in 1995, Kuapa Kokoo has nearly 50,000 members, one in three of which are women, tending family farms about the size of about six football pitches. The Fairtrade premium they earn has been invested in many different community projects such as building wells for drinking water, public toilets, and a mobile clinic to visit member’s villages. They’ve also invested in training in leadership and management and set up some other ways for women especially to earn more money, making soap and palm oil, milling corn and farming snails.
Comfort Kwaasibea, one of the many cocoa farmers says: ‘Fairtrade is a good thing. Things you take for granted may be hard to come by in Ghana. Fairtrade is good to the farmer and makes us happy. We would like to sell more cocoa to Fairtrade so more farmers can taste a better life.’
An estimated 14 million people in the developing world depend on cocoa production for their livelihoods in 30 different countries.
Show your support for Kuapa Kokoo and other Fairtrade certified cocoa farming co-operatives in the developing world by taking part in Chocolate Week this year. There are loads of exciting and fun activities going on through the week - try some of Divines delicious offerings at Liberty chocolate shop, or head over to Harrods where some of the world’s top chocolatiers will be hosting tastings and other events, visit the website at www.chocolate-week.co.uk.
World Fair Trade Day, 9 May 2009, is an international celebration of Fair Trade, with events organised worldwide. On and around the second Saturday of May every year, fair Trade organisations based in over 70 countries, along with Fair Trade shops and networks, host events to promote Fair Trade and campaign for trade justice.
Fair Trade products from producers in disadvantaged countries, including coffee and tea, clothes, jewellery and handicrafts will be showcased on this day. World Fair Trade Day began as a European movement of over 2,000 World Shops (Fair Trade shops), working together to celebrate the same day and campaign for Fair Trade and was adopted by WFTO in 2001, to promote stronger global awareness of Fair Trade. The profile has grown rapidly ever since.
This Year's Theme World Fair Trade Day 2009 is a salute to the people and organizations who have dedicated themselves to making Fair Trade what it is today, a solution not an issue. Fair Trade is not just about poverty, it's a solution to poverty, Fair Trade is not just about climate change, it's a solution to environmental degradation and bad practice. Fair Trade is not just about protest, it's about change. Change that’s long overdue. Fair Trade aims to change the economic and social structure of our world, and empowers marginalized people to help them escape the poverty trap. If adults are paid a fair price for their work, their children are able to go to school and live a healthy and full life, rather than having to work. Fair Trade not only benefits adults - it helps kids too!
In 2004, 246 million children aged between five and seventeen were child labourers, 73 million working children were less than 10 years old, 180 million worked in extremely dangerous conditions and 6.4 million children were trapped in slavery, trafficking, debt bondage, prostitution, pornography and other illicit activities. Governmental programmes are often ineffective because the root cause of child labour is not tackled: poverty. The unfair terms of trade for raw materials, crippling import tariffs in industrial countries, heavily subsidised goods from industrial countries are all practices that exclude and marginalise millions of people in the rural South. Fair Trade makes a concrete contribution to the reduction of poverty and thus tackles one of the main causes of child labour. The exciting thing about World Fair Trade Day is that it is celebrated throughout the world, and has unique perspective for wealthy countries, where the awareness of Fair Trade is rapidly growing.
On World Fair Trade Day, and often throughout the month of May, shops and the media help to bring new customers to Fair Trade promoting products which in turn promotes livelihoods for small-scale producers. IFAT's Fair Trade members use World Fair Trade Day to celebrate and communicate their vision, to the larger community, and showcase itself as the Gold Standard for Fair trade, social justice and sustainability.
If you would like to run an event to celebrate World Fair Trade Day on May 12th, no matter how small, it's a wonderful opportunity to run a Fair Trade fashion show, or arrange a Fair Trade brunch with friends, or arrange for some materials and catalogues to be sent, to pass around your office. Do get in touch with your local Fairtrade organizations and shops to see how you can get in involved.