Sustainable Consumption

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Sustainable Consumption Fair Trade

• Introduction
• The Challenges
• Sustainable Consumption
• Fair Trade
• Pathways To Action
• Conclusion
• Questions

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1. Introduction

• Trade and the production and exchange of goods /
  services as old as humanity
• How, what, and why vital for achieving
  sustainable communities
• Look at the challenges and responses
  sustainable consumption fair trade
• Inform, inspire and equip to take action
• Inform on key issues and provide links to further
  information
• Inspire, equip with pathways to action on
  existing projects or new ones
• Links to your assessment pieces personal
  change, informing / inspiring each other, action
  / reflection

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2. The Challenges

• Local sustainable communities impacted /
  restricted by convergence of dominant global
  systems and paradigms
• 4 key mechanisms / paradigms / memes
• Globalisation of finance and markets
• Economic rationalism / paradigm
• Free trade
• Citizens consumers

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2. The Challenges - Globalisation

• Globalisation of finance and markets
• WTO, WIPO, WEF governance and regulation by
  nation states and business
• No global civic governance to protect social,
  environmental and cultural goods
• UN nation states
• Unequal power
• Civic catching up WSF, Int NGOs, web and
  information dissemination / organising

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2. The Challenges Economic Rationalism

• Trade, power, wealth, production, exchange, work
  were all TOOLS towards outcomes humans value,
  e.g. happiness, security, food, shelter, water,
  meaningful activity, community belongingness
• For many, they are no longer MEANS but ENDS in
  themselves
• Economic interests above all others reflect on
  the last Australian election
• Accumulation and protection of power and wealth /
  unserviceable debt

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2. The Challenges Free Trade

• In the context of economic rationalism, free
  trade and the market have become key paradigms
  / memes
• Free trade assumes
• Level playing field
• No (dis)advantage conferred by experience,
  position, history
• Perfect information on goods and services
• Convergence of media, government business
  interests impact on information
• Fair trade, sustainability, poverty eradication
  used as arguments for free trade, market
  liberalisation

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2. The Challenges Citizens consumers

• Previous 3 challenges make our most important
  role that of consumer
• Labour also important, generates our income to
  purchase goods / services while also producing
  them
• Consumer confidence, economic slowdown, interest
  rates, recession, quarterly profit figures,
  shareholdings, superannuation
• Example September 11 2001

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2. The Challenges Further Reading

• Books
• George Monbiot, Age of Consent
• Braithwaite Drahos, Global Business Regulation
• Drahos Braithwaite, Information Feudalism
• Jared Diamond, Collapse
• Ken Wilber, A Brief History of Everything
• Online
• www.richardneville.com
• www.icstd.org /monthly/index.htm
• www.unmillenniumproject.org
• www.maketradefair.com
• www.monbiot.com

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3. Sustainable Consumption

• Consumption a political act the challenges
  rest on playing our role
• SC changes the game
• Definition?

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3. Sustainable Consumption

• Efficient and accurate information
• Cycles of sustainable consumption and production
• Tackling dominant paradigm head on media,
  advertising, profits, economic primacy
• Reducing ecological footprint, food miles, no
  sweat shop, fair trade, product labelling
• Access to clean water, human rights, food,
  shelter, health care

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3. Sustainable Consumption

• Source www.adbusters.org

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3. Sustainable Consumption

• Source www.adbusters.org

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3. Sustainable Consumption

• Source www.adbusters.org

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3. Sustainable Consumption

• Aust Govt National Youth Affairs Research Scheme
  funded research on enabling young people as
  effective change agents for more sustainable
  consumption in their communities
• IYPF Griffith University collaboration
• Review of academic and policy-related literature,
  including techniques to empower young people and
  a review of sustainable consumption tools and
  strategies
• A national youth survey (224 respondents)
  face-to-face discussions with key youth reps and
  informed young people
• The design and implementation of a Capacity
  Building for Sustainable Consumption Change
  Agents in Australia program, which included 5
  sustainable consumption workshops
• A review of a wide range of good practice case
  studies
• A discussion of sustainable consumption policies
  and implications for youth sector policy
  implementation
• See www.iypf.org/IYPF-projects.htm

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4. Fair Trade

• Sustainable consumption, responding to
  globalisation, free trade, market liberalisation
  
• Innovative market-based approach to making rules
  of the global economy and trade work for
  disadvantaged and vulnerable producers in
  developing countries
• Establishes direct links with consumers
• Fair and stable price for products
• Support services, capacity building
• Investment in social, environmental and economic
  development, paid for by developed country
  consumers

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4. Fair Trade

• Fair Trade is a trading partnership, based on
  dialogue, transparency and respect, that seeks
  greater equity in international trade. It
  contributes to sustainable development by
  offering better trading conditions to, and
  securing the rights of, marginalized producers
  and workers - especially in the South. Fair Trade
  organizations (backed by consumers) are engaged
  actively in supporting producers, awareness
  raising and in campaigning for changes in the
  rules and practice of conventional international
  trade." (FINE)

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4. Fair Trade

• Global Fair Trade
• 2 International Fair Trade Networks
• Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International
  (FLO) www.fairtrade.net
• Product Labelling
• International Federation of Alternative Trade
  (IFAT) www.ifat.org
• Organisational system
• For more information on fair trade in Australia,
  see www.fta.org.au

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4. Fair Trade

• FLO Fairtrade System - Standards, Certification
  and Labelling
• 20 national Fairtrade Labelling Organisations
• More than 375 FLO certified producer
  organisations in 48 producing countries
• Over 800,000 producers
• Including dependents 5 million people affected
• More than 249 FLO registered companies worldwide
• Over 100 companies in 20 countries are licensed
  to use the Fairtrade label
• Number of product categories is growing rapidly
  to meet market demand (mainly in Europe)
• COFFEE - More than 190 Fairtrade certified
  producers, 670 000 farmers, 24 countries

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4. Fair Trade

• Fairtrade Labelled products represent
• For producers
• A fairer deal in a globalised market
• An effective tool for autonomous development
  through trade
• For consumers
• An informed choice in (mainstream) shopping
  behaviour
• Consumers responsibility empowerment

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4. Fair Trade

• Producer standards
• Structure Minimum and progress criteria (devt
  approach)
• Criteria include
• Democracy, Participation of members / workers and
  Transparency
• Non Discrimination
• Economic strengthening of organisation
• Environmental Protection
• Freedom of Association
• Conditions of Employment, Health and Safety
• Two types of standards small holder and hired
  labour
• Generic Environmental Standards as of 1 Jan 06

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4. Fair Trade

• Trading standards
• Fairtrade Minimum Price (not for all products,
  e.g. coffee vs tea)
• Premium to invest in social, economic or
  environmental projects
• Pre-financing
• Medium/long term commitment
• Transparency in the whole trade chain
• Producing Country
• Producer Processor Exporter
• Consuming Country
• Importer Manufacturer Licensee

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4. Fair Trade
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5. Pathways to Action

• Inform and educate yourself and others
• Sustainable Consumption
• Youth Sustainable Consumption project in ACT
• Personal / collective projects for more
  sustainable consumption
• Fair Trade
• Buy fair trade, educate those around you
• Join / start fair trade groups or projects

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6. Conclusion

• Big challenges reinforcing and interrelated
  global systems of power, paradigms and memes
• Important, innovative and powerful initiatives to
  transform role of consumer and use methods of the
  powerful to achieve good social, environmental
  and economic outcomes
• Opportunities to engage with these initiatives
  for creating more sustainable communities for
  ourselves and others are many and varied - range
  from buying differently, to community education,
  to capacity building domestically and in
  developing countries

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7. Questions