Happy (still) summer everybody! This month in the Fair Trade Roundup, there’s lots to share. So sit back, grab a cup of Fair Trade tea (or coffee, or vodka:) and catch up on what’s going on in the world of Fair Trade.

NATIONAL S’MORES LABOR DAY ACTION MONDAY

September 3, Labor Day, is the National S’mores Day of Action. So this Monday, join us in blitzing Hershey’s Facebook page with photos of Fair Trade s’mores eaters holding messages urging Hershey to end child labor and poverty in the cocoa fields.

Click here for directions on how to post photos to Hershey’s Facebook page.

Leading up to this day of action, we’ve almost reached our goal of registering 1000 fair trade s’mores by Labor Day. (We’re at 823 and counting!) We need your help to reach our goal by Labor Day. It’s not too late to register your s’mores!

While our goal is to reach 1,000 registered Fair Trade s’mores BY Labor Day, our goal ON Labor Day is to see a Hershey Facebook page covered in Fair Trade S’mores photos. Won’t you join us?

Here’s how to take part in National S’mores Day of Action:

1) Share Photo on Hershey’s Facebook: Photograph your Fair Trade s’mores festivities anytime now, then post photos of your action to Hershey’s Facebook page on Sept. 3rd. Directions on how to do this are here.

2) How to Register Your S’mores: Simply go to this page and enter your s’mores count.

Chain stitch pillows from India, on sale now!

GLOBAL EXCHANGE STORES ROCK BIGGEST SALE OF THE YEAR

All Global Exchange stores are having a sale right now. Through Aug. 31 shoppers can save 50% OFF selected items. But it gets better. Saturday, Sept. 1st through Monday (Labor Day) Sept. 3rd the savings jump to 75% OFF!

What’s on sale? Oh, a variety of items, including housewares, bedding, decorative art pieces, handbags, jewelry and lots more. Our SF store posted some photos of a few of the sale items if you care to peek.

Why the big sale? To make room for all the new items coming in. So stop by any GX Fair Trade Store location now through Labor Day to save big. I’ll be there, grabbing some early holiday gifts while they’re on sale, cuz, you know, every bit helps when it comes to saving!

FAIR TRADE YOUR HALLOWEEN

Halloween, you say? But it’s barely September! Yes, it’s true, summer isn’t over, but autumn is coming up quickly, the kids are back in school, and Halloween will be here before you know it. This year Global Exchange is working with partner organizations to present to you, Fair Trade Your Halloween– 31 days of Fair Trade Actions!

That’s all I’m going to share at this point, but stay tuned for details about how together we can make October an extraordinary time to spread the word about Fair Trade.

Details about this exciting month of activities will be coming soon; Subscribe to our Fair Trade blog to receive updates about this and other Fair Trade news.

Graphic credit: Fair for Life

FAIR FOR LIFE RECOGNIZED BY FAIR TRADE TOWNS

In an email sent out earlier this month, Fair Trade Towns’ USA National Coordinator Billy Linstead Goldsmith announced:

On behalf of the Fair Trade Towns USA National Steering Committee I am happy to share the news with you that the Fair for Life label, certified by IMO (the Institute for Marketecology), will now officially be included in Fair Trade Towns USA’s criteria.

 After much research and careful consideration, the National Steering Committee has concluded that the Fair for Life program meets many rigorous standards that are crucial to Fair Trade. From delivering impact to producers and farmers to evaluating the business practices of the companies using its label, Fair for Life indicates that strict criteria have been met to empower producers and protect the environment.

GREEN & BLACK’S FIRST GLOBAL BRAND TO ANNOUNCE PARTNERSHIP WITH FAIRTRADE INTERNATIONAL IN THE USA

Green & Black’s, one of the world’s leading manufacturers of organic Fairtrade chocolate, just announced plans to partner with Fairtrade International in the USA.

From Fairtrade International press release:

Green & Black’s is the first major global brand to announce it will carry Fairtrade International’s FAIRTRADE Certification Mark in the USA. The move further emphasizes Green & Black’s commitment to Fairtrade which benefits farming communities in developing countries, including cocoa farmers in the Dominican Republic and Belize and sugar farmers in Paraguay.

Photo Credit: Fair Trade Federation

TWO UPCOMING FAIR TRADE CONFERENCES 

1) Fair Trade Federation Annual Conference 2013

The Fair Trade Federation (FTF) has announced the dates for the 2013 FTF Annual Conference.  FTF reports:

The FTF is headed south. Join us for three days of fair trade fun in Raleigh, North Carolina. Mark your calendars now, and stay tuned for more details in the coming weeks. Want a sense of what you can look forward to?  Notes from our 2012 conference are available online.

2) Fair Trade Towns Conference

Registration is now open for the Fair Trade Campaigns Conference 2012 taking place October 26 – 28, 2012 in Chicago, IL.

Fair Trade Towns USA describes the conference:

The conference will bring together leaders and organizers from Fair Trade Towns and Fair Trade Colleges & Universities campaigns at all stages, as well as newcomers to the Fair Trade movement. The goal of this conference is to deepen the local grassroots commitment to Fair Trade around the US and build partnerships locally that help facilitate life-changing benefits for farmers, workers and artisans in Africa, Asia, and Latin America & the Caribbean.

Register here for the Fair Trade Campaigns Conference or click here for more info.

ARTICLES OF INTEREST

• The Nation: The Brawl Over Fair Trade Coffee
• Fast Company: Fair Trade USA’s CEO On Being A Better Social Entrepreneur
• The Independent: Harriet Lamb: Fairtrade moves to next level: Head of the Fairtrade Foundation is signing up big business to her ethical fight
• Brandon Sun: Olympics go green and fair trade
• Co.exist: A GPS Social Enterprise Finder To Find The Best Businesses Near You
• Fast Company: Find The Child Slaves Hiding In The Grocery Store
• Fair Trade at Penn State Brandywine: Seeking Ethical Chocolate – A Fair Trade S’more Event!

THE FAIR TRADE ROUNDUP AND YOU!
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•    News to share? If you’ve got big Fair Trade news to share, email me.
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On Labor Day, join activists from around the country in a fun Facebook action to demand that Hershey‘s and the rest of the cocoa industry END the grinding poverty and abusive child labor in the cocoa fields…by making a statement with s’mores!

We are close to our goal of making at least 1000 Fair Trade S’mores by Labor Day on Sept 3. Will you help us?

Here’s how:
1. Dig into some s’mores: Now through Labor Day weekend, include Fair Trade s’mores in your barbeques and campfires, or plan a We Want More from Our S’mores picnic in the park (or in the kitchen) or other event with friends, family, coworkers, or neighbors. Check out these videos to see how much fun you’ll have.
2. Let the s’mores be counted! Count the s’mores you eat and register them online.
3. Collect petition signatures: During your s’mores gathering, collect signatures on petitions asking Hershey to step up and become Fair Trade Certified.

Then On Sept. 3rd, participate in the National S’mores Day of Action!

Here’s a screenshot of the s’mores pic that Tex shared on Hershey’s Facebook page.

On Sept 3, we’ll have a Day of Action where we’ll blitz Hershey’s Facebook page with our important message that we want fairness now!

To get involved, photograph your Fair Trade s’mores festivities anytime now, then post photos of the action to Hershey’s Facebook page on Sept. 3rd.

If you don’t have a camera, (or you’re on a diet:) no worries. We’ve been collecting photos all summer long, so feel free to use one from our Facebook page. You can find them here and here.

Can’t wait until Labor Day? Once you’ve registered your s’mores, feel free to post your photo to Hershey’s Facebook page anytime, though on Sept. 3rd is the ideal time if you want to join others for the Day of Action.

Here’s how to post your own photo to Hershey’s Facebook page:

Via mobile: Take a photo with any mobile device that allows you to Share on Facebook, go to Hershey’s Facebook page and post your photo and comment to the Hershey’s Facebook Wall.

Via personal computer:

1. Log in to your Facebook account;
2. Go to Hershey’s Facebook page and click “LIKE”;
3. On the left-hand side click “photo/video” then “Upl0ad Photo/Video” then “Browse”;
4. Find the photo on your computer that you want to Share and double click it;
5. Write a comment, e.g. “Hershey stop using child slave labor/go fair trade” — you can get ideas from this page: http://www.raisethebarhershey.org/why-hershey/;
6. Hit “post” and watch your photo and comment appear on the Hershey Facebook page! And don’t worry, you can “unlike” the Hershey Facebook page after your post has been up for a while.

Here’s how to post a Global Exchange photo to Hershey’s Facebook page:

1. Go to one of our Facebook s’mores photo folders (here and here) to find a photo you like, then click on it to open it up;
2. Save to your desktop (mac users click, hold and drag the photo onto your desktop, pc can right click and click ‘save’);
3. Log in to your Facebook account;
4. Go to Hershey’s Facebook page and click “LIKE”;
5. On the left-hand side click “photo/video” then “Upl0ad Photo/Video” then “Browse”;
   
6. Find your saved photo on your desktop and double click it;
7. Write a comment, e.g. “Hershey stop using child slave labor/go fair trade” — you can get ideas from this page: http://www.raisethebarhershey.org/why-hershey/;
8. Hit “post” and watch your photo and comment appear on the Hershey Facebook page! And don’t worry, you can “unlike” the Hershey Facebook page after your post has been up for a while.

Together we can make a difference! Here’s to 1,000 registered s’mores and a Hershey’s Facebook page filled with all of our Fair Trade s’mores photos on September 3rd!

Together our delicious s’mores will help raise awareness and hold Hershey accountable for failing to eliminate child and forced labor from its supply chain and encourage the company to achieve Fair Trade certification.

As part of this unique nationwide action, we’ve decided our goal is to register 1,000+ Fair Trade s’mores this summer. You can help, see below for details.

Fair Trade S’mores at SF Mime Troupe

Last week on the 4^th of July Global Exchange held a s’mores event at the opening show of the famous San Francisco Mime Troupe, a theatre of political satire which performs free shows in parks in the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond. The Mime Troupe estimates 3000-4000 people attended the 4^th of July show this year.

Over at the Global Exchange table, staff and volunteers were visited by about 50 adults and kids who stopped by to roast vegan marshmallows and make s’mores using Equal Exchange Fair Trade chocolate and organic graham crackers, and have their photos taken with signs urging Hershey to go Fair Trade and end forced child labor.

Global Exchange staff and interns working the SF Mime Troupe table

Definitely a tasty tactic to bring this very important message to Hershey’s headquarters! The pictures say it all; check them out on our Facebook page.

“Mime Troupe audiences are a great group to inform about Hershey’s use of child labor,” said Jenny White, Global Exchange volunteer. “We couldn’t handle people fast enough in the hour and a half before the show started.  A number of people signed our petition too.”

Jenny White, Global Exchange volunteer, at the SF Mime Troupe 4th of July S’mores Action

Those are the best s’mores I ever ate,” said 7 year Guillermo Krebs-Alonzo of San Francisco. “That’s because the chocolate wasn’t made by children who should be in school, not working,” added his grandmother, Gloria Alonzo.

The best part, aside from enjoying tasty Fair Trade s’mores is that photos from the action will be posted on Hershey’s Facebook page, (which is currently promoting s’mores made with Hershey’s chocolate), flooding the fan page with messages demanding that Hershey once and for all go Fair Trade in its cocoa harvesting and production.

Want to make your voice heard and your sweet tooth sing?  You still have time to catch us at 2 more Mime Troupe Performances, this Sunday, July 15th at Cedar Wood Park in Berkeley; and Sunday, August 5th, at Live Oak Park in Berkeley.

GET YOUR S’MORES ON!

You can help share this important Fair Trade message with Hershey and contribute to Global Exchange’s goal of making at least 1,000 Fair Trade S’mores between the Fourth of July and Labor Day weekend.

How to participate:

1. Include Fair Trade s’mores in your barbeques and campfires this summer. Or plan a We Want More from Our S’mores picnic in the park (or in the kitchen) or other event with friends, family, coworkers, or the neighborhood.
2. Let the s’mores be counted! Count the s’mores you eat and register them online.
3. Collect petition signatures asking Hershey to step up and become Fair Trade Certified during your s’mores gatherings.
4. Share a photo on Hershey’s Facebook page. Whether you take and upload your own or share one of Global Exchange’s photos, don’t forget to share it, along with your message, on Hershey’s Facebook page. A picture is worth a thousand words.

It’s summertime – time for some Fair Trade s’mores!

Join activists nationwide in calling on Hershey and the rest of the cocoa industry to END grinding poverty and abusive child labor in the cocoa fields…by making a statement with our s’mores!

Your delicious s’mores will help raise awareness and hold Hershey accountable for failing to eliminate child and forced labor from its supply chain and encourage the company to achieve Fair Trade certification.

Please help the Fair Trade cocoa campaign reach the goal of making at least 1,000 Fair Trade S’mores starting this Fourth of July through Labor Day weekend.

How to participate:

1. Include Fair Trade s’mores in your barbeques and campfires this summer. Or plan a We Want More from Our S’mores picnic in the park (or in the kitchen) or other event with friends, family, coworkers, or the neighborhood.  
2. Let the s’mores be counted! Count the s’mores you eat and register them online.
3. Collect petition signatures asking Hershey to step up and become Fair Trade Certified during your s’mores gatherings.
4. Screen The Dark Side of Chocolate. Before or after you make your tasty Fair Trade s’mores, show this film to educate others about child labor in the cocoa fields.

Get more resources, including where to purchase Fair Trade certified chocolate for your s’mores, a Fair Trade campfire song, suggestions for summer camp counselors and youth group leaders to integrate We Want More from Our S’mores and other Fair Trade activities into summer programming.

Don’t have a camera? Are on a diet?
No worries – just download a photo of one of our Fair Trade s’mores eaters and share it along, with your message, to Hershey’s Facebook page wall.

Stayed tuned to our Fair Trade blog as we report on our S’mores action throughout the summer. Subscribe via RSS and the fresh content will come to you!

Despite the heat, many people turned up at our booth to demand “We Want More from our S’mores!” Visitors cooked up S’mores and posed with signs such as “Hershey: Children are More Important than Chocolate!”

Global Exchange and our Raise the Bar Hershey Campaign allies have been pressing Hershey to end child labor in its cocoa supply chain and start sourcing Fair Trade certified cocoa.

Global Exchangers Kirsten and Jenny taking part in the action

This summer we are once again calling on Hershey and the rest of the cocoa industry to END grinding poverty and abusive child labor in the cocoa fields…by making a statement with our S’mores!

That’s why last weekend we took to the heat and served up Fair Trade S’mores. Lots of people joined in for some delicious fun in the sun.

Check out the S’mores pictures! Photos from the day are on our Facebook page.

TAKE ACTION!

• Send a petition to Hershey CEO John Bilbrey saying…Raise the Bar Hershey! We Will Not Tolerate Child or Forced Labor in Cocoa!

• Plan your own S’mores action: Download this step-by-step checklist available here. 

Elizabeth O'Connell (left), Jasper (right) with fellow youth activist

The following is a guest blog post by Elizabeth O’Connell of the Raise the Bar, Hershey Coalition:

“Valentine’s Day in Hershey”

Very early, and not quite yet bright, we jumped in the car and headed north…for Hershey, PA.  At 9:00am we met Jasper Perry-Anderson, a Philadelphia eighth grader who created an online petition encouraging the company to increase its commitment to ethically sourced cocoa to prevent abusive child labor on the cocoa farms from where it sources.

Jasper holding petitions for Hershey

In just two weeks, Jasper’s petition on Change.org gained more than 16,000 signatures from individuals around the world.  In addition to the petitions  we delivered more than 500 Valentines made by kids for the members of the Hershey Trust.  These Valentines were made by students from across the country, though largely from New York State thanks to NYSUT  and the New York Labor Religion Coalition.  The Valentines contained statements like “This Valentine’s Day, I want to give my Valentine chocolate from laborers who have earned fair wages” and “We have feelings and so do Africa’s kids. They suffer.”

Cathy O’Brien accepting petitions and valentines from Jasper on behalf of Hershey Trust

Cathy O’Brien, an employee of the Trust, accepted the petitions and valentines on behalf of the the Trust.

Simultaneously, on the other side of the country, 56 seventh and eighth graders delivered Valentines to the Chairman of the Trust, Robert Cavanaugh, at his real estate office in Los Angeles, CA.  Mr. Cavanaugh accepted the petitions.

For two years we (Raise the Bar, Hershey Coalition) have called on The Hershey Company’s executives and board to take meaningful action to prevent child labor throughout their supply chain. With little progress, we have taken it up a notch.  The Hershey Trust is in charge of the Hershey school, controls approximately eighty percent of the voting shares of The Hershey Company, and holds several seats on the company’s board of directors.

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More on this:

In Jasper’s own words: “Mr. Hershey established the Milton Hershey School and School Trust to provide full-time education and care for disadvantaged children. As the majority stockholder of Hershey’s Chocolate Company, the Hershey Trust also needs to do more to take care of the children in West African it’s exploiting for profit.”

The actions today were coordinated by Raise the Bar, Hershey!, a coalition of organizations fighting ongoing labor abuses such as child labor, forced labor and trafficking in the cocoa industry. The campaign has involved over one hundred thousand consumers who voiced their concerns to Hershey about the company’s child labor practices.

Raise the Bar, Hershey! is led by the following organizations: Global Exchange, Green America, International Labor Rights Forum and Labor Religion Coalition of New York State.

Take Action!

• Sign the petition: It’s not too late to sign Jasper’s Petition. Have a happy and just Valentines Day!
• Check out the Valentines: Visit our Facebook page to see some of the Valentines that were dropped off to Hershey today, and a few photos as well

Colored-in Valentine for Hershey

Valentine’s Day is a major chocolate buying holiday, but gifts for your sweetheart should not come at the expense of worker rights. Forced labor, child labor and trafficking continue in the cocoa industry in West Africa.

Here’s how YOU can make a difference:

Tell Hershey to Have a Heart

Make Valentines for members of the Hershey trust calling on Hershey to end child labor, forced labor and human trafficking in its cocoa supply.

• Create your own personalized Valentine telling Hershey to use Fair Trade cocoa for its products, like the iconic chocolate Kiss. Address your valentine to Hershey Trust at 100 Crystal A Drive, Hershey, PA 17033. Please mail your Valentines to Hershey by February 17, 2012.
• You can also download a Valentine to color and send here.
• If you make your own Valentine, please scan it and send the image to the Fair Trade Project at fairtrade@globalexchange.org. We’ll post some of our favorites online.

Why Hershey? Almost all major chocolate companies have begun to commit to using independent, third-party programs to certify that their cocoa suppliers comply with international labor standards, but Hershey continues to lag behind the industry.

Collect signatures on the Raise the Bar Hershey petition calling on Hershey to eliminate the child labor, forced labor and trafficking in their cocoa supply. Download a petition here.

Make your Valentine chocolate Fair Trade!

Fair Trade provides a solution to global economic injustice! Fair Trade principles include a fair price for producers, the prohibition of child labor, community development, environmental sustainability and direct relationships between consumers and producers. See Green America’s chocolate scorecard.

Host a Screening of The Dark Side of Chocolate

You can raise awareness by hosting a screening of The Dark Side of Chocolate in your school or community. This important documentary exposes the ongoing use of trafficked child labor in the cocoa industry. Visit our Dark Side of Chocolate page to obtain a copy and toolkit, including discussion guide and background information. Visit Fair Trade Towns USA to download a list of more films about Fair Trade.

Educate students about Fair Trade in the classroom with these Fair Trade curricula resources. These classroom activities are great for audiences of ALL ages.

Give a Global Exchange Valentine Gift Membership.

Show your love of social justice by giving those you love a Global Exchange Valentine’s Day gift of membership. (Hurry, these are available only while supplies last, and they’re going quickly!)

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Happy Valentine’s Day, from all of us here at Global Exchange!

The holiday season always seems to take over like a train barreling down the tracks faster than you can control. You want to live up to your values, appreciate your friends and family and have fun during this season.  Here are five ways you can accomplish all three:

Equal Exchange Singing a Fair Trade Carol

1) Fair Trade Caroling is a great way to share the message of Fair Trade with your neighbors and community, so put on your Santa hat and have some fun!

To get you in the spirit, here are some clips of carolers making music and sharing the ideals of Fair Trade:

• Equal Exchange Carolers
  
• Teen Carolers in the News
• Fair Trade USA Carolers
• Granny Carolers
• Global Exchange Carolers

Ready to Start Caroling? Great, here’s all you need to know: First, download lyrics from our web site or make up your own. Next gather your carolers and start singing. Don’t forget to film it and send us the short video clip link of your Fair Trade Caroling adventure so we can share it with the world.

Fair Trade Gift Membership Package

2) Shop Fair Trade.  Yes you probably had thought of that, but did you know there is a way to give a Fair Trade gift that won’t take up much space in your friends tiny apartment but will still make a big difference in the lives of small producers and farmers? It’s true. Simply give a Fair Trade Membership Gift Package. Your gift supports Global Exchange’s Fair Trade program and commitment to growing the Fair Trade movement and includes all sorts of cool perks. Check it out online here!

Of course, if you are looking for unique Fair Trade products, pop by one of our Bay Area or DC stores to find a wide selection of Fair Trade products. Or use the Fair Trade Federation product locator http://www.fairtradefederation.org/ to search for Fair Trade products throughout the US.

3) Petition Hershey– With all those bowls of chocolates at holiday parties wouldn’t  it be nice to be able to nibble without worrying about whether a child’s forced labor was used to produce it?  Over 50,000 signatures have been collected encouraging Hershey’s to “Raise the Bar” by making the switch and they have heard us. We’d like to reach 100,000 by Valentine’s Day. Add your name here.

4) Bake Something Delicious – Instead of Hershey’s kisses or guilty gelt in your stocking, try making your own delicious Fair trade treat – Here is a recipe for Zarah’s own mud pie as featured in our sister organization CodePink’s cookbook Peace Never Tasted So Sweet:

Fair Trade Mud Pie

Pie Crust:
1 1/2 cup vanilla wafer crumbs
1/4 cup Fair Trade cocoa powder
1/3 cup Fair Trade powdered sugar
6 tablespoons melted margarine

Mix all ingredients thoroughly and press it into a 9 inch pie plate. Bake at 350F for 8 minutes. Cool.

Pie:
1 cup Fair Trade powdered sugar
1 cup (6oz) Fair Trade semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1 teaspoon organic vanilla extract
3/4 cup chopped nuts (Fair Trade almonds)
1 1/2-2 pints Fair Trade coffee ice cream (Ben & Jerrys!) make sure it is slightly softened. [If you want, can make one pint FT chocolate, one pint FT coffee ice cream. !! yum]
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter

Heat up the FT sugar, FT chocolate chips, butter, cream & corn syrup in a small heavy duty saucepan over low heat. Stir constantly until butter is melted and the mixture is smooth. (Can look online for good tips on how to melt chocolate and get to a good consistency.)
Once smooth, remove it from heat and stir in the organic vanilla. Cool it down until it is slightly warm.

Drizzle 1/3 cup of chocolate mixture in bottom of crust, sprinkle FT chopped almonds. Layer 1/2-1 pint of FT coffee ice cream, using thin scoops. Freeze for one hour to one hour and a half.
Repeat layering with remaining mixture, nuts and ice cream until ingredients gone or no more room in pie crust.

Freeze for two more hours or until pie is firm then enjoy! You have yourself and Fair Trade mud pie. Yum.

5) Be Generous – It’s been a rough year, many of us don’t have a lot of money to spare, but generosity of spirit enriches. Donate what you can afford to your favorite Fair Trade organization or if you can’t do that, share your time, your attention and your good energy.

What else haven’t we thought of? Share your Fair Trade holiday ideas that we’ve left out.