Fair Trade Universities: Australia’s First Awarded
Macquarie University (MU) in Sydney and RMIT University in Melbourne have become the Australia’s first Fair Trade Universities.
To acknowledge Macquarie’s Fair Trade standing, they were today presented with their Fair Trade accreditation certificate. As an Alumni and previous Marketing Manager of Macquarie’s Business School, MGSM, I am particularly pleased with this achievement.
To become an accredited Fair Trade Community, Macquarie University had to meet a number of requirements including the availability of Fairtrade certified products at food outlets on campus, use of Fair Trade products by the University and a commitment to Fair Trade growth. In fact, Fairtrade certified coffee went on sale on campus in 2006 and now MU sell only Fairtrade certified tea and coffee.
The University’s Director of Sustainability, Leanne Denby said, “To have our efforts towards social justice and equity recognised through Fair Trade certification is fantastic. We can thank the passion of our students for ensuring the uptake of Fair Trade products happened so quickly. We will continue to expand our range of Fair Trade products in the interest of a better quality of life for all.”
The decision to become a Fair Trade Community is part of the broader Macquarie University vision for Sustainability – of becoming ecologically sound, socially just and economically viable in all of our activities, for which they have established key indicators and targets.
This achievement also places Australia on the international stage, with Fair Trade universities in the UK and the USA – the 2 largest Fairtrade markets globally (Source: http://www.fairtrade.net/). In the UK, Oxford Brookes University became the first Fairtrade University in 2003. There are now over 70 Fairtrade Universities and Colleges in the UK, with many more working towards status. There is also an Annual Fairtrade Universities and Colleges Conference, with the purpose of giving delegates the opportunity to find out more about the scheme, share ideas and meet with Fairtrade companies. In the US, the first Fairtrade University was awarded to University of Wisconsin Oshkosh in September last year.
To celebrate their achievement, MU has just concluded a 2-day Fair Trade Fair on campus including speakers, demonstrations and Fairtrade coffee stalls. It is great that students are learning about Fairtrade and having the opportunity to enjoy delicious Fairtrade products. They can then continue their support for Fairtrade beyond the walls of the university.
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