Fairtrade Fortnight has been launched in Bristol with Mayor George Ferguson signing one of the UK's first International Fair Trade Post-2015 Declarations.
The move supports the inclusion of fair trade in the next UN development goals to end extreme poverty when the Millennium Development Goals expire in 2015.
The mayor was joined at the ceremony by civic leaders including the Lord Mayor, the Lord Lieutenant of Bristol, the chair of South Gloucestershire Council and city council cabinet members.
Also at the event was Agueda Ordenana, a Fairtrade honey producer from Nicaragua, who is visiting Bristol. She told the gathered dignitaries that the extra income from Fairtrade has been used to buy school equipment and for scholarships for students to go to university, including her eldest daughter.
Fairtrade has also enabled her, as a single mother, to support her family. Agueda’s visit is hosted by Bristol Link with Nicaragua and supported by The Co-operative. During Fairtrade Fortnight, Agueda will speak in schools to more than 2,000 local children at number events.
Children from Sefton Park and Bristol Cathedral Choir schools joined the celebrations, bringing cakes and biscuits they made from Nicaraguan Fairtrade honey.
Mr Ferguson said: “I am a passionate believer in Fairtrade and fair reward for producers, and am proud of Bristol’s role as a champion for the movement. I am very happy to be the first leader in this region to sign the International Fair Trade declaration emphasising its importance in tackling poverty across the world.”
For full details see www.bristolfairtrade.org.uk and http://bristolnicaragua.wordpress.com/
Pictured: Mayor of Bristol George Ferguson signs the Post 2015 Fair Trade Declaration, supported by the Lord Mayor Peter Main and Nicaraguan Fairtrade honey producer Agueda Ordenana. Photo: Jon Craig
