Two in five Irish consumers said that they would be more likely to buy a product with the Fairtrade Mark than a similar product without it. In the same survey carried out earlier this year, three in five consumers strongly agreed that fairer trade with people in developing countries is important.
Commenting on the survey, Peter Gaynor, coordinator with Fairtrade Mark Ireland said that the challenge is to convert this support for Fairtrade into a reality by having more Fairtrade Mark products available. According to Margaret Boden of Christian Aid Ireland: "millions of people in Third World countries are poor, not because they are lazy - or don't produce anything - but, because, like with coffee, they often receive prices that don't even cover the cost of producing it. We can do something practical by asking our local coffee shops and workplaces to use Fairtrade coffee." Currently, world market prices for coffee are $0.50 cents per pound of green coffee. The Fairtrade minimum price is $1.26. Basic cost of producing coffee in Guatemala, for instance, is $0.70 cents per pound. The Federation of Coffee Cooperatives of Small Producers in Guatemala, which represents 20,000 small producers, sells 10 per cent of its coffee on Fairtrade Mark terms.
At the annual Fairtrade fortnight earlier this month, Fairtrade Mark orange, tropical and breakfast juices from Cuba (www.fruit-passion.com) were launched on the Irish market. Cuban farmer Carlos Ovíva is hoping Fairtrade will enable his co-operative to buy irrigation pumps and renovate the homes of workers. As well as guaranteed fair prices, the growers are paid a social premium to be used for the benefit of the community. Fairtrade is a registered Third World charity. Tel: 01-4753515. See www.fair-mark.org
• Sustainable communities, green architecture, the local economy, globalisation, renewable energy, spirituality and fair trade will all be discussed at the third annual Convergence Festival in Dublin's Temple Bar which begins next Saturday. This year's highlights include the Sustainable Communities Exhibition at ENFO (St. Andrews Street) mounted by the Irish eco-village project, The Village; Green Map tours of Temple Bar (noon on Saturday, April 6th and 2 p.m. Saturday, April 13th; meet at the Project arts centre); the Sustainability Forum (Tuesday, April 9th, 2 p.m., in the Project); Greening Dublin - creating a vision for a greener and healthier Dublin (Thursday, April 11th, 2.30 p.m. in the Project); Ecological Building for a Better World, a conference in which green architects and designers share their experiences (Saturday, April 13th, from 10 a.m. in the Project) and the Earth Fair, a family fun day with workshops, talks, demonstrations and music (11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sunday, April 14th). Booking: 01-8819613; festival information: 01-4912327/www.sustainable.ie (See this page next week for interviews with speakers at the Convergence Festival.)
• Woodland walks, boat trips on the lakes of Killarney, visits to Muckross House and Arboretum and guided walks to see roosting bats - these are the nature treats in store for participants of the Killarney National Park Education Centre Spring School. Running between April 19thand 21st, the spring school will have a host of well-known environmental experts - including broadcaster, Éanna Ní Lamhna - leading walks and giving talks. Cost €85 (spring school events only) and €211/€311 including shared/single accommodation in the Lake Hotel (special offers also available; for bookings telephone: 064-31035). More details from the Killarney National Park Education Centre, Knockreer House, Killarney, Co Kerry, tel/fax: 064-35960; e-mail: knpeducationcentre@tinet.ie
• Youth and community groups, sports clubs, schools, businesses and tidy town committees are encouraged to get involved in An Taisce National Spring Clean which begins next week. Now in its fourth year, the aim of the month-long campaign is to promote active participation in anti-litter initiatives. Bord Fáilte surveys have shown that litter is one of the foremost complaints made by tourists to Ireland. An Taisce's own surveys have found that when a site is cleaned up, it has a greater chance of remaining litter-free.
The new plastic bag levy should help rid areas of this particularly unsightly aspect of our litter problem.
Last year, more than 190,000 people participated at 1600 clean-up events (postponed due to the foot-and-mouth crisis and held in June and July) and an estimated 8,000 tonnes of litter were collected. To register your group for a clean-up activity and receive a free material pack (with refuse sacks, gloves, clean-up strategies and competitions for young spring cleaners), contact Olivia McEvoy, National Spring Clean Manager, An Taisce, Tailor's Hall, Back Lane, Dublin 8. Tel: 01-4544794; e-mail: nsc@antaisce.org See also: www.antaisce.org/projects/nsc.html