Promoting Fair Trade and Sustainable Consumption
Brief Description
The Pro-Sustain project aims to contribute to building environmentally sustainable production and consumption practices that help reduce poverty amongst poor farmers and handicraft producers in India.
Currently, there is a limited reach and understanding of Fair Trade in India. Furthermore, there is no governmental policy to guide the development of Fair Trade. Despite a growing consumer class seeking fairly traded and/or organic products a basket of Fair Trade products are not available in the market.
To address this need, the Pro-Sustain project seeks to create a consumer market for fair trade products in India. Most importantly, the aim is that such a market will measurably contribute to the improvement of rural livelihoods and provide farmers and artisans with the resources necessary to follow environmentally sustainable production practices.
News
January 2011
The confernce aims to explore whether it is possibe to use the market to alleviate poverty. The discussion involves critically exploring a number of market-related initiatives, including public-private partnerships, corporate social responsibility programmes, efforts by civil society income-generation groups, savings and credit groups. The conference “Combating Poverty in a Market Driven World” is being organised at Mumbai on February 7th and 8th, 2011. SWITCH-Asia project partner Fair Trade Forum-India(FTF-I) co-organizes the event together with Creative Handicrafts, The Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) and Mumbai Smiles.
For more information on the conference please visit the cvonference website under: www.povertyconference2011.org/index.html
20 October 2010
Around 150 students attended the awareness programme on Fair Trade at Hussain College in Zakir. The students came from various disciplines such as commerce, arts and career counseling- The programme explained about the present state of Fair Trade movement in India and the world as well as about the national and international networks. Speakers made clear that consumers should be e more aware about the people behind products to enable them to take informed decisions.
As part of the Pro-Sustain project 70 SMEs will be supported to adopt and market in India under a unified, umbrella brand in their existing retail operations.
8 May 2010
The SWITCH-Asia project Fair “Trade and Sustainable Consumption (PRO SUSTAIN)” participated in the World Fair Trade Day in New Dehli and Mumbai. World Fair Trade Day is a worldwide celebration of fair trade to support it as a tangible and efficient response to poverty, economic and global food crises and climate change. Fair trade strives for sustainable conditions in production and fair terms, and advocates for a fair economic system and international trading rules.
The objective of the SWTICH-Asia project is to contribute to building environmentally sustainable production and consumption practices that help reduce poverty amongst poor farmers and handicraft producers in India. The project kicked off in January 2010 and since then has, amongst other activities, conducted student-focussed awareness campaigns.
As part of the Pro-Sustain project 90 corporate offices will incorporate Fair Trade products in their gift giving system.
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Partner
Hivos is responsible for the project management and Asia-European organisations’ cooperation.
IRFT is responsible for the promotion of fair trade and sustainable consumption in India, as well as capacity building and government lobbying.
FTF-I’s role is to establish a shared fair trade retail brand and distribution system, as well as provide government lobbying and fair trade promotional activities.
Shop for Change will create demand-based incentives for sustainable supply chains as a part of this project.