Sue Hayduk – RRC’s Sustainability Coordinator

This week, Red River College held a little hallway shindig to participate in Fair Trade Campus Week 2014. This event is an opportunity to raise awareness about the Fair Trade movement and eat way too much Fairtrade-certified Camino chocolate. (Eating Fairtrade chocolate supports an important social movement, therefore I should eat lots of chocolate, right?)

Fair Trade Manitoba was on hand to educate our students (many of whom were just hearing about Fair trade for the first time).

The lovely ladies from RRC’s Bookstore set up a table to show off all the Fair trade and ethically-sourced items they sell – dresses, scarves, jewelry and more. Take a trip to one of the Bookstores to check it out!

They told me the story behind these beautiful made-to-order bracelets from a company called Wakami – a social enterprise from Guatemala that connects artisans from remote villages with urban markets around the world.

And the Sustainability Office was there – playing games, providing information and having fun. We created a game to engage students on the basics of Fair Trade, we talked to students about common Fairtrade items you can purchase (coffee, tea, sugar and chocolate) and we held a few prize draws.

All in all it was a good event. We hope to see you out at the next one!