Fair Trade
Inclusive community development is our mission. It is through this
requirement that the FairTSA team ensures that the funding associated with
our work is both accountable and sustainable."
Dr. Winfried Fuchshofen, Executive Director
To this end, FairTSA has developed its own
community development support program and leverages certifiers’ networks,
qualified indigenous personnel, and collaborating NGOs. This way we support
producer communities in their efforts to create decent living conditions while
empowering the local communities through the democratic process. In specific
cases we can also facilitate an on-site Futuresearch Project Planning process,
an innovative method to bring people of many walks of life together in a joint
planning process for a common purpose.
Support for Producers is integral to
our work. Often, Fair Trade and Social Responsibility certifications leave
especially small producers alone in trying to cope with requirements that are
based on our Western, document-centered “standard and control” culture. When
this Western culture meets people in a mostly oral or traditional culture, the
results can clash, and
mutual misunderstandings are not uncommon. Therefore, we
offer our producers support even before they sign up with us – from free
seminars to the assignment of a Producer Relations Manager to help guide them
through the process.
Approval
of certificates: https://www.fairtsa.org/certifiers
