Mayra Gomez ( photo courtesy of UCA San Ramon)

Roughly 2 hours from Matagalpa, Nicaragua you can catch a bus through the green mountains to visit a series of food cooperatives in a region known as San Ramon. The final stop is EL ROBLAR and you can find the right bus if you just look for the name painted across its forehead. The road is partly paved but expect some shoulder rubbing with your bus partner! At the final stop in El Roblar, there is a women’s coffee cooperative called El Privilegio. El Privilegio translates to ‘The Privilege’  because according to CAN  ” it is a privilege for these women to live, manage and commercialise their own coffee and participate in a strong female cooperative”.

Last year i spent 3 days in El Roblar exploring and learning about the coffee cooperatives in the area. I spent most of my time with two lovely young girls, Joseling and Arleen.  I went to speak with local coffee farmers and those involved in ‘El Privilegio’  women’s cooperative. After spending 3 days with Joseling and Arleen i couldn’t help but feel warmth towards them and i became very interested in Joseeling’s life as a 15 year old living in the countryside and amongst the women’s cooperative. My friendship with Joseling led me to conduct an entrevista/interview with her. Of course I also spoke with a member of El Privilegio women’s cooperative. The interview was conducted in spanish and recorded using a voice recorder. A long time coming, but with the help of Lily Ceron Fernandez i have

Estela Pham ( left) with Joseling Gomez(right)

been able to translate the interviews from spanish to english. Both english and spanish versions of the interview can be found below!

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Fecha/ Date: Agusto 11th 2010 / August 11th 2010

Entrevistador/ Interviewer: Estela Pham

Entrevistada/ Interviewee: Mayra Gomez

¿Qué significa UCA San Ramón?

Who is UCA San Ramon?

UCA San Ramón significa unión de cooperativas agropecuarias.

UCA san Ramon represents the union of agricultural cooperative.

¿Qué parte de su café es de comercio justo?

How much of your coffee production is certified fair trade?

Soló tengo café en mercado justo, de productoras pequeñas.100% Por ciento de la produccion de nuestro café se vende en mercado justo.

The only coffee that I have is special coffee, that is coffee that is commercialized from the small productions. A 100% of the coffee that we produce is sold to the fair trade industry.

¿Qué se necesita para vender el café en un comercio justo?

What is necessary for you to sell your coffee through the fair trade market?

Mucha comprensión, porque ya sabemos los criterios que pide el comercio justo para que podamos vender el café atraves de ese mercardo.

A lot of understanding , because we must know the criteria that we must meet in order to sell our coffee through this market.

¿Entonces, cómo se organiza la U.C.A? Como toman las decisiones en la cooperativa?

So who makes the decisions for the direction of the cooperative? Is it UCA San Ramon?

U.C.A tiene una junta directiva, una junta de vigilancia, una red de promotoras. Las decisiónes las tomamos todas las mujeres las que formamos la cooperativa decidimos todos! No solo una!

UCA has a management board and a supervisory board and a promoting network. The decisions that we make include all women. We that form the cooperative decide, it is all of us that decide! There is no one person!

¿Es importante tener una cooperativa que contribuya  la sociedad  Nicaragua?

Why is it important to have a women’s cooperative in the community?

Es importante tener una cooperativa de Mujeres en la comunidad porque entre mujeres nos ayudamos muturente, las mujeres apartamos a la economia de la comunidad, del país, de la misma cooperativa, por eso es importante una cooperative porqué tambien aprendemos a volararnos como mujeres saber que se somos importantes y podemos aportar a la famila Nicaraguense.

It is important that we have a women’s cooperative in the community because women in the cooperative help each other, the women contribute to the economy, the community, the country, and the cooperative. We also understand that we are valuable as women and that yes, we are important and we can contribute to the family.

¿Cómo es la relación entre la cooperativa de mujeres y el gobierno? Existe alguna otra ayuda fuera del gobierno?

What is the women’s cooperative relationship with the government and the community?

La relación es buena, es cierto. No es directa porque estan los gobiernos municipales, pero es buena la relación y sentimos que es un gobierno sensible y que ayuda a los pequeños y pequeñas productora.En Nicaragua como mujeres somos apoyadas, y sí. Claro! Sí hay más organizaciones que nos apoyar, y para nosotros es mejor nos desarrollamos más, desarrollamos nuestras habilidades, nuestra organización, nuestra producción.

The relationship is good, it is sensible. There is no director because there is the government, but the relationship is good and we feel that it is a caring government and that they help the minority and the small productions.As women in Nicaragua the government supports us, and yes of course there are a lot of organizations that help to support us. Ours is better because we help to develop each other more; we develop our skills, our organization and our production.

¿En la cooperativa hay sólo 24 mujeres…. Entonces,Es la cooperativa una familia?

 With 24 women in the cooperative, do you feel that the cooperative is like a family?

Sí, Yo veo la cooperativa como una familia grande porque tenemos confianza, somos solidarias  y nos ayudamos una con otra.

Yes, I see the cooperative as a big family because we have trust, we are in solidarity, and we help each other and help others.

¿Cúales son tus sueños y retos en el futuro de la Cooperativa?

What are your hopes for the women’s cooperative in the future?

Que la cooperativa este fortalecida, que sea sostenible y que tambíen nuestros hijos, sean parte de la cooperativa.

In the future we hope that the operation is sustainable and that the cooperative will belong to our children.

Fecha/Date: Agusto 11th 2010 / August 11th 2010

Entrevistador / Interviewer: Estela Pham

Entrevistada / Interviewee:Joseling Gomez

¿Cómo te llamas? Y cuantos años tiene?

What is your name? and how old are you?

Mi nombre es Joseling Gomez y tengo 14 años.

My Name is Joseling Gomez and I am 14 years old.

¿Qué tipo de ayuda necesitan en El Roblar?

What type of support is neccesary for the community ‘El Roblar’?

A nosotros el gobierno manda muchas personas a cacitarse para que vengan a la comunidad, tambien  entidades para que hablen sobre temas que nos interesan mucho a las mujeres temas que nos interesan mucho a las mujeres y igualmanera hay muchas organizaciones que nos apoyan mucho en diferentes temas como la sexualidad, la violencia, el maltrato. Si, porque a pesar de todo necesitamos ayuda y conocimiento.

For us, the government gives training to some people in the community. In that way they can teach and support those in our community about different topics such as sexual health and violence.  There are also a lot of organizations that support many of these different issues and we rely heavily on this help and knowledge.

¿Entonces, esos programas son importante para su communidad…?

So these programs seem essential to your community….?

Sí, son importantes porque son de gran apoyo, que nos brinda a todos a los jovenes, los hombres y las mujeres y personas de edad porque hay algunos que tienen problemas diferente en sus casas y por medio de los temas que brindan en las charlas que dan, esos problemas se pueden mejorar! Porque la verdad, ha sido de gran apoya las charlas que nos han dado , porque ha sido sobre la salud sexual y reproductiva para jovenes, liderazgo, educación y nos ha servido, porque algunos chavales que no estudian la primaria, ahora estudian de 1 a 5 anos.

Yes, it is important because it is a huge support that is given to all of the children, the men, the women and the seniors. Some of these people have different problems in their houses and through the issues that are present we have talks to help us improve our lives.  There has been support for the talks that we have because they have been about sexual health, puberty, leadership, and education. Those who study this are in primary school and now include year 1-5.

¿Por qué La Cooperativa hace parte de la vida activa y social de Nicaragua?

 Why is a women’s cooperative important to the life of Nicaragua?

Porque asi, se va reproduciando más nuestras raices como mujeres que somos y porque asi si hay matrato y otros problemas en la sociedad y con las mujeres. En la cooperativa se ven muchas temas que nos ayudan mucho en nuestras vidas… Cúales son esos problemas?… Cómo el maltrato, cuando sus esposos las golpean y la violencia.

We are women and yes, because of this there is mistreatment and other problems to the women in society. However, in the cooperative there are a lot of matters that help us to improve our lives…What are the problems? Mistreatment. For example when the husbands hit their wife and become violent.

¿Como es la educación? Hay oportunidades para que mujeres vayan  a la universidad?

What about education? Are women able to attend university?

Si hay oportunidades! Varios hombres y mujeres los que han ido a la universidad. El gobierno nos ha ayudado a ambos a hombres y mujeres… Porque?… Porque algunas mujeres solo podian ir a la primaria.

It is men and women that have the opportunity to go to university. The government does not help both men and women because some women only go to primary school. Most only go to work in the country and that’s it. Now people are taking the initiative to study primary and secondary education. For women yes it is possible to go to university and some even become professional…so that has helped us. Approximately 100-90% study at university.

¿Cuántas personas son en la cooperativa?

How many women are there in the cooperative?

En la cooperativa la principio eran 28, ahora son 24. 2 murieron y 2 viajarón a otro lugar.

At the beginning there were 28 people in the cooperative, now there are 24. 2 have died and 2 have moved to another place.

¿Cúales son tus esperanzas para el futuro dela Cooperativa ‘’El Privilegio’’?

What are your hopes for the future of the cooperative “El Privilegio”?

Quiero que el grupo crezca porque solo hay 24, y que ese grupo se integre más y que sean mujeres reconocidas en el país y la sociedad. Que sean reconocidas en el pais y la sociedad. Que sean reconocidas por su gran trabajo y por la gran dicha que tienen de ser mujeres y que trabajan por mujeres y por su bienestar.

I want the cooperative to grow because there are only 24 members. I also want this group to be more integrated and that women can be recognized in our country and society. The women should be recognized for the great work that they do and for the great sayings that they have spoken and for their healthy way of living.

¿Eres una mujer joven, que oportunidades tienes en tu futuro?

As a young girl in rural Nicaragua, what opportunities do you have for your future?

Tengo la oportunidad y la gran dicha de tener una beca, por el organismo que se llama Arco Iris, y mi trabajo es ayudarle a una Doctora a repartir los medicamentos a llenar expedientes, tengo esa oportunidad de que me toman en cuenta para las diferentes actividades que se hacen en la comunidad en la escuela, y en la cooperativa. Tambíen puedo aprender Inglés y relacioname con otras personas.

I have the opportunity and I am very fortunate to have a scholarship for the organization called Arco Iris, and I work as an assistant to a doctor to distribute medicine, I also have a voice in the community for different activities that happen in the community, at school and in the cooperative. Also I can learn English and I like to meet different people.

¿Tu havas parte de el desarrollo de las expectativas de tu madre?

What expectations does your mother have for your future? Will you be apart of the cooperative?

Sí, Ella espera que yo este en la cooperativa, porque desde ahora estoy en la cooeprativa pero sólo que con el grupo de jovenes. Si, me gusta estar en la cooperativa para impartir temas porque tambíen tengo conocimiento sobre ello.

My mother hopes that I will be in the cooperative. Right now I am in the cooperative but I’m in a group with young people. I would like to contribute to topics because I am knowledgeable about the cooperative.

Thankyou to Joseling and Mayra Gomez from the cooperative El Privilegio for taking the time to show me around. To Agroecoturismo for helping me to organise my time in El Roblar. To Wilfredo & his family for accommodating me & many thanks to Lily Ceron Fernandez who spent time to help me translate the interviews! Muchas gracias! 

Since i started at Monash University in 2009 i have noticed all the Fair Trade posters ( 4 or 5) around campus. I wonder if other students and staff notice them as well? Fair Trade has existed at Monash since i’ve been there, possibly longer, but why is there little engagement with the concept of Fair Trade? After asking a number of students if the ethics of coffee was important to them when considering their purchase most answers were either  ” It doesn’t matter” or ” I don’t know”. This indifference is not unusual nor surprising. Unfortunately i have seen this apathy by students across all areas of social issues, but that is another matter. In relevance to the article published in Lot’s Wife and what i have seen at Monash, there is a lack of “social conscience” in regards to Fair Trade. Rather Fair Trade products, particularly the Fair Trade Coffee that we consume has been relegated to “social convenience”. Monash has taken the steps to prove that it endorses Fair Trade, yet who is celebrating Monash’s social conscience? Of course it isn’t all the students. Students buy their coffee and price is the number one factor, not ethics. If the coffee they purchase is Fair Trade certified then that is bonus. So essentially, students who buy Fair Trade coffee at Monash predominantly make the decision out of social convenience rather than social conscience.

I commend Monash for gaining Fair Trade University Status, but of course who is the article representing when it headlines

“Monash University Celebrates its Social Conscience” ? I doubt its the majority that is celebrating our new social status. I hope that Monash University will continue its support for Fair Trade. I would like to see less self-promoting and more awareness amongst the students. I am hopeful, but this is needed if anyone, any student or staff wants to see some justice in our world!

If a TREND is about a rising or growing popularity, then it is also subject to falling and unpopularity a.k.a, being untrendy. Thus to describe Fairtrade as TRENDY or a TREND, then I would only be illuminating the lenses through which multinational companies perceive this ethical movement.However, for those of us who campaign for social justice with altruism then TRENDY is not a word that would circulate amongst our circles.

The Fairtrade industry that began under Max Havelaar has existed for over 3 decades.  Yet one wonders why companies such as Cadbury did not participate in Fairtrade sooner? There are 2 major factors in Cadbury’s transition to Fairtrade; the world market price and consumer demand for stronger ethics. In recent years Fairtrade has gained greater recognition in the market. If Fairtrade market weren’t a ‘growing trend’ then companies such as Cadbury would not be behind this moral wave.  It is also interesting to understand the context at which Cadbury decided to enter the Fairtrade market. It was only last year that   Cadbury announced they would commit to making their milk chocolate line Fairtrade. Their decision to transition emerged at a time where the world market price for cocoa was above the Fairtrade minimum. In March 2009 cacao market prices US$2300 per tonne as oppose to the Fairtrade minimum in 2009 equating to $1600 per tonne. Therefore Cadbury’s ‘principled’ decision was financially cost effective.

When you discover Cadbury’s history with it’s cacao-producing country, you are left with a bitter aftertaste. With a history dragging back to the 1900’s only exploitation and enslavement can illustrate Cadbury’s attitude towards its cacao producers in Ghana, Africa.  Yet the move to Fairtrade will mean that current and future Ghana co-operatives such as Kuapa Kokoo will have the opportunity to benefit from the Fairtrade system.  Cadbury’s choice to change their Milk chocolate line to Fairtrade will not only increase opportunities for cacao farmers, but it will also promote the Fairtrade industry.

Nonetheless, why is it that multinationals like Cadbury,who have a long term dishonorable history , can suddenly sneak into an ethical movement?  In the case of Fairtrade , the Fairtrade labeling standards sets measures for product certification and NOT company endorsement. Therefore under assessment, any product and its relative supply chain that meets the Fairtrade standards can be certified as Fairtrade.

So as both activists and consumers what moral deliberation can we conclude to?

Personally, I can commend Cadbury for making an ethical change because I know the Fairtrade organizations will hold Cadbury to account. Fairtrade organizations will ensure that Cadbury, just like any other buyer, will comply with Fairtrade standards and regulations.

Whilst big companies are capable of financially supporting its cacao producers as well as promote/ mainstream Fairtrade, I know there is something unsettling about multinationals self-promoting an ethical face. The situation is multifaceted. The benefits of the Fairtrade system are promising for current and future cacao farmers. Yet the reasons behind Cadbury’s shift to Fairtrade  are typically ‘corporate’ and can be easily scrutinized. Furthermore, the benefits to Ghana are yet to be fully realized. As a consumer, my ethical choice will not be to purchase Cadbury’s Fairtrade products. Instead my moral deliberation concludes me to purchase products that are as close to 100% fair. My advice to fellow consumers and activists is that you do the same when you do make your product choice. Don’t just consider a product in isolation; also consider the company behind the product. Consult your morality, and make your choice.

Reccommended readings:

http://www.fta.org.au/cadbury-announcement/cadbury-fairtrade-q

http://www.cadburyfairtrade.com.au/FAQs/FairtradeFAQs.aspx

http://www.tradingvisions.org/content/Fairtrade-cadbury-altruism-or-self-interest

After meeting so many campesinos and campesinas ( not all were coffee producers) a crane of revelations began to unfold on me. I noticed that so many of these campesinos and campesinas were satisfied with their life ( particularly in Venezuela). It was a particular satisfaction that I could not understand, but will appreciate nevertheless. Raised in a western country, I could not help but compare my life with theirs. I think that was very natural of me to do so. My mind could not hide from the truth of my western privileges.  I preconceived that my life was better in so many ways.  However, I must make it clear that I never thought of myself as better than the people that I met in Latin America, I just thought that my life had more advantages. Meeting these campesinos and campesinas made me realize and reflect on how little I knew about QUALITY of life and the STANDARDS that we set for our lives.

Whether it be the faces of young children from ‘poverty- stricken’  Ethiopia or  Cambodia ,  or campaigns from NGO’s such as  Amnesty or Oxfam. If you live in Australia, you will have passed some sort of advocacy for tackling poverty at least once a day.

Yet in these scenarios, how  close do we come to learning about our ‘poverty – stricken’ friend beyond the coin donation?

Perceptions on poverties is irrefutably relevant to whether we create a mundo justo / fairer world.  When I say the word POOR or POVERTY what comes to your mind??

Help , aid , need , lack of , disadvantaged , powerless, money

Poor farmers that we try to help out does not infer that they sad or living on a thin line.What they have is all that they know. They do not think of themselves as POOR or disadvantaged, because most aren’t aware and cannot fathom a privileged life such as ours. Therefore, the construction of poverties is through the lenses of the western eyes.  Western countries create and perpetuate poverties through language, thought and action.

We cannot address this inequality without looking at BOTH sides of the coin. We must look at and remould our relationship with campesinos and campesinas across the globe. We need to think and act in multiplex degree.  This involves focusing on local knowledge and experiences to help westerners understand how to give a rounded approach to creating a mundo justo.  Yet we must also look at the root causes of poverties.  This means assessing and changing our Western quality of life. For example,it is our unnecessary accumulation of wealth that distances our relationship with those who are unspoiled.

Since returning to Melbourne, I have become involved in drinking, but most importantly, thinking about our coffee and making fair choices.  When Max Havelaar introduced Fair Trade, he strove for a time where we as coffee consumers shall have a direct and genuine relationship with our coffee campesino/campesina/farmer.

In my belief, it begins with reassessing and changing our perception on poverties and the coffee producing farmer.   Once we surpass the ‘poor, helpless farmer’ viewpoint, then we can work with our coffee producing friends to develop a fairer world through our use of language, thought and action.

Suggested Readings:

http://www.newint.org/features/special/2010/07/01/poverty-line-definition/

Milojevic, I ,May 2001 , ‘Poverty Free Futures’ , Social Alternatives vol 20, no.2

‘Fair Trade’ has its roots in the state of Oaxaca, Mexico where Indigenous peasants gathered together to demand for fairer trade. It was in 1983 that these Indigenous peasants formed the ‘Union de Communidades Indigenas de la Region de el Isthmus’ (UCIRA). The UCIRA strived ( and still strives) to eliminate the intermediates in the commodity chain. Morever, the goal is to develop a direct relationship between the coffee producer and the coffee roaster.

Eventually, UCIRA was visited by Dutch travelers who were advocates for purchasing products without intermediaries and ensuring that prices were negotiated with the producers. It was also important to educate the consumers about the disempowering nature of the existing and dominant ‘free trade’ market.  In this perspective, fair trade was developed as an alternative to the ‘free trade’ market.

So what exactly does this alternative market propose?

According Fransisco VanderHoff Boersma, the co founder of the first fair trade certifying body, Max Havelaar, an alternative market has 4 essentials:

1. Effectiveness: Producers must use effective production methods to produce quality products for consumers.
2. Sustainability:  Economic competitiveness cannot be prioritized before the environment. Therefore environmental sustainability practices are integral to the alternative market.
3. Social sustainability:  preservation of culture , language , structural organization that reflects ‘motives of solidarity’.
4. Direct relationship between producer and consumer: This encourages buying directly from producers ( when possible) and having an informed consumer about their product’s lifecycle in the production chain.

What is the current status of an alternative market in our society?

Fair Trade is about creating and practicing an ‘alternative market’ that is established on social, environmental  & economic sustainability. This is in opposition with our “free trade” market that is solely profit- orientated.  The current status of our alternative ‘Fair Trade’ is that it is treated as a niche market, a measure to reduce poverty in a paternalistic manner, an apprenticeship for ‘disadvantaged farmers’ to compete in the mainstream capitalist market.

Fair trade was never intended to be a specialized market embedded in the existing capitalist market, nor was it meant to be a viewed as a charity to “ alleviate poverty”, but unfortunately it is coveted behind these masks.

Although the ‘Fair Trade’ industry is a better alternative to our “free trade” market, we must remember why the alternative emerged. Most importantly, as outlined above, we must remember and return to practicing the 4 essential aims of an alternative market that are rooted on social, economic and environmental sustainability.

* I distinguish between the Fair trade market and trade that is fair. ‘Fair Trade’ – the actual industry ; Fair Trade – trade that is fair.

Recommended links:

http://www.uciri.org/

http://www.otherdiscovery.com/?p=512

http://www.springerlink.com/content/f4260p41u8600205/