I am Daniela Gangan and I will be joining the Sustainability team as a Fairtrade intern.
I am a first year student at the University of Greenwich, currently studying Business with Law. I moved from Romania to the UK for a change of environment, educational system and way of thinking. I like challenges and getting involved in a variety of projects in order to gain experience. Sometimes I volunteer and I like getting to know new people from different backgrounds. I am passionate about sport, music and photography.
I consider this internship to be a great opportunity to get involved with sustainability at Greenwich and to learn more about ethical business and the importance of supporting local producers. Furthermore, I am excited about the chance of studying sustainability in more detail, a growing movement in the UK. In addition to the knowledge gained from my course, my Fairtrade internship will allow me to understand better the consumer insight of ethical brands and give me experience of event organization for Fairtrade Fortnight. Studying Business with Law, I would like to develop professional skills that can help me in my future career. Similarly, ethical and positive businesses are essential to sustainability. I believe that getting more people involved in sustainability will improve the chances of moving to a sustainable society.
What is Fairtrade? 
Fairtrade is about better wages, decent working conditions, local sustainability and fair terms of trade for producers in developing countries. It has a strong vision of justice and sustainable development in all trade structures and practices.
The Fairtrade Foundation is a charitable organization that has expanded to Europe, Japan, North America, and Mexico, with the launch of the first Fairtrade label Max Havelaar in 1988. The Fairtrade major principles are to cope with poverty and injustice through trade, and to bring together producers and consumers in a vision to move to a more sustainable society. Therefore, for certain products (such as coffee, cocoa, cotton and rice) Fairtrade only certifies small farmer organisations. Fairtrade standards protect workers’ rights according to International Labour Organization conventions, including health and safety standards, freedom of association, collective bargaining, no discrimination and no bonded or illegal child labour. Since Fairtrade’s beginnings in the 1980s and the launch of the current Fairtrade Mark in 2002, Fairtrade has become the most widely recognized ethical label in the world and is a growing brand in the UK. It is a chance to start protecting natural resources, to produce goods with care and to convince customers that Fairtrade products are better in the longer-term. However, it needs a lot of dedication and involvement to find and to create best deals for farmers and to gain the trust of people who would invest in a brighter future, thus the Fairtrade Foundation work hard in order to do this.
Fairtrade is about trust and transparency. It is a social initiative that has opportunities for students to get involved in a wide range of projects, such as Fairtrade Fortnight. I am very concerned about the ethical and the social responsibility in business.
Therefore, Fairtrade is a great method to promote awareness and create an alliance of ethically thinking people who will help build community.
Fairtrade Fortnight!
Fairtrade Fortnight (24 February – 9 March 2014) marks the launch of a special campaign that aims to transform the banana industry. It is a campaign initiating the movement Make Food Fair.
To support the Fairtrade Fortnight everyone can pre-order event packs, stickers, T-shirts, ethically sourced bananas suits and inflatable bananas. Moreover, there is free access to recipes, quizzes, presentations and a media toolkit.
The University will be participating in Fairtrade Fortnight, and if you would like to get involved please email sustainability@gre.ac.uk!
