The Fairtrade Island Initiative are celebrating the unique opportunity of a week’s visit to the Island by Norma Velasquez, a Fairtrade Producer from Peru. Leni Lewis, chair of the local Fairtrade group said “we’re very excited to welcome Norma to the Isle of Man. She’s been involved in the Fairtrade movement since the 1970’s and brings with her a depth of understanding, personal experience and her own stories that explain the importance of the Fairtrade movement to her family and the people of her community.” Leni continued “Norma has seen Fairtrade develop from a small grassroots movement to an organisation which today benefits over 7 million farmers, workers and their families in 58 developing countries” Norma represents Minka Fairtrade, a non profit organisation working with communities in Latin America. Minka’s main objectives are the promotion of sustainable development; the strengthening of cultural identity; and the preservation and improvement of the environment where these communities live, together with maintaining and recovering their traditional craft skills. Christine Roberts the Fairtrade Island Initiative’s church representative explained “The Isle of Man has been a Fairtrade Island for the last 3 years thanks to growing support from businesses, churches, schools, government and the community. Norma’s visit will offer members of all of those groups an opportunity to hear a personal story and why Fairtrade is so important to producers in the Developing world”. Working in conjunction with the One World Centre Norma will be speaking to students from all of the Island’s secondary schools, starting in St Ninian’s, which was the first school on the Island to achieve Fairtrade status. Local Fairtrade retailers will have the opportunity to meet Norma at an evening event hosted by Marks and Spencer’s, and members of Tynwald have been invited to a short presentation on Fairtrade and how it affects Minka and the communities it supports. There will be a public presentation at St Ninian’s High School on the evening of Thursday 14th October where Norma will be taking part in a celebration of Fairtrade; inviting members of the public, and all Fairtrade organisations and groups on the Island to come along and hear Norma’s presentation on how their actions have benefited farmers, like Norma and her community, around the world. Students from the school’s Fairtrade steering group will add a local dimension to the event, with a brief presentation about what it means to be a Fairtrade school and as part of our Fairtrade celebration there will also be a wide range of Fairtrade treasures to treat yourself to from Shakti Man and Traidcraft. Come with your wallet! Fairtrade reflects the true cost of an item; if an item is cheap, ask yourself the question: who paid the price? The Fairtrade Island Initiative would like to thank the Isle of Man Overseas Aid Committee and Shakti Man for their support in organising Norma’s visit. For more information please contact Katie@owciom.org Tel: 800464 Ends