How it started in India
In November 2015 the Fair Trade Twin Towns movement in Puducherry and Auroville was launched.
Pushpanath Krishnamurthy, global campaigner walked for 450 kms from Pondicherry to Kotagiri. alongside COP21 in Paris. More than 350 people gathered in pouring rain to support him and 70 people including fair trade workers from various organizations walked for 16 kms with Pushpanath from Puducherry to Auroville on the first day of the walk.
The flag-off was attended by Environment Minister T. Thiagarajan, Tourism Minister P. Rajavelu and MLA K. Lakshminarayanan. French Consul General Philippe Janvier-Kamiyama also lent his support.
Model Implemented in Fair Trade Towns India:
The “Big Tent” Model
The “Big Tent” approach is an inclusive model that works to promote and drive sales of a wide range of Fair Trade products. The “Big Tent” promotes the 2 global Fair Trade movements Fairtrade International and WFTO.
This approach will support and promote all stakeholder at local and national level. In India, a National Steering Committee (NSC) will represent the grassroots Fair Trade Towns movement as strategic advisors and also play a governance role to ensure the integrity of the overall Fair Trade Towns framework and also ensure that the views of the grassroots are reflected in their wider work.
Non-certified and other Fair Trade initiatives, including Fair Trade shops are nonetheless important actors in the Fair Trade Towns networks and are frequently involved at local level in the activities of campaign groups and recognized as an important part of the campaigning narrative for Fair Trade Towns, although non-Fair Trade certified products are not a requirement within the goals for Fair Trade Towns.
National Fair Trade Towns Steering Committee
Objectives for Fair Trade Towns Campaign
Inspiring, learning and collecting best practices to use for both established and emerging Fair Trade Town campaigns in order to build a strong national campaign. Empowering and assisting campaigns in other Towns in order to promote awareness of Fair Trade.
To develop and protect the concept of Fair Trade Towns while maintaining common ground and an identity based on the five founding goals and additional goals can be created on need base.
To encourage campaigns to adopt an inclusive model for Fair Trade Towns and promote better understanding of the ‘Big Tent’ approach.
Building a movement of national Fair Trade Town campaigns that will support policies for fair trade and trade justice in particular by the development of ethical public procurement as well as advocacy for Fair Trade.