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USFT 2008 International Convergence
The Convergence is an opportunity for students, producers, educators, vendors, and other players in the fair trade movement to come together and share knowledge, experiences, and ideas. This year’s Convergence will have a strong focus on taking the Fair Trade movement forward—both the movement as a whole and the student movement in particular. The concept behind “taking it forward” is to inspire student activists to challenge the Fair Trade movement to continue evolving by creating new goals and new interpretations of what Fair Trade is and should be.
The Convergence will include workshops on Fair Trade that range from Fair Trade basics to in-depth workshops on specific aspects of Fair Trade. Representatives of different companies, cooperatives, and organizations will demonstrate the various directions in which Fair Trade is expanding, and share with student activists their knowledge of different Fair Trade products, markets, producers, and logistics.
Participants will also get the opportunity to actively engage in discussions about Fair Trade and how the system and movement can move forward to become more effective and powerful. These discussions will inspire and mobilize activists to be a central component of that movement forward. These discussions will focus on Fair Trade as a movement, as a solution, and how it can continue to evolve to embody these goals.
The Convergence will give student Fair Trade activists the opportunity to meet activists from other universities and organizations, make connections, and organize using regional and national student networks. Participants will gain new skills and get the chance to share ideas for individual and regional activism. This network building will strengthen regional and national solidarity among the participants and help inspire newer activists.
In order to further strengthen and empower student activists, anti-oppression work will also be a central focus of the Convergence. Through analyzing power dynamics among student activists and also among all members of the Fair Trade movement, participants will be able to work more effectively together, and utilize all group members’ input and skills.
All of these conversations and inspirational dialogues would be somewhat irrelevant if there were not other workshops to improve activists’ organizing skills and knowledge. There will be several workshops focusing on various areas of activism including strategy, coalition-building, group-building, tactics, escalation, and media skills. Emphasis on these skills will further empower participants to continue promoting fair trade.
Through these ways, the Convergence will empower student activists to not only continue to advocate for Fair Trade, but also to encourage and actively participate in the progression of the Fair Trade movement towards new horizons.
The fee for this year's convergence is $75 for students and $100 for allies. This includes meals throughout the weekend. Financial assistance is available and can be requested on the application. Housing is each participant's responsibility, but we will do our best to make sure that everyone who needs or wants free housing will be able to have it during the convergence. Again, this can be requested on the application.
