Stuttgart / Cologne, 26.09.2024│ In Baden-Württemberg, 161 schools have been awarded the status of Fairtrade Schools. Pupils and teachers who were invited to the New Palace in Stuttgart as finalists in the “Your Rhyme for Fairness” competition came to the 10-year celebration and celebrated together with the supporters of the campaign in Baden-Württemberg.
To mark the 10th anniversary of the Fairtrade Schools campaign in Baden-Württemberg, Fairtrade Germany eV, together with the institutions supporting it, has invited people to the competition “Your rhyme for fairness”. At the anniversary celebration in the New Palace in Stuttgart, Minister of Culture Theresa Schopper announced the winners of the competition after an exciting public vote.
Claudia Brück, CEO of Fairtrade Germany, also traveled from Cologne and was enthusiastic: "We are celebrating 10 years of Fairtrade Schools in Baden-Württemberg. A success that is supported by committed students and teachers. Today's celebrations and the commitment of young people to the competition show that the commitment to fair trade in the southwest is alive and sustainable."
Commitment in words: Fair trade in rhyme
The children and young people impressed with their presentation of creative rhymes about their commitment to fair trade.
"Fair working conditions for people around the world are as important as they are challenging. It is therefore all the more important that as many people as possible try to tackle small things. I am therefore grateful for the Fairtrade Schools initiative and the great commitment to fair coexistence," says Minister of Education Theresa Schopper, patron of the campaign, adding: "Our students can gain knowledge about trade relations and dependencies at a young age, develop a sense of fair coexistence and actively campaign for fair trade and sustainability."
Five classes won the competition, which received a total of 26 entries, and were invited to the finals in the New Palace in Stuttgart. In the end, they all won: they went to Europa Park, to Experimenta, to the Climate Arena and to a chocolate adventure at their own school. They convinced the jury with texts that were presented as poems, a song and a poetry slam.
Fair trade and justice in schools
Together with a broad network of educational providers, Fairtrade Deutschland eV has been successfully providing schools with information material, workshops and action opportunities on fair trade for 10 years. Pupils learn about the ethical, social and political dimensions of fair trade. This goes hand in hand with experience with democratic education and education for sustainable development.
The Fairtrade Schools in Baden-Württemberg meet several criteria to receive the coveted award: they organize project days, lectures, deal with global economic relations in class and are committed to ensuring that fair products are purchased in the school canteen or that fair coffee and tea are available in the teachers' room.
Press contact:
- Lena Wimmer, Telephone: + 49 711-2 10 29-70, Mobile: + 49 176-35290907, kommunikation@sez.de
- Mira Langer, Phone: + 49 221-94 20 40-142, M.Langer@fairtrade-deutschland.de
Further information on the Fairtrade Schools campaign:
- https://sez.de/projekte/fair-handeln/fairtrade-schools-kampagne-bw/
- https://www.fairtrade-schools.de/kampagne/
Background to Fairtrade Schools in Baden-Württemberg
For over ten years, the non-profit organization Fairtrade Germany has been honoring schools that are committed to a better world. Since 2014, schools in Baden-Württemberg have also been able to be recognized as Fairtrade Schools, which 161 schools in the state have now achieved. The State Ministry of Baden-Württemberg and the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport support the state-wide campaign under the patronage of Minister of Culture Theresa Schopper. The campaign is coordinated by the Baden-Württemberg Development Cooperation Foundation (SEZ). It is supported by other development policy actors from the state, such as the Baden-Württemberg Development Policy Umbrella Association (DEAB), the Reutlingen Development Education Information Center (EPiZ) and the Service for Mission, Ecumenism and Development (DiMOE), the Freiburg Institute for Religious Education (IRP) and the Center for School Quality and Teacher Training (ZSL). The campaign has received several awards, for example in 2014 as an official project of the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development and most recently in 2022 as a best practice project from WeltWeitWissen.
Background to the SEZ
The Baden-Württemberg Development Cooperation Foundation (SEZ) wants to sensitize the population of Baden-Württemberg for globally responsible action and show how everyone can do something for a fairer world. The foundation promotes and networks private, municipal and regional initiatives to improve and deepen partnerships with countries in the so-called Global South. In doing so, it strengthens the awareness of people in Baden-Württemberg for the global connections of local actions.
