May 24th, 2017 | Winnipeg, Manitoba. St. James Collegiate is so proud to be Winnipeg’s 1st, Manitoba’s 3rd and Canada’s 17th designated Fair Trade School!
Our quest for designation began in 2015 when a group of students were inspired by classroom discussions surrounding sustainability and fair trade. The group of students came together outside of class and formed what is now known as the EcoJimmies, the St. James Collegiate sustainability group. Many of the EcoJimmies steering committee students were already actively involved in our school’s Social Justice group. We quickly set a goal to incorporate more Fair Trade products into school events and everything came together very quickly as we met the criteria to become designated on May 24, 2017 during Fair Trade Month.
Some of the highlights of the past school year included hot chocolate and coffee sales for Fair Trade Fridays, bake sales and Fairtrade roses being sold on Valentine’s Day – an incredibly successful event! We are very fortunate to be surrounded by people in our building who support our endeavors including our administrators, teachers, support staff and caterers in our cafeteria.
“St. James Collegiate joins 21,247 other students as Canada’s 17th Fair Trade School! To end Fairtrade Month with a bang, the UNESCO school celebrated their designation as staff, students and faculty enjoyed frozen Fairtrade hot chocolate. With four other schools receiving their designations this year, 2017 is bringing a boom in the Fair Trade School program and engaging more and more youth in the fair trade movement. Congratulations St. James, keep up the great work!” Sean McHugh, Executive Director, Canadian Fair Trade Network
“We look forward to the coming years with more opportunities to spread awareness about Fair Trade throughout our community and beyond and bringing more Fairtrade products and events into our school.” Tara Tuchscherer, a teacher at St. James Collegiate
“It’s a delight to congratulate St. James Collegiate on becoming a Fair Trade School! By becoming Fair Trade, the School is raising awareness about the importance of trade justice and is demanding a fair deal for Fairtrade producers of the Global South. Our hats off to all involved!” – Mélissa Dubé, Outreach and Marketing Manager, Fairtrade Canada
“Congratulations to St. James Collegiate for becoming Canada’s 17th Fair Trade School! While educating your students to become open-minded, caring and respectful citizens, connected with their local and global community, you support a large movement in favor of fairness and social justice on the global market.” – Loïc de Fabritus, Project Manager, Association québécoise du commerce équitable