gair rhydd
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ISSUE 845 JUNE 04 2007
CARDIFF’S STUDENT WEEKLY free word - EST. 1972
INSIDE:
creativewords
gair rhydd’s first Creative Writing Anthology A collection of Short Fiction, Script Writing and Poetry from Cardiff students
FAIR PLAY !" Cardiff University and Students’ Union granted Fairtrade status to become Britain’s 53rd Fairtrade university !" People
and Planet pleased with result, but insist that further awareness needed CARDIFF UNIVERSITY: Greening up
Corinne Rhoades Deputy News Editor CARDIFF UNIVERSITY has finally reached Fairtrade status after months of vigorous campaigning. Just weeks since the official application was sent off, Cardiff will join the 52 other UK universities already
committed to promoting ethical consumption. The choice to buy fairly-traded products helps contribute to a better and fairer environment for the farmers of developing countries to work in. The University’s achievement also represents a step towards Wales’ campaign to become the world’s first
Fairtrade country. But the move is one that is considered by many to be long overdue. In 2004, the title of Britain’s first Fairtrade capital city was awarded to Cardiff. Fairtrade co-ordinator Lydia James said the University was ‘lagging behind’ other higher education institu-
tions. This year saw representatives from the University, the People and Planet society, the Council, and a Fairtrade shop meet together in a Taskforce group chaired by Students’ Union President Joe Al-Khayat. He said the decision to set a more ‘institutional goal’ came after previous
years had seen little development in the campaign for Fairtrade status. “We progressed to successfully completing the application process in just six meetings, which is a real achievement,” Al-Khayat said. Continued on page three