Come along and hear inspirational speakers at the Fairtrade Foundation Supporter Conference 2011 in Birmingham

• Date: Saturday 15 October
• Time: 10.00 – 17.00
• Venue: Aston Conference Centre, Birmingham Aston University, Birmingham

This year, rather than holding our own Youth for Fair Trade conference we are working with the Fairtrade Foundation and People & Planet to bring you activities at their conferences especially for young people.

So, at the Fairtrade Supporter Conference they have introduced a session on harnessing Social Media to promote your activities and in another session you can also hear from our partners, Y Care International about the projects that the young people involved in Youth for Fair Trade have been running and the new packs we are producing that help young people become advocates of Fair Trade!

There will also be an after party until 6.30pm – including live entertainment, Fairtrade nibbles, more chances to network and share experiences, so make sure you book a later train so you can come along!

To register for a FREE place register HERE NOW!

Do you have a passion for entrepreneurship and marketing?  Do you care about social justice and fair trade?  Then why not think about getting involved in a fair trade business? Fair trade is grounded in the principle that trade rather than aid is the best long term solution to economic development in poorer countries, and that by helping them to develop profitable, sustainable businesses, we can help improve the lives of those who live and work in those communities. This principle has been inspiring entrepreneurs not just in developing countries but also here in the West.  Social enterprises and ethically guided businesses have been rapidly growing, with over 200,000 social enterprises now operating in the UK alone.  These businesses operate across many industries and include the fair trade food, drink, clothing, catering, gifts, stationary and even cosmetics. One such company is Bubble & Balm, a fair trade bodycare company founded in 2009.  They have made a commitment to supporting Fairtrade and are the UK’s first 100% Fairtrade bodycare company, with all of their products carrying the well known Fairtrade mark. This commitment to fair trade has not just helped the producers of ingredients such as sugar, produced by the Kasinthula Cane Growers in Malawi, one of the poorest countries in Southern Africa, but has also been a major boost to Bubble & Balm’s business.  Their fair trade stand has helped create a loyal customer following, gained considerable media attention and helped them to become a winner in the Startups 100 list, described as “the definitive countdown to the UK’s most innovative, inspiring and ground-breaking new companies”.

Excited by fair trade business?

If you’re interested in working for a fair trade business or even starting up your own fair trade enterprise then you must attend this years Youth for Fair Trade Conference in Conventry.  This years conference gives you the opportunity to meet leading figures from fair trade businesses including Bubble & Balm, Divine Chocolate and Revolver World. You’ll not only get the chance to find out how they’ve made a success of their fair trade businesses, but will also have the unique opportunity both to discover how to launch a fair trade product and also to share your ideas as ethical consumers with Bubble & Balm. Want to know how to launch a fair trade product? Then be sure to attend Y4FT2010!

Don’t miss out

If you’re passionate about fair trade and would like to have a fun and life changing weekend, then round up your friends and book your places at Y4FT2010 in Coventry on the weekend of the 29th to 31st of October 2010. Places are limited so be sure to reserve your ticket online at www.y4ft2010.com or on the phone by calling David on +44 (0)24 7652 1265.

Just as fair trade has begun a revolution in the way that we do business over the last few years, social media has begun a revolution in the way that we communicate.

No longer are conversations limited between a small number of people and news limited to daily reports.  Social media has provided us with a constant, real time stream of news, ideas and opinion from millions of people across the globe.  They’re not journalists or PR profressionals, but real people with something to say.

Research has shown that even though many of our social media contacts are people that we rarely or never meet in person, we trust their opinions far more strongly than advertisements or corporate statements.  They are after all real people expressing their opinions with no apparent vested interests.  Combine the real-time information with this high level of trust and you have a powerful medium for raising awareness and support for important causes such as fair trade.

What’s more, the potential reach of these channels is far beyond that of any conventional media such as TV or radio.  Facebook alone has more than 500million active users, making it effectively the worlds third largest country by popultion after China and India.

And on top of all this, conventional media organisations are now using social media to find new, up-to-date stories that they know people are interested in, so there is almost unlimited potential to engage with people around the world.

Let’s get social!

If you love social media such as Facebook, Twitter, Digg, YouTube or FourSquare, why not start thinking about how you could use it to promote fair trade amongst your friends and potentially the world?

Use social media to voice your opnions, share ideas and tell others about fair trade products, destinations and events.

If this sounds like something that interests you, be sure to attend this years Youth for Fair Trade Conference to meet other like-minded people and find out how you can do more.

Bring your smartphone and get involved in a live experiment to see how much awareness you and other delegates can raise over the conference weekend. We’ll be joined by David Harte, a specialist on social media from Birmingham City University.

Don’t miss out!

If you’re aged 18 to 25 and are passionate about fair trade and social media, tell your friends about Y4FT2010 on Facebook and Twitter (@y4ft and use the hashtag #y4ft2010), and book your place now at Y4FT2010 in Coventry on Saturday the 30th of October 2010.

Places are limited so be sure to reserve your ticket online at www.y4ft2010.com or on the phone by calling David on +44 (0)24 7652 1265.

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