Editing Fair trade (section)

=== Universities ===
The concept of a Fair Trade school or Fair Trade university emerged from the [[United Kingdom]], where the Fairtrade Foundation maintains a list of colleges and schools that comply with the requirements to be labeled such a university. In order to be considered a Fair Trade University, a university must establish a Fairtrade School Steering Group. They must have a written and implemented, school-wide, fair trade policy. The school or university must be dedicated to selling and using Fair Trade products. They must learn and educate about Fair Trade issues. Finally, they must promote fair trade not only within the school but throughout the wider community.<ref name=":2" />

A Fair Trade University develops all aspects of fair trade practices in their coursework. In 2007, the Director of the Environmental Studies program at the [[University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh]], David Barnhill, endeavored to become the first Fair Trade University. This received positive reactions from faculty and students. To begin, the university agreed that it would need support from four institutional groups—faculty, staff, support staff, and students—to maximize support and educational efforts. The University endorsed the Earth Charter and created a Campus Sustainability Plan to align with the efforts of becoming a Fair Trade University.<ref name=":3" />

The University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh also offers courses in different disciplines that implement fair trade learning. They offer a business course with a trip to [[Peru]] to visit coffee farmers, an environmental science class that discusses fair trade as a way for cleaner food systems, an English course that focuses on the [[Earth Charter]] and the application of fair trade principles, and several upper-level anthropology courses focused on fair trade.<ref name=":3">{{Cite book|title = Sustainability in Higher Education|last1 = Feldman|first1 = James|publisher = The MIT Press|year = 2013|isbn = 978-0-262-01949-1|pages = 241–248|last2 = Barnhill| chapter=Fair Trade, Social Justice, and Campus Sustainability at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh |jstor = j.ctt9qf6bw.26}}</ref>

In 2010, the [[University of California, San Diego]] became the second Fair Trade University in the United States. UC San Diego considered the efforts of the Fairtrade Foundation in the UK, but wanted to be more detailed about how their declaration as a Fair Trade University would change the way on-campus franchises do business with the university. They required constant assessment and improvement. Being a Fair Trade University for UC San Diego is a promise between the university and the students about the continual effort by the university to increase the accessibility of fair trade-certified food and drinks and to encourage sustainability in other ways, such as buying from local, organic farmers and decreasing waste.<ref name=":2" />

Fair Trade Universities have been successful because they are a "feel good" movement. Because the movement has an established history, it is not just a fad. It raises awareness about an issue and offers a solution. The solution is an easy one for college students to handle: paying about five cents more for a cup of coffee or tea.<ref name=":2" />