[Part I: basic deets on the workshop. Part II: pre-party, pre-workshop. Part III: a rundown of people and orgs who felt certification standards need to change. Part IV: the "What about the farmers" argument. Part V: Why TransFair USA loves Starbucks]

I should really start taking notes and stuff during important events. Julia of Equal Exchange emailed me thusly [there's Julia to the right, after a few drinks the night before the workshop :P]:

my notes from the Thai farmer read a bit differently from yours. I thought he’d said that his cooperative seeks “partnerships with companies that can understand and embody the principles of fair trade.” He was surprised by the overall direction of our discussion. “Enabling large corporations to come into the movement” he said, “will mean allowing them to define the movement to the point where producers may not understand it for its true potential.” I.e. moving beyond a price and a product to encompass the nature of relationships.

A much stronger stance in favor of stricter guidelines for fair trade certification than what I previously reported. The farmer’s name, BTW, is Presong Seesa-Ard, according to Chris, the translator.

Updates: Part VII: Global Exchange. Part VIII: In defense of TransFair USA.

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