The theme for Fairtrade Fortnight 2021 is Choose the World You Want. This aims to highlight the growing challenges that climate change brings to farmers and workers in the communities Fairtrade works with. Farmers and workers in countries such as Kenya, Ethiopia, who have done the least to contribute to climate change, are disproportionately affected by it. People in climate-vulnerable countries are already seeing the impact of climate change in the form of droughts, floods, crop disease, heatwaves and shrinking harvests. The global COVID pandemic and low prices for their crops have added to that, so farmers in these countries face bigger challenges than ever before. Ongoing poverty in farming communities makes it increasingly hard to cope with the effects of climate change.

So what can we do?

~ Talk to others about challenges that farmers face from climate change and why Fairtrade is so important.

~ Join the Fairtrade Foundation's Fairtrade Fortnight online festival to find out more. It will include music, art, entertainment, fun interactive workshops, recipes, discussions between farmers, other experts and famous faces about what we need to do to choose a better future. This is the link:

https://cuparold.us17.list-manage.com/track/click?u=cb0d11bd686f9936f33547aab&id=f33102d268&e=50898fcc67

~Sign the Climate Coalition's Climate Declaration at The Time Is Now:

https://thetimeisnow.uk

to use our voices to tell politicians that we want a cleaner, greener, fairer future at the heart of plans to rebuild a strong economy.

~ If you have school-aged children, encourage them to take part in the Cupar Fairtrade Group's competition which is being sent out through the local schools. If they have not received the information and would like to take part, contact us at our new email and details will be sent out.

~ Through our shopping choices. We can choose to switch some of the items in our shopping to Fair Trade versions. Although Cupar Fairtrade Group cannot hold stalls at the churches or in The Lighthouse, you can still order items for collection. If you would like a list of what is available, know what you would like to order, or have any other enquiries, please contact us at the new email:

fairtradecupar@gmail.com

The Moderator of the General Assembly has invited church
participants to take part in a photo competition, by submitting a
photo of a cross found in their own community, "hidden in plain
sight."

Entries must be received by 17 March. Specific details of
the competition can be found at the Church of Scotland website:

https://churchofscotland.org.uk/news-and-events/news/2021/moderator-launches-new-photography-competition-hidden-in-plain-sight