An old Chinese proverb says, “He who says that something cannot be done should not interrupt the person who is doing it”. There’s been a great deal of talk this year about sustainability; whether it can be achieved or whether it’s just hot air. Certainly, the problems in making trade work for everyone seem to find no political resolution. The World Trade Organisation held its most recent ministerial meeting just before Christmas: despite strenuous negotiations and some progress, WTO members remain divided and the future of the organisation is uncertain. As WTO director-general Roberto Azevêdo said in wrapping up the conference: “Inaction itself is a decision and I believe the price of inaction is too high.” Indeed.
This was a depressing end to the year which had contained some moments of real political consensus and optimism. The Paris climate change talks pulled the political rabbit out of the hat, with commitments to reduce carbon emissions that went further than some had predicted, despite the many get-out clauses in the final declaration. But the big deal this year was surely the agreement by the UK and 192 other countries to sign up to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which will set the global development agenda for the next 15years.
Where the Millennium Development Goals focused primarily on the symptoms of poverty, the new Global Goals will seek to tackle the causes. Of course the causes of global injustice are deep-rooted and complex, so it’s hardly surprising that the 17 goals seem almost impossibly daunting. Goal 1, for example, is to “End poverty in all its forms everywhere”; Goal 2 will achieve “Zero hunger” while Goal 12 calls for “Responsible production and consumption”. Are we really saying that in just 15 years we can solve problems that have defeated us for generations? Well, why not? Mandela was right when he said poverty was man-made; we know there is enough food to feed everyone. I don’t think we should be put off by the scale of these challenges: it’s good to have them named. To have them ratified by most of the world’s governments could be a huge step forward. Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf has said, “If your dreams do not scare you, they are not big enough.” And what better time to dream big dreams than at the start of a new year?
Achieving the Global Goals will take all of us. There is more for government to do, certainly. There is much to celebrate in the UK’s approach to development aid, but we are on weaker ground when it comes to trade. The best resolution the UK government could make for the new year would be to stop giving with one hand and taking with the other. UK trade policy must favour poor producers more. Otherwise SDG commitments will be just talk. 2015 saw the UK market move away from African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) sugar cane towards subsidised EU beet - a move prompted by changes in trade policy. While the UK looks for friends in Brussels to shore up its efforts to re-negotiate its membership, it is turning its back on farming communities in developing countries who have supplied it with cane sugar for hundreds of years. Will the UK government resolve to sort this out in 2016?
The Global Goals are full of references to the role of business. The public expects companies to improve their social and environmental performance. Increasingly regulation, like the welcome Modern Slavery Act of 2015, requires more transparency from companies. In fact the Goals present a huge opportunity for forward-thinking companies to go further, to trade on their values and create value for all. Let’s hope more company leaders make a resolution to embrace their responsibilities and act on them in 2016.
Fairtrade is a way in. In the past year, public support and company commitment generated more than $6bn (£4bn) of Fairtrade sales, in 125 markets. This enabled 1.5 million farmers and workers to take the kind of actions the Global Goals are calling for, to take the next step in trading their way out of poverty and building a more sustainable future.
Stable Fairtrade minimum prices have again been crucial. In 2015, volatile global commodity prices have continued to play havoc with farmers’ ability to plan and invest in their businesses. And last year Fairtrade earned producers an extra $115m (£77.6m) in premiums, a vital means of driving community investment.
In 2016 we will launch our new global strategy. Fairtrade’s New Year’s resolutions will be to focus more clearly than ever before on lasting impact and pushing for changes in living income and living wages, in gender equality and climate resilience. Not perfect, and certainly not done, but through this kind of partnership – between consumers, companies and producers – those scary Global Goals don’t seem so unachievable after all. Change happens when all of us pull together. Maybe the UN’s song for the new year should be Elvis’s “A little less conversation, a little more action please”.
Follow Michael on Twitter @fairtrademg
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