Originally published at Guerrilla Beauty. You can comment here or there.

Guerrilla Beauty’s mission is to get the real stories – so when your admin had the opportunity to meet a farmer from Mozambique, I jumped at the chance!

It’s quite easy to be sceptical about fair trade products. Just how much do these farmers get paid? Has it actually made any difference to their lives? Or is it a publicity stunt by big business to prevent us buying from independent cooperatives?

As part of Fair Trade Fortnight, Isabel Antonio has been giving presentations across the south-west (of England) about her experiences and the impact of fair trade on her community. Isabel is a cashew nut farmer, and most of the world’s cashew nuts come from the part of Mozambique where she lives. Cashew nuts are central to her community: they use the nuts themselves as well as selling them, and produce wine, juice and pepper from the fruit of the cashew tree. Isabel’s community also produce peanuts and small beans.

Mozambique is one of Africa’s poorest countries, and was totally dependent on foreign aid state when it emerged from the civil war in the early 1990s [BBC]. The Cashew nut industry collapsed in 2000-2001, with critics directly blaming the World Bank and IMF [allAfrica]  However, Mozambique has made significant economic and social progress since then.

Fair trade had clearly made a huge difference to the lives of everyone in Isabel’s community. Not only are farmers guaranteed a fair price for their products (set by a ‘forum‘), but they receive help from the fair-trade organisation (in this case Ikuru). Farmers are taught how to farm, are given help with constructing new houses, and even advised on what to feed the children (preparing maize soup instead of water). Isabel was justifiably proud of the photographs of new houses in her village with zinc roofing, doors, beds and utilities: the village simply didn’t have these things before fair trade. And she was pleased to show photographs of children in the village, noting that children nowadays are fatter, and learn to walk much sooner than they used to!

Villagers were spending money on goods such as plastic chairs and bicycles. The latter is a tremendous development, making travelling times shorter and giving women their independence.

The advancement of women was particularly interesting. A family used to have a patch of land with their house. Under fair trade, it is people who have land, which means that a woman can own her own plot of land separate to her husband. Women are trading independently, and can keep the money they earn. The men of the village have been supportive of this, because it alleviates the stress of being responsible for the family: if the wife wants salt or rice, she can go out and buy it herself! Many women also take evening classes, and are becoming more educated. A woman’s life is still hard though, with women farming from 5am – 8am and then returning home to look after the family.

The village has a strong community spirit. All of the extra money is given to a nominated person in the village, like a bank. This money can then be used for emergencies, such as when a cyclone ruined the plantations in 2008 (although the fair trade forum were able to give some money and support to communities who were struggling after the cyclone). Decisions are made by community meetings.

The community is not completely reliant on foreign trade. On Thursdays there is a fair to buy and sell within the community. People come from the surrounding areas to buy the fruit wine produced from the cashew fruit.

So what do the fair trade companies like Ikuru get in return for all of this? The community must pay for a license to be fair trade – in return, they expect to be given the right money for the produce. At the moment, this situation is working well for Isobel’s community, since they have far more with fair trade than they did before. In fact, new families are coming to join their community all the time. Perhaps you could speculate that fair trade is open to exploitation in the future, but as communities like Isabel’s become more wealthy and educated, they will become better equipped to deal with any future problems.

Crucially, IKURU “is a Mozambique owned, agri-trading, processing and exporting Company. The company was founded in 2003 with initial investments from Farmers Associations. There are also investments by ethical investors (GAPI – a Mozambique public/private financial institution and Oxfam Novib – Netherlands)” [ Ikuru]. This means that money is largely staying in (and improving the economy of) Mozambique, and the enterprise is run for the benefits of the farmers it represents. Not all fair trade organisations can boast this: the controversial food giant Nestle has been granted fair trade status, despite being subject to an international boycott for selling powdered baby milk in less developed countries [BBC].

In addition, different fair trade certifying bodies operate differently. The Rainforest Alliance (unlike the Fairtrade Foundation) do not charge for a license, but do not guarantee a minimum  price for produce either [an excellent discussion is reported here]. The moral is to select your fair trade products carefully from suppliers you trust, rather than just looking for the fair trade icon. Which makes shopping more difficult, and rather undermines the point of the fair trade icon.  We can only hope that if companies like Nestle have recognised that fair trade is good for business, their business practises will follow suit.

A final thought. Your admin comes from a town in the north of England where plastic chairs and bicycles are manufactured. So, when you buy fair trade you not only support Isabel’s community, but you support Britain too!

Originally published at Guerrilla Beauty. You can comment here or there.

We all know that there is a shortage of women in Science, Engineering and Technology. Periodically, there is a competition day or lecture at a local school to try and encourage girls onto Scientific courses, yet only a minority of girls do so. And out of those that study sciences at college or university, only a relatively small proportion actually stay in a career – opting for positions in teaching, management or consultancy instead. The latter is almost certainly due to money and flexi-time. However, why is it that so many girls aren’t interested in science and technology at school? Even parents who strive to raise their daughters in an atmosphere of equality report that, somehow, at a young primary school age, their daughters start to think that they can’t work in traditionally male roles.

Here at Guerrilla Beauty there is a growing collection of articles about the science behind the beauty industry. Let’s face it, ladies are savvy and intelligent enough when it comes to beauty, having no problem with Coenzyme Q-10, Pro-vitamin B5, or the difference between Dermis and Epidermis (the layers of the skin). There are women who can find uses for Baking Soda that would startle a Chemistry professor.  There are ladies who claim to be rubbish at maths, but woe betide you if you try to short-change them…

Your dear Admin’s mother has a pretty good theory about this: there are no role models. In this world of barbie-dolls, huge breasts and designer-clad celebrities, most people struggle to name many prominent female scientists or engineers. Every generation of women believes that they are virtually the first to be allowed into the sciences and industry. It is true that attitudes have taken time to change and there have been numerous issues (from suffrage, to reproductive rights, and more recent workplace harrassment legislation). Even today not all cultures are equal, and it can be a real struggle to reconcile expectations from society, family and work colleagues with individual aspirations. But feminism as a movement dates back to the Nineteenth century, and over that time there have been many notable women in Science and Technology.

With this in mind, Guerrilla Beauty is proud to present a list of female inspiration and role models for the Sciences, Engineering and Technology. The list is not exhaustive by a very long way, and you are welcome to comment with your own role models and inspiration. Find our list on the “Women We Love” page: http://guerrillabeauty.com/women-we-love/

If you are a woman who’s interested in science and technology (either as a career for yourself, or mentoring others) check out the following links:

The British Science Association are a registered charity that exists to advance the public understanding, accessibility and accountability of the sciences and engineering in the UK. They have plenty of events and competitions, including the British Science Festival, a program for schools, and fellowships for students:  http://www.britishscienceassociation.org

The UK Resource Centre for Women in Science, Engineering and Technology is the British Government’s lead organisation for the provision of advice, services and policy consultation regarding the under-representation of women in science, engineering, technology and the built environment (SET). They provide training grants, coaching and support. http://www.ukrc4setwomen.org/

The WISE Campaign encourages young women to stick with studying Maths and Physics and to consider careers in Science, Engineering and The Built Environment http://www.wisecampaign.org.uk/

 The Fawcett Society campaigns for equality between women and men in the UK on pay, pensions, poverty, justice and politics. http://www.fawcettsociety.org.uk

The Engineering Council  is the regulatory body for the engineering profession in the UK. http://www.engc.org.uk  They are partners with the various Engineering Institutions who can often offer support and training to students and engineers, as well as a programme of lectures and events. A list of the institutions can be found here

Girl Geek Dinners are the growing international phenomenon, where women working in science and IT can network and socialise. http://girlgeekdinners.com/

What a brilliant week! How was yours? It's finally getting a little warmer, and it's not quite so dark in the mornings... Which means the 'Winter blues' are going away too. Getting my daily walk was quite pleasant. Of course, we're due some more "Arctic Weather" next week, but I'll deal with that when it arrives.

Sometimes keeping all the resolutions going is like keeping plates spinning, isn't it? This week I've been astounded by other peoples' good nature, and the help they've given me. My supervisor has given me some sample papers to emulate in my research, and I also found a free online study module on academic writing! The ladies at my slimming club are full of ideas as always, and our group leader spent an excellent session highlighting where the extra calories are creeping into our diets. And I've been networking with some local businesswomen, who are happy to let me bounce ideas around in return for a little technical advice. It really goes to show that there's no harm in asking for help when you start to struggle with things: you can probably return the favour fairly easily, and surprise yourself with what you know! This is how communities are built. And, as Winnie the Pooh would say, "it's always much friendlier with two."

My goal for this week is to do some writing. I've been feeling quite exhausted, and my right hand hasn't been coping with typing... But I have plenty of draft articles for Guerrilla Beauty and SimonSeeks, and they need finishing and posting! So watch this space!

Another week down, and the first month of the year is over! For most people, that means the first pay cheque of the New Year, and a rather good weekend starting today :)  The holidays feel like quite a long time ago, don't they? It doesn't hurt to think about how the little weekly changes have added up over the last month. For me, I lost the weight I put on over Christmas (official as of this week!), got back into the healthy eating, set up a website and threw myself back into the studying. Impressive, huh? There's nothing wrong with celebrating your progress: it's an important part of staying on track.

This week's going to be tricky: the January blues are still present and it's getting tougher to avoid the wine and chocolate! After being ill last week, I've been neglecting the exercise: so my first priority is to make sure I get out of the house for a walk every day. Hopefully the extra sunlight will do me some good too. I also need to get some practice in ahead of my dance class starting again in two weeks. So, this week's goal is 30mins exercise every day.

Hi! How is everyone?

First, I'ld like to welcome the new visitors from the page on Facebook. Don't be shy about signing up - this group is for everyone to use, and will work better with some more members!

Second, it's a slightly tardy post from me this week! Well, I've had a lot of work on: a draft paper to be prepared by Friday, a course with the UK Resource Centre for Women, and a rather unpleasant illness that left me unable to eat for a couple of days (all better now, thankfully!) Needless to say, every good intention went out of the window! But that's OK! I had a really interesting conversation with another delegate on the course, who noted how perfectionist and ambitious we all were: It's OK to fail sometimes. It's part of life! And I really wanted to repeat that on here, because I know how often we set a resolution, and then give up for the rest of the year just because we needed a short break, or couldn't quite find the time. When you set your weekly goal, don't be afraid to give yourself an easy week, or allow for a day off if you need one. And don't be too hard on yourself if things don't go to plan: just put it down to experience, and focus on next week.

So this weekend I visited a younger relative, and I was so pleased to see him doing well for himself! He's been studying really hard, but enjoying it a lot - which is the way it should be, isn't it? So I'm feeling inspired and I'm going to throw myself into my research this week! I have a couple of papers I started before Christmas, and I'm going to go the extra mile and try to get them published.

Hi! How's everyone doing?

I hope you all had a good week. I notice some people have signed up and not posted: feel free to add your progress, even if it's just a one-line post! This community will work better the more of us that there are :)

I guess the weather is disrupting everyone's routines - I've been unable to leave my town for a couple of weeks now! But I'm proud to have stuck to my resolutions (barring a chocolate "incident" the other night - enough said!)

I'm going to give myself a fairly easy week this week, since I think I might struggle to keep my changes from the past two weeks if I don't! So this week's change is to set up a new website. Now, you might think that's an odd target: well, I'm going to take notes as I do it and use those notes to help out some friends and family who are interested in setting up websites. I may even be able to earn a little pocket money (or some beer)!

I'll keep this short, and wait to hear from you,
Becky xxx

My goal for the first week was to get ready for moving. I've done all the paperwork, so that part's ok. The packing and cleaning, though... My brother moved back from the U.S. and since his apartment's still rented to another guy, he's been crashing at my place. I haven't had much chance to clean anything and now there's twice as much mess! I can't really start packing, either, because the only place where there's space for the packed stuff is the living room, which my brother's taken over.

I'm going to go check out my new apartment today! My future roommate already went to see what it looked like, and she said that it hadn't been cleaned and the previous people had left all kinds of random things behind. Nice. I'm bringing some cleaning stuff with me so I can clean the place now when it's still empty.

My second week's goals are still about the packing and cleaning. Plus I want to catch up on reading my newspaper! I don't want to take old news to my new apartment and I don't want to just throw them away unread. That's enough challenge for this week! :D

Hi everyone! How was your first week?

For those of you who've just looked and not signed up, you're still very welcome. We don't have a time limit!

With the arctic weather conditions it's been hard to do much this week! I'm pleased to report that I completed my personal goal: naturally I'm a few pounds heavier after the holidays, but that's to be expected. Life wouldn't be much fun without a bit of wine and chocolate! I hope that now I've made the effort for one week, it will be easy to continue eating healthily.

Well, I'm back at university now (or would be if it wasn't closed due to the snow!) and my goal for this week is to read 2-3 scientific papers a week, by dedicating one hour a day to them. I'm going to acheive this by taking the train instead of driving, and making sure I read instead of gazing out of the window! This'll make my day longer, so I need to make sure I still get exercise by walking to the station. If I stay snowed in, I'll just have to make sure I get a walk and read a paper while I'm working from home.

I'ld love to hear how you're doing :)

I did discover this site which has loads of ideas for changes that you can make: http://wearewhatwedo.org/actions I'm sure there must be a few sites like this, so feel free to post any links that you've found too.

Becky xxx

Hi! I'm Doriana. My New Year's resolution is to start living my life better.

I'm really quite lazy and I tend to leave everything to the last minute. I don't exercise at all, I could learn to cook better, be more social, follow what's happening in the world, take better care of my health, etc. This year is also my last year in school and I want to finish it well and write a good graduation paper. So, my goal is to change a lot of little things to improve my life in general.

My first week's (+this weekend's) goal is to get everything ready for moving back to the town where I study. That includes cleaning the apartment, packing most of my stuff, calling the renter about the keys, paying rent (!), and changing my address (at the post office + communities) and so on. Lots to do! All I need to do is stop being lazy and start doing things instead of just talking about it.