Education Fund for Enhancing Employment Opportunities

Project Description: Farmers voted to invest Fair Trade Community Development Funds to a project supporting young adults in the community with their undergraduate and graduate education.
Reason for the Project: The farming cooperative added this premium focus to help achieve stable and sustainable employment conditions for the community. Raising living standards is a strong strategy to address child labor practices and and to promote the protection of children and the younger generation.
Project Outcome: Through this project, the Colombian cooperative assisted 3,668 beneficiaries (associated producers, spouses, children and cooperative workers) in the form of tuition payment, rent support, food and transportation. In addition, the educational tours and seminars provided supplemental data sharing of the cooperative. The educational aspect of the project included training related to sustainability, coffee pricing, and tours of drying patios, the roasting plant highlighting the coffee transformation process. The expenses for attending the training were covered and the associates could enjoy the day with lunch and connect with other members of the cooperative.