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6th Annual BALLE Conference - June 5 to 7 2008
The Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE) was created in 2001 in Philadelphia to strengthen and connect local business networks dedicated to building strong local living economies. They promote the long-term economic empowerment and prosperity in communities through local business ownership, economic justice, cultural diversity, and healthy natural environment. More than 15 000 entrepreneurs in the United States and Canada are members of the networks, which allow them to exchange tools and resources about the development of local living economies.
The 2008 BALLE conference is a gathering of social entrepreneurs in sectors like green building, renewable energy, sustainable agriculture, local food systems and independent retail joining together with community leaders and government officials to network about the requirements to build an economy that values long-term growth and sustainability.
Monika Firl facilitated a Fair Trade panel bringing in some of the historical voices alongside with new developments and challenges facing the North American Fair Trade movement. With Jonathan Rosenthal from Oké USA, Carmen K. Iezzi from the Fair Trade Federation, Bill Harris of Cooperative Coffees and Virginia Berman from Equal Exchange presenting diverse aspects of the current Fair Trade panorama, the discussion was both informative and lively.
“Our involvement with BALLE members is an important part of our plan to promote a movement towards more comprehensive consumer education,” Monika said following the panel discussion. “When we say Fair Trade, we really want to think about trade that is Fair, Green and Local. We received very positive feedback from BALLE leaders about strategies to increasingly incorporate Fair Trade sourcing along with green and local products within the local living economies network.”
This was the second participation of CoopCoffees at BALLE’s annual conference and both organizations are interested in promoting Fair Trade in a local perspective. Through a potential collaboration with CoopCoffees, BALLE wishes to provide more information and resources on Fair Trade for local entrepreneurs.
CoopCoffees considers BALLE as a dynamic and growing network sharing common values on sustainable, respectful and transparent trading policies. We encourage our roaster members to explore their nearest BALLE network and meet these creative entrepreneurs in their region. Getting involved in a dynamic local network on development and sustainable practises could be a great opportunity for small roasting companies to learn about collective marketing strategies and innovative technologies.
In preparation for BALLE’s next conference in 2009, we are proposing a plenary session on Fair Trade and increased collaboration between BALLE and Cooperative Coffees.
For more information: visit BALLE's website
