Add Producers and Stir? (Re) politicizing Fairtrade participation

Shannon Sutton

No 38, Working Papers from Queen Mary, University of London, School of Business and Management, Centre for Globalisation Research

Abstract: While recent changes to Fairtrade's governance structures aim to facilitate 'stronger voices' for producers (Fairtrade International 2011b), relatively little is known about the impact of these new structures on individuals. Utilizing Fung and Wright's (2003) framework of Empowered Participatory Governance, I am to explore the nature of participation in Fairtrade governance for the co-operatives and individuals belonging to the Fairtrade Africa producer network. I then consider Fung's (2002) notion of countervailing power as a means of understanding representation, particularly as it pertains to those individuals who are typically marginalized within governance processes such as women, the landless, and migrant workers. This paper is part of a broader research project on Tanzanian Fairtrade coffee farmers.

Keywords: Fairtrade; co-operatives; collaborative governance; participation; representation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: H11 J23 J45 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2012-03
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-hme
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