By Sam Budhdev

450 pupils of Masarykova elementary school in Litomerice attended an exciting presentation about a very interesting trip to an African country. Mrs. Dragonova, the school’s English teacher, took part in the project Aware and Fair taking her to Malawi to further promote Fairtrade both in the Czech Republic and also in other European countries.

Her trip followed previous work on many projects related to fair trade. Her biggest success however is that all of the pupils at her school recognise the Fairtrade logo and understand what it means in practice.

On 4^th November, all pupils together with the staff attended a presentation about her trip. Mrs. Dragonova prepared and presented her most interesting experiences and discoveries from the trip. Younger pupils were very interested in photos and stories about African animals and nature, as well as the lives of native children, and her visit to a local primary school. They were really excited to see the soft toys that they donated being given to the pupils. Masarykova school is currently discussing future cooperation with the Malawien school.

Older pupils were well aware of the importance of the links and the fair trade idea itself. They were particularly keen to see and hear first-hand about the lives of native people and their work on farms. Thanks to Fairtrade workers are guaranteed a fair price for their work. The pupils and staff were extremely moved by the evidence of the Fairtrade premium being invested in the local communities. They were shown photos of basic infrastructure in the forms of medical facilities, schools, electricity and water supplies, all of which all will guarantee a self sustaining future for the communities involved thanks to Fairtrade.

Mrs. Dragonova has presented her Malawien experiences to many different audiences, from children to adults since returning from her trip. She wishes to continue spreading the message until everyone around her is aware and fair!