A Market of Our Own
A Market of Our Own
Women’s Livelihoods and Fair Trade Markets
This chapter examines the issue of gender in a Maya fair trade coffee cooperative in Guatemala, with particular emphasis on women who are struggling to develop a market of their own in order to gain a modicum of financial independence through an increase in earnings. Drawing on ethnographic data gathered primarily through participant observation and qualitative interviews as part of research conducted in Guatemala between December 2001 and February 2003 and again in June 2006, the chapter considers the limitations that female cooperative members face in their attempts to develop new products, new markets, and new contacts. It first discusses the gender implications of fair trade and goes on to analyze why women want a market of their own. It then offers concrete suggestions for how fair trade could better accommodate the needs of women in agricultural communities and thus promote gender equity in certified cooperatives while improving the effectiveness of existing certification standards.
Keywords: fair trade, coffee cooperative, Guatemala, women, new products, new markets, gender equity, certification standards
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