Closing the Fairtrade Awareness Gap

In 2025, third-year Managed Project module students from the School of Science and Engineering completed a Fairtrade Scoping Study at Glasgow Caledonian University. The study was commissioned in collaboration with the Sustainability Team to support the University’s ongoing work on Fairtrade on campus. The project was carried out between late October and early November 2025 with a primary aim to evaluate how Fairtrade is understood, perceived, and experienced by the University community. Specifically, the study sought to:

  • assess student and staff understanding of Fairtrade principles
  • examine awareness of Fairtrade presence and activities on campus
  • identify gaps in communication and promotion of Fairtrade
  • provide recommendations to improve engagement and visibility.

The study also built on a previous 2024 Fairtrade survey, enabling comparison over time to identify trends in awareness, engagement, and visibility. The project adopted a mixed-methods research design, combining quantitative and qualitative data:

  • Online Survey (Quantitative): The survey which achieved 244 responses (207 students and 37 staff), explored awareness, attitudes, behaviours, and perceptions of Fairtrade, and allowed comparison with 2024 data.
  • Semi-Structured Interviews (Qualitative): Interviews provided deeper insight into behaviours, perceptions, and institutional practices. Interviews were carried out among three groups:
    • Sustainability Office staff
    • General university staff
    • University students

The study concluded that although Fairtrade is positively perceived, it is not fully embedded in everyday campus life due to limited visibility and communication strategies.To address this, the project recommended the following:

  • increasing physical visibility (posters, signage, clearer product labelling)
  • expanding digital communication (social media, email campaigns, website content)
  • promoting GCU’s Fairtrade status more actively
  • improving accessibility and identification of Fairtrade products
  • enhancing engagement through events and interactive activities.

This Scoping Study provides the University's Fairtrade Steering Group a practical evidence base for improving Fairtrade engagement on campus. It highlights a clear gap between positive attitudes and actual behaviour, suggesting that targeted communication and visibility strategies are essential to translate awareness into action and support the university’s sustainability goals.

Working on this project also presented a great opportunity for students to learn about on-campus Fairtrade activities.

Theresa Wecke, student lead coordinator of the Scoping Study said:

"Working on this project allowed me to build on my previous experience with Fairtrade while gaining new insights into its principles, structures, and challenges. Although my home university promotes sustainability and environmentally friendly practices, it does not specifically highlight Fairtrade certification. This made it particularly interesting to explore how GCU incorporates Fairtrade across its campus, and what structural, organisational, and cultural factors influence its visibility and impact.

"Through this project, I gained a deeper appreciation of the complexity behind Fairtrade practices — which partly are not seen by students in their day-to-day university experience. It also gave me a greater respect for the work of the Sustainability team and everyone who contributes to the Fairtrade network."

You can read the detailed Fairtrade Scoping Study Report here. If you’re interested in working on any on-campus Fairtrade projects, please contact sustainability@gcu.ac.uk.