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A leading voice in efforts to make Jersey a 'Fairtrade Island' has opened up about the other ways he'd make living locally even fairer.
Designed to advocate trade justice for farmers and workers who grow much of the imported goods arriving in the island, the Jersey Fairtrade Island Group promotes fair prices, good working conditions and a living wage.
15 years on from States Members voting to declare Jersey a ‘Fairtrade island’ and as the annual Fairtrade Fortnight comes to an end, the group’s Chairman Tony Allchurch reflects on what he would improve about the island if he were calling the shots.
From what’s in your wine glass to what car you’re driving, Tony has a few suggestions for how the island could change for the better…
Not so well known is the brilliant range of Fairtrade wines that are also available and indeed in The Co-op wine is the biggest selling of all their Fairtrade products. Wines from Chile, Argentina and South Africa are competitively priced, good value and some are prize-winning.
Pictured: Tony invites islanders to increase demand for Fairtrade wine (Tony Allchurch).
So, why can’t I order a Fairtrade Malbec or Chardonnay in a Jersey restaurant? Help me to change things by asking for Fairtrade wine the next time you are dining out. When you choose a Fairtrade wine you are helping very poor people across the world to work their own way out of poverty.
I am fortunate to live in a green lane. I love the idea of green lanes, and I want everybody to appreciate them for what they are intended to be: a network of lanes where people take precedence over motor vehicles. But sadly some of these lanes have become popular as shortcuts to St. Helier and its supermarkets and schools.
Pictured: Tony is 'bananas' for the green lanes in Jersey, but wants to see them better respected (Tony Allchurch).
And 85% of drivers exceed the limit of 15mph and rush through at up to twice that speed. I want to see change that keeps my green lane free of through traffic, and able to be enjoyed by walkers, joggers, cyclists, riders and nature lovers. Traffic calming and traffic reducing measures would be a change for the good for everyone.
Free bus travel for senior citizens may be an old-fashioned acknowledgement of a lifetime of working but it is greatly valued by retired people who fill buses outside of rush hour periods. And now free passes for young people of school age is under consideration. But why can’t buses be free for everyone?
Pictured: Tony thinks that public transport in Jersey should be free for everyone.
The state of Luxembourg has just announced that all of its public transport services will be provided to residents and visitors free of charge so it must be a viable proposition. A change to free bus travel would eventually resolve the traffic jams and the hopeless gridlock of peak periods and you can read a paper or check your phone when you are riding on a bus.
Recent reports show that SUVs are the most popular new vehicles in Jersey, but evidence shows that regrettably they are also the most polluting. Other research suggests that drivers of these intimidating vehicles are more likely to be assertive and less likely to show consideration to other road users and pedestrians.
Pictured: Tony reckons the most polluting cars are also the most assertive on Jersey roads.
So step carefully on to the zebra crossing when you see one approaching and don’t stick your nose out of a side road until one has passed by. I want to see change and the phasing out of all gas-guzzlers before 2030 and an end to the inexplicable promotion of such vehicles in today’s motoring supplements.
I was a delegate to a remarkable conference in Florida in 1999. Called ‘Conservation Medicine’ it attracted the leading experts in climate change, pollution, infectious diseases, conservation biology and ecosystem health. I was out of my depth in a sea of scientific luminaries but the overall message was clear: we are all doomed unless we can agree to make immense change to the way we lead our lives and the way that we work together in the future.
Pictured: Tony thinks the only way to combat the climate crisis is to make "immense change".
The evidence is in the global reports of widespread flooding, severe drought, wildfires, storms and even plagues of locusts. And now coronavirus has emerged as a new and dangerous challenge to human health. If we are to keep Jersey as a safe and healthy place to live we must all make changes and do it quickly.
The views expressed in this article are those of the author and not Bailiwick Express.
If you would like to take part in 'Five things I would change about Jersey' or would like to suggest someone, email editor@bailiwickexpress.com.
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