Fair trade

The State Government of Schleswig-Holstein supports development policy initiatives through, among other things, an annual financial contribution to the One-World Network (Landesnetzwerk Bündnis Eine Welt – BEI) as well as to the Promoter Program (Promotorenprogramm), whereas four positions have been created in 2012 in cooperation with the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development. Furthermore, Schleswig-Holstein works hand in hand on the basis of mutual trust with BEI within the framework of nationwide committees for development cooperation.

The Ministry for Energy, Agriculture, Environment, Nature and Digitalization (Ministerium für Energiewende, Landwirtschaft, Umwelt, Natur und Digitalisierung - MELUR) also cooperates with the Service Agency Communities in One World (Servicestelle Kommunen in der Einen Welt) and the Lutheran-Protestant Church of Northern Germany. A high-level agreement was signed with the Church of Northern Germany. Development projects by non-governmental organizations are subsidised by BINGO, the state-owned lottery.

Beside the support of municipal and school-related North-South partnerships, MELUR prioritizes awareness-raising measures, for example in the areas of sustainable and fair procurement and Fair Trade as well as educational work within the UNESCO Global Action Prorgramme on Education for Sustainable Development. These projects are run by the Ministry, mostly in cooperation with the “Educational Centre for Nature, Environment and Rural Areas” (Bildungszentrum für Natur, Umwelt und ländliche Räume – BNUR). Global Learning
and development policy subjects are also part of educational work in schools within the framework of Schleswig-Holstein’s initiative “School of the Future.SH” (Zukunftsschule.SH). Several schools have already contributed to projects in this area.

With the aim of supporting climate protection, Schleswig-Holstein has joined the Initiative “Global Climate Leadership” in 2015. MELUR supports the cooperation between participants from the economic and academic sectors in Schleswig-Holstein, who, together with their Mexican partners, work in the field of renewable energies and climate protection within the framework of the German-Mexican Climate Alliance.

Every year, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and the WTSH GmbH jointly fund a training program for specialized personnel from the Chinese province of Zhejiang.

Multi-facetted cooperation with developing countries exists in the area of university research and educational work.

ELAN is an association of organizations committed to development policy. Its members range from small solidarity groups, aid organizations, and "Weltläden" (Fair Trade stores) to working groups, youth associations. and networks. Overall, about 400 groups from Rhineland-Palatinate are organized in this statewide network. ELAN's work in development policy is very diverse. The main focus is on: Fair Trade, partnerships, campaigns, Local Agenda 21, as well as globalization and its effects in the Northern and Southern Hemisphere.

As a parent organization, ELAN is responsible for networking development policy initiatives within the state. Through publications or the Internet, its member organizations receive information about current subjects, activities, and campaigns and participate in discussion forums. The dialog between ELAN and the state government gives significance to the diverse aspects of the work related to development policy in the state. The ELAN office in Mainz coordinates the educational and public relations work and assists member organizations with projects.

To secure a viable future for people, animals, and in fact the whole planet, a new course must be set in global politics. Hence, the following principles determine the work of ELAN:

1. A more just, permanently inhabitable world can only be achieved if everyone is granted the right to live, and people can live in dignity and in a socially secure environment.
2. It makes sense to network efforts. In order to critically observe and monitor the process of economic networking and monopolization, both governments and NGOs must cooperate worldwide.
3. Democracy must be strengthened because informed citizens identify undesirable developments early on. They should not feel at the mercy of their governments, and they should assume responsibility for the preservation of the basic living conditions worldwide through their commitment to sustainable development.