The Fair Trade Coalition wants to pay students to get their morning pickup from a Fair Trade cup of coffee. Members of the coalition will stand outside Java B&B in the Martin Luther King Jr. University Union and give 13 cents to customers for the purchase of Fair Trade coffee, encouraging them to purchase it over other brands. Fair Trade coffee cost 13 cents more with tax than a regular cup of coffee, said Chris Lempa, a senior history major.

Coalition members admit the technique is unusual, but hope to use that to their advantage.

“This is an odd approach, but it helps draw attention to the event and lets customers know they have the choice to purchase Fair Trade coffee,” said Jillian Phillips, a senior English major.

The money will be taped to brochures informing coffee drinkers about the benefits of Fair Trade coffee, and members of the coalition will be on hand to answer questions, Lempa said.

“Were not just giving out money; we are also raising awareness for the Fair Trade cause,” he said.

The a href=”http://store.globalexchange.org/coffee.html” target=”new”>Fair Trade Coalition started two years ago, and has been working to make the Union a “Fair Trade Zone,” selling only Fair Trade coffee products, Lempa said.

Workers who harvest Fair Trade coffee beans receive a fair wage for their labor when other workers often get paid less than what the coffee is worth.

“Many people don’t know that. By buying Fair Trade products, they are supporting sustainable agriculture, human rights, small farming communities and social justice, and getting a better cup of coffee at the same time,” Phillips said.

To purchase Fair Trade coffee versus free trade coffee is to change the world one cup at a time, a press release said.

– Staff writer Layne Utsinger contributed to this report