Students are invited to participate in the project Power dynamics between the global North and South: The case of fair trade policieswhich is implemented by Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Ljubljana (Prof. Dr Tomaž Deželan), BUNA, Cooperative for Development and Education.

Students will explore the political dimension of representation in fair trade systems – to what extent are producers, workers, and their organisations (in agriculture, craft production, the textile industry, and other manufacturing and processing activities) actually involved in certification committees, administrative structures, and strategic decision-making, and whether they have an equal say in these processes. Their analysis will be based on the definition that fair trade is a trading partnership based on dialogue, transparency, and respect, which seeks greater equity in international trade.

They will analyse the political dimension of the impact of public policies – whether national governments in producer and consumer countries systematically support fair trade as a tool for sustainable development, or whether it depends mainly on initiatives by non-governmental organisations, cooperatives, social enterprises, and consumer movements. Particular attention will be paid to how fair trade organisations engage in advocacy, campaigning, and efforts to change the rules and practices of conventional international trade.

They will also examine the political dimension of standard setting – whether standards largely reflect the ethical criteria and consumer preferences of the global North (e.g. environmental standards, sustainability certificates, corporate social responsibility) or the actual needs and development priorities of marginalised producers and workers in economically less developed countries (e.g. income stability, market access, social security, labour rights, technology transfer, crisis resilience).

Students will have the opportunity to:

• • conduct interviews or surveys with producers, workers, members of cooperatives, representatives of fair trade organisations, and certification bodies,
• analyse policy documents, trade agreements, and the management frameworks of fair trade organisations,
• • analyse data on trade flows and compare prices and conditions between fair trade and conventional trading systems in different sectors (agriculture, crafts, textiles, light industry, etc.),
• • examine how the principles of dialogue, transparency, and respect are implemented in practice and whether forms of dependency or paternalism arise,
• analyse global value chains (GVCs) in various industries,
• prepare research tasks based on analyses and fieldwork,
• develop research drafts and policy briefs,
• create a poster to raise awareness about fair trade and its broader social impacts,
• prepare and publish contributions (e.g. professional or popular articles for online platforms).

Project duration: up to 5 months

Scope of the student's expected activities: up to 40 hours per month (adjusted to the student's availability)

Student activities are remunerated.

Upon completion, students receive a certificate of completed teaching and research activities.

Interested candidates should send an email with a short description (CV and a few sentences about themselves) to e-mail tomaz.dezelan@fdv.uni-lj.si until Friday 6th March 2026