Food for thought

-In October, Beth Ann Milardo Caspersen ’96, quality control manager at Equal Exchange, visited campus to talk about the history of the fair trade movement. She was invited to campus as part of the Table Talk series presented by anthropology professor Donna Kerner’s "Feast or Famine” class. "Beth Ann introduced yet another cohort of students to the ideals of providing a fair wage to peasant cooperatives in the developing world that produce our choicest commodities, such as coffee, tea and chocolate,” notes Kerner. "They were also enlightened as to the nature of democratic cooperatives as alternative business models…. She has been generous with her time, coming back frequently for our Table Talk series to educate new generations of students both about fair trade and also about how academic and internship opportunities available at Wheaton can prepare them for a lifetime of meaningful work after college.” Caspersen became interested in fair trade while majoring in anthropology at Wheaton.

Photo by Amie Rosenblum '12