Learning from the World Forums

After talking a little bit about the Ninth World Social Forum that ended recently, my colleague (and dear friend) who was at the Forum shared his own thoughts with me along with countless articles surrounding the event.  Before he left for the Forum, a group of us were caught in a discussion about the WSF, concerning its relevance in the last few years and shared our thoughts about what to expect from it now -- given the 'massive global crisis' -- and also compared it against the World Economic Forum in Davos.

The goal of the World Social Forum has always been to serve as an anti-corporate/anti-globalization/anti-neoliberal policies platform and working towards an alternative model involving more solidarity, fairness, justice and democracy. The World Economic Forum in Davos has served to praise and show the successes of the 'capitalistic-corporate globalization' that the WSF is so critical of. With Davos over, there has been talk of a loss of pride from delegates of that Forum with countless questions about the economy and the neoliberal model left unanswered. Also, critics of Davos sound very angry.

This doubt coming from Davos served to fuel the energy of those at the World Social Forum in Brazil with everyone there feeling assured as it seems that the current crisis shows that they have been proven right -- that the corporate globalization model they have been fighting to prove wrong is finally seeing its flaws. The time for progressive change -- to build a fairer economic model -- is finally gaining traction and the dialogue to make it happen is increasing.

One of the main organizers of the World Social Forum, Cándido Grzybowski, shared his thoughts on the state of the neoliberal model and possible next steps,

Maybe the essence of neo-liberal capitalism isn't going to change, but it's not going to be like before, when companies would say what needed to be done, and demanded total freedom and an open market, without any controls, to do it.

Will we be able to change the course of things in order to install a humanitarian priority, an environmental priority, to attend to the needs of the people and make economic and financial considerations subsidiary? That all depends on our strength.

What is clear, though, is the amazing victory of the social movement. Ten years ago, when we first started discussing the idea to set up a Forum, it was almost impossible to think about alternatives and people just thought we were mad. Now the alternative is growing not just because we demand it, but also because this system can't sustain itself any longer, and has no viable future.

With business as usual not working and the need for a more just and sustainable economy at a height, the Fair Trade movement needs to mobilize with the rest of the social justice groups demanding for a fairer economy and sustainable planet -- demanding to make the alternative system that the FT movement has been cultivating into the norm.

Filipino academic, author and activist Walden Bello who was present at the World Social Forum had this to say about what the WSF could achieve in terms of finding out next steps in this crisis,

We really need to frame our responses in terms of common universal values, like the question of justice, the question of equity, creating an alternative that really cares for the welfare of people. I think the discussion in Belem will really be very critical in terms of framing the alternatives.

As for implementation, you really need to be quite innovative. We need to be looking at solidly linking our movement across different countries, interacting with respect to the alternatives that are being pushed. It can’t be easy, but this kind of sharing of experiences, creation of networks, sharing of ideas - I think this is something that the forum will play a very critical role at.

The outcome of both Forums amidst the 'massive global crisis' is really showing me the significance that the World Fair Trade Day event is going to have. It is uniting people, voices and movements to show that another world really is possible and a new beginning is needed. Different countries around the world are planning and calling out for a more sustainable economy. Uganda wants more Fair Trade, Nepal is looking for alternative strategies, Asian Fair Trade Forum is looking for a fairer trading model, and Fair Trade Towns across the world are popping up all the time. This shows the strength the Fair Trade model is capable of and the strength that can be achieved when working in solidarity.

Check out this video from AlJazeera Network of voices from people around the World Social Forum sharing their thoughts and hopes for the future.

[photo: AFP/Getty Images]