Drinking that daily cup of coffee may be more political than most people think.

One group, the Students for Labor and Economic Justice organization, has not only recognized the popularity of coffee, but has taken it one step further.

The organization is campaigning to increase the use of a specific coffee, called Fair Trade coffee, around campus. Fair Trade coffee is different from other coffee because it is grown in environmentally safe conditions, where farmers are paid fair wages and have good working conditions.

Fair Trade coffee does not use any child labor.

Saroj Sedalia, a member of the SLEJ organization, became interested in Fair Trade coffee and other Fair Trade issues while working at Global Gallery, a non-profit, Fair Trade marketplace located in the Short North.

“Fair Trade coffee is an important issue for many reasons,” Sedalia said. “Coffee is consumed here by a huge number of people and we feel that it is a great place to start promoting Fair Trade.

“Fair Trade puts people before profits and by buying Fair Trade coffee, the average person can help coffee farmers in countries where payment is not always fair enough to survive.”

While Jared Bibler, another member of the SLEJ organization, was living in Guatemala, he became aware of the economic and labor injustices that are evident throughout the world.

“Most people do not realize that the blend of coffee that they choose to purchase here in Columbus could have an impact on a child’s education in Guatemala,” Bibler said. “These are relatively small changes that we can make here that would have a huge impact on the developing world. The goal of SLEJ is not only to work to make these changes, but to raise student awareness of these issues.”

For many people, hearing or reading about issues such as Fair Trade coffee can only take a person so far in their involvement. However, the SLEJ organization is a small way to make a huge difference.

“People commonly feel that mistreatment of laborers in other countries is a huge problem, but feel disconnected with the issue and don’t know how they can do something about it,” Sedalia said. “Choosing Fair Trade coffee is a way to help.”

The SLEJ will kickoff its campaign on The Oval during Human Rights Awareness Week, beginning Monday from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.