Fellow
Richard Adams
Richard has spent much of his working life in the founding and development of several successful not-for-profit, community-owned, or co-operative enterprises that allow people to express constructive social and environmental values through their work, spending or saving. Amongst these are Traidcraft, the Fairtrade Foundation, Shared Interest, and Warm Zones. The majority have been focussed on fair trade, the problems of social exclusion, international development and sustainability. He continues to offer support to the College’s ongoing tradition of bringing a Christian perspective to the issues of trade justice.
Richard has degrees in sociology, theology and business with honorary doctorates from Durham and Newcastle Universities and is currently a Visiting Professor at Northumbria University. In 2006, he was listed by the Independent newspaper as one of the top 50 people in the UK who had had most impact in “making the world a better place” for his practical development of the concept of ethical shopping. From 2001-2015, he was a member of the European Union’s Economic and Social Committee, and continues to chair the Fair Trade Advocacy Office in Brussels. His current interests are focused on the challenges of global sustainability and the contributions of social impact organisations.