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The discovery of two handprints of the Dutch journalist and travel writer Mary Pos (1904–1987) and Pos’ reports of her consultations with the Dutch hand-reader in question led to us to reflect on the potential use of such documents in a biographical project aimed at a reconstruction of the life and work of Pos. We first examined the possible reasons for Pos to consult the hand-reader and tried to determine if and how she responded to it in her diaries and correspondence. We also checked whether the hand-reader’s findings had an impact and if she followed his advice. Finally, we wanted to find out if the handprints and reports could perhaps complement the more conventional collection of historical documents already studied, such as Pos’ diaries and letters. We also asked ourselves the more methodological question if a close reading and contextualisation of handprints and their reports in general can contribute to a biographical project. This essay offers a contextualisation of hand-reading practices, a detailed reading of the recovered documents, and a set of considerations when using such sources in a biographical project.

One of the world’s most severe problems today is poverty. Can it be solved with Fair Trade? During this thesis the topic of Fair Trade and the problems it has to face will be presented. First an introduction will be given on how Fair Trade works, how it developed and where it stands today. Then the problems and the criticisms it has to deal with will be illustrated. The main focus will be on the problem of the low market share of Fair Trade products and on consumer attitudes towards it. The aim is to find out restrictions and problems of Fair Trade products concerning consumer acceptance, for example reasons why consumers do not buy Fair Trade products and opportunities for further marketing activities to address those problems. For the second part of this thesis, a quantitative study has been conducted by carrying out a survey among potential Fair Trade consumers, mainly students, which has brought insight into their actual attitude towards Fair Trade and their motivation for buying or not buying Fair Trade products. The results of this study confirm the problems defined in existing literature, which are most notably the high price, a lack of information and trust in Fair Trade and a lack of availability of Fair Trade products. In order to help more of the world’s poor to get out of poverty, it is important to address those problems so that the market share of Fair Trade products can increase.

One of the world’s most severe problems today is poverty. Can it be solved with Fair Trade? During this thesis the topic of Fair Trade and the problems it has to face will be presented. First an introduction will be given on how Fair Trade works, how it developed and where it stands today. Then the problems and the criticisms it has to deal with will be illustrated. The main focus will be on the problem of the low market share of Fair Trade products and on consumer attitudes towards it. The aim is to find out restrictions and problems of Fair Trade products concerning consumer acceptance, for example reasons why consumers do not buy Fair Trade products and opportunities for further marketing activities to address those problems. For the second part of this thesis, a quantitative study has been conducted by carrying out a survey among potential Fair Trade consumers, mainly students, which has brought insight into their actual attitude towards Fair Trade and their motivation for buying or not buying Fair Trade products. The results of this study confirm the problems defined in existing literature, which are most notably the high price, a lack of information and trust in Fair Trade and a lack of availability of Fair Trade products. In order to help more of the world’s poor to get out of poverty, it is important to address those problems so that the market share of Fair Trade products can increase.