To make things even easier for you, we’ve gone all ‘Comparethemarket.com’ and carried out a price survey in your on-campus one-stop-shop, Costcutter. So if you’re a Galaxy Guy or Gal, you can swap your chocolate fix for newly Fairtrade Cadbury at the same price and get not just an extra three grams for your coins, but a feel-good glow that will last even longer than the chocolatey goodness. Sadly, not all fairly sourced products are as affordable as Cadbury, and whilst 70% of York residents claim to be regular purchasers of Fairtrade, our survey revealed that only one in seven students have the same shopping habits.

Nevertheless York has maintained its Fairtrade Town status for its fifth year, which means that not only is there an active support group (York Fairtrade Forum) in the area, but that fair products are widely available across the town. To test this claim we here at Vision visited some of the city’s finer Fairtrade establishments to sample their goods and bring you a review of the best of the bunch.

But moving on from our favourite subject of food, to our second favourite subject – fashion. You’d be forgiven for thinking that Fairtrade fashion is all crocheted tousers and shoes made from hemp, but times are changing! With Topshop and Asos both launching their own Fairtrade lines this month you can now get your fashion fix whilst supporting cotton growers and making use of reclaimed fabrics. Check out Asos for the surprisingly preppy cable knit jumpers and cropped sweat pants of Emma Watson’s new line, or head over to Topshop for reasonably priced, quality Summer basics such as feminine tunic dresses, leggings and this nautical bandaeu swimming costume by designer Annie Greenabelle.

In case you were thinking we at Vision Lifestyle have spent our research time for this issue online shopping, eating Divine chocolate and drinking Fairtrade coffee, we also attended an event of the more cerebral sort when People and Planet hosted a debate on the topic ‘How Fair is Fairtrade?’ on campus. Whilst the debate seemed rather weighted in favour of Fairtrade, Freedom Society President Sam Westrop nevertheless held his own in favour of more radical Free Trade. Also speaking were Mark Dawson, President of the York Fairtrade Forum, Barbara Crowther of the Fairtrade Foundation and James Cussens, a senior lecturer at the university.

The fast-paced and passionate debate brought up the difficult issue of Carbon Footprint versus Social Footprint. Audience members asked whether supporting farmers thousands of miles away could be reconciled with the current trend for eating as a ‘Locavore’ – buying food from within a one hundred mile radius. The panel conceded that it was a difficult matter, but reminded us that the producers of these goods have a virtually non-existent carbon footprint, and that we must not focus only on our environmental concerns at the expense of our social impact.

After all that high brow debate we took to the streets of York for the Festival market, where, for three days only Fairtrade produce from around the world takes over Parliament Street. Among the goods on offer were beautifully illustrated Fairtrade chocolate (we stocked up!), stunning enamel bowls, hand-knitted scarves (from Fairtrade wool, of course) and soft-as-butter leather bags. The friendly stall holders were more than happy to chat to us about their ethical concerns, and why Fairtrade is important to their business.

However the Fairtrde Foundation are keen that people swap to ethical shopping for life, not just for a couple of weeks (we’ve been devouring Divine Chocolate in the office this week, and are definitely lifetime converts). With so many purveyors of fabulous quality, ethically traded goods in our fine city (see our column for ideas!) there’s never been a better time to start shopping fairly.Though you’ll have to race us to One Boutique!

2) Where would you never go?
I have no idea. Because of my job it would be professional suicide to say!

3) What was the worst illness you have ever got?
Malaria, which I got in the tropics. I also got meningitis as a child.

4) Who is the most interesting foreign leader you’ve ever met?
President Voronin of Moldova. When I met him, he forced me to down multiple bottles of Moldovan cognac! Let’s just say he was still standing while I was gone under the table…

5) What’s the best way to get an upgrade?
I don’t know, I’ve never had one! If anyone knows, contact me.

6) What’s your least favourite airline?
Can’t remember the airline, but it was when I was flying out of wartorn Dubrovnik. I thought there was oil leaking out of the engine, but the air hostess informed me it was only hydraulic fluid.

7) Name your travel essentials.
Torch, a Leatherman knife and reading material. I get so bored on those 10 hour journeys, I just have to have something to read.

8) What’s the best thing to do when lost in a foreign country?
Look like you know where you’re going. There’s a lot of people who want to liberate you of your money.

9) Who is your travel hero?
Bill Bryson, I like his writing style.

10) Where would you advise students to travel to this summer?
Madagascar, it’s spectacular on every scale. It’s like the Galapagos Islands, but bigger.

11) Where would you pick as home?
Britain. You can’t dismiss the UK. We’re fortunate enough to have a democratic government and easy access to things like water. If I had to choose somewhere else, it would be Denmark.

12) What was your proudest moment?
My wife agreeing to marry me. Also, winning the One World broadcasting award for outstanding contribution to world understanding.

13) What’s the most scared you’ve ever been?
In Mogadishu, Somalia, we had a group of armed mercenaries looking after us. They bumped into another rival group and everyone pulled their guns on each other. I really thought we were all going to die!

14) Do you ever travel without a TV crew?
Yes, with my wife, short haul and usually by train to reduce our carbon footprint.

15) What’s the furthest you’ve been from home?
Mentally, it was in the deserts of northern Mauritania, days from any civilization. We were cooking food around a campfire when a nomad came from nowhere. We gave him some food according to nomad tradition and then he disappeared again. It was like being on another planet.

16) Does travel ever lose its appeal?
No, there’s always something new to experience.

17) What’s the worst native dish you’ve ever eaten?
Zebu penis soup. It was full of gristle and I still feel sick thinking about it.

18) How do you decide where next to go?
With Tropic of Cancer, the line pretty much dictated it. However, a great website is seat61.com – brilliant ideas for train travel.

19) What’s the next country you would want to visit?
France, by rail, to see my brother and his beautiful family.

20) What’s your next TV programme?
Tropic of Cancer, starting this Sunday on BBC 2.

Of course, Disney doesn’t seem so good at doing that in 3D (Bolt was no Wall-E), so, like the fools who made Coke Zero a reality, they went back to the good stuff after trying a weakened version – the good stuff in this case being 2D. The visuals of The Princess are fantastic. Disney’s great animations have always taken place in beautiful locations, but so often mystical and magical that a trip through their eyes to 1920s New Orleans is a refreshing and genuine pleasure. Refreshing too, was the spin on the story: its heroine, Tiana, is not a princess, nor does she have any desire to be. Take that, bloody Cinderella! Tiana just wants to own a restaurant. She don’t need no man. But then along comes a prince, obviously, and in all fairness, they have her fall in love with him as a frog first, but it is no less predictable. Bruno Campos and Anika Noni Rose let the film down a little with decent but not spectacular performances, upstaged by Jennifer Cody as Tiana’s mock-princess friend, Charlotte, and Jennifer Lewis, playing the delightful Mama Odie.

What really sparkles about The Princess is not necessarily its visuals, its musical offerings (which stand out from previous Disney films, perhaps to their own detriment) or even Disney’s gosh/shock/wow-factor for making a film with an Afro-American at its heart (Oprah or no Oprah). It’s the sight of Disney characters, drawn in the same lovable style as ever, and the touching class of the story told, which reminds you of all the greats Disney has given us: these are things that The Princess does royally.

Whilst most non-fictional Yorkshire folk are better acquainted with the county’s vibrant cities and industrial centres, we do occasionally venture into the natural beauty that is on our doorstep. Donning muddy walking boots, packing my backpack with unappealing sandwiches and a cagoule, and setting out to trudge through fields for a few hours is a hidden passion of mine.

When I was young I would go on walks with my family; I am sure I protested about getting up early, having to stop watching the TV and not being able to ‘play out’ with my friends. However, I secretly associated ‘going on a walk’ with being grown up, and I definitely wanted to be grown up. Consequently I was often found up hill and down dale on my childhood weekends.

Being at university has given my walking exploits a new lease of independent life. I convinced a Southern friend of mine, who just happened to have a car, that he had to see some of the more picturesque parts of Yorkshire, and then got out my guidebooks and planned a trip. Since then our group has expanded to four people and my love of walking has, at least in part, infected my friends.

Associating walking with adulthood has left me with some rather peculiar habits which are due to the fact my dad always did them and I thought this was the only way to be: I insist on tucking my jeans into my walking socks, no matter how dry the terrain, I only wear the most traditional solid leather walking boots, I always bring a guide book, no matter how well trodden the walk we go on is and I bore my walking partners with interesting scrap of local trivia from said guide book, just as my dad did when I was younger.

On my most recent trip we began in the quaint village of Burnsall, that traverses the River Wharfe, walking along the river before crossing some fields and climbing to the village of Appletreewick where we stop in a conveniently located pub, just far enough away that we feel we deserve a drink.

No walk in the Dales is complete without a few well earned pints in a country pub, sat next to a roaring fire, resting your tired feet. The pub is also the place to share the thoughts that have been running through your mind while you walk, and as such relaxed conversation inevitable ensues. I find myself, ordering a pint of Carling. This would shame my dad, who would suggest I should try one of the local real ales, but alas my taste buds have not matured to that level of ‘grown up’ yet, so lager it is.

As we left the pub and climbed the next hill, there were some interesting mining sights, that my guide book told me had a fascinating history, but my walk companions have begged me not to repeat it in this article.
Rising to the crest of the hill, with a view over Wharfedale, we could review our progress and decided this was a good place for sandwiches. Again, the picnic stage of a walk exposes my lack of ‘grown-upness’. Although I am happy to pack myself some sandwiches and Kit-Kats in my backpack, I still don’t feel grown up enough to have brought a thermos of coffee, as my dad, and seemingly everyone else, does. Instead I stick to my trusty orange squash.

The real joy of walking is that there is certain serenity in the activity. Walking in the countryside creates an atmosphere of peace, whether it is the silence (apart from the gurgling of a river), the fresh air or the metronomic rhythm of footsteps. I can walk for hours, surrounded by friends, lost in thought and reflection, with nothing to distract me other than a strangely shaped tree.

Peter Jackson is not known to flinch at difficult adaptations of books, but even so, after directing such huge epics over the past decade, how would he cope with this personal and deeply touching story? For the most part the answer is “fairly well”. The life of Susie Salmon (Saoirse Ronan), the soon to be victim of tragedy, is brought vividly to screen in the first half hour with nostalgic touches of the 70s – from the yellow bellbottoms she wears to the seemingly wholesome suburbia she lives in, there is a real sense of what her ordinary day to day life is like, with, as she states, bad things just happening to other people.

Whilst fans of the book will argue that the integral scene where Susie’s neighbour Mr Harvey (Stanley Tucci) murders her is played down to fit in with the (frankly odd) 12A rating, Tucci’s mumblings and creepy delight in trapping his victim beforehand add enough uneasiness to the scene to make it work. Nevertheless, soon after this the contradictions in The Lovely Bones become an apparent problem.

The Lovely Bones, in both book and film, breaks the convention that if there is a narrator speaking, they have to be alive by the end in order to recount the tale. Here instead, Susie narrates looking down at her family from a limbo between earth and heaven, unable to move on from their lives. Whilst the book deals with this in a complex manner, as Susie dwells not only on the important aspects of earth but also aspects that, as a 14 year old girl, are important to her, the film is unable to bring the same amount of detail to this otherworldly narration. This therefore makes the parts where the film switches back to the real world, and Susie’s father’s (a well cast Mark Wahlberg) increasingly desperate attempts to find her killer, much more interesting.

Consequently, whilst there are occasional exciting set pieces as the noose around Mr Harvey’s neck tightens, including one fun Rear Window-esque sequence, the point of the story is almost entirely lost – Susie’s poignant struggle between watching her family’s lives evolve and moving on completely is skirted over for the picturesque, if ultimately not as worthwhile, graphics of her fantasy landscape. Perhaps the book just grapples with too many varying concepts to make it into a well balanced film, so that unfortunately, Jackson’s adaptation, whilst still more than just a by-the-numbers serial killer thriller, is stuck in its own limbo between compelling creditability and vague sentimentity.

This is a typical Burton gore-fest, with the Jabberwocky and most of the beheaded drawing gasps from the audience. Burton characteristically balances these scares with cute, loveable characters such as the loyal bloodhound Bayard (Timothy Spall) and great adult humour, with the biggest laughs coming from the March Hare and numerous one-liners. Danny Elfman’s score is atmospheric, emotional and aptly fits each scene.
Although Burton alludes to Carroll with the Jabberwocky, Red Knights and the final battle on the chessboard, for fans of Carroll there seems to be an omission of a lot of his riddles and quirks that would have been a great addition to this film. Nevertheless, it is obvious that Burton wanted to create his own vision of a sequel to Disney’s original animation, and he ultimately draws inspiration and creates a composite adventure from both of Carroll’s Alice-based stories.

Star performances include Matt Lucas, who both charmed and teased the audience as the infamous Tweedledee/Tweedledum, and Stephen Fry as the Cheshire Cat. Expect to see more of outstanding newcomer Wasikowska, but predictably Depp and Bonham-Carter steal the show. Depp portrays the Hatter as a romantic-madcap, capturing the affections of the audience, and this is contrasted brilliantly with Bonham-Carter’s cruel, infantile Red Queen, who yearns to be loved.

Overall, Burton again shows his mastery at creating exciting and enjoyable, yet typically bizarre, films. This film is a must-see of 2010, with a superb composition, cast and score. Just forgive the flaws and see Burton is getting back on to, nearly, his best.

The screenplay is superbly written; the dialogue is emotive without being corny, sharp without being gimmicky and rarely does it come off as dated. The writing is noticeably lean; (perhaps with the exception of one brief conversation) not a single line of dialogue is superfluous or merely decorative, it all serves to gives more dimension to the movie’s plot and characters. And what fantastic characters!

Although their names (bar two) are never given, each character is as engaging and distinctive as the last, each bringing their own quirk, prejudice or insight to the proceedings and this powerful characterisation is practically established within each of their first few lines. These characters are brought to life through the superbly convincing acting of a predominantly little-known cast. Henry Fonda (Once Upon a Time in the West), leads the film as the rational and compassionate architect that labours to convince his fellow jurors, brilliantly playing, once again, the role of the plain-speaking idealist. The film was also directed with great skill and taste; the full weight of the seriousness of the situation is slowly illustrated, tension is steadily built through the movie and sporadically pierced by the explosively dramatic moments that punctuate it.

Brilliantly written, directed and acted, this classic film is truly a treat and one that you have to see!

4. The Antagonists
To say Cameron’s movie isn’t effective would be a lie, it’s just that does it through clichéd characters. The antagonists of the film are probably the worst example. There’s the ‘we’ll achieve our goal by any means possible’ military and the ‘look, I’m practicing my putting in my office’ corporate guy. Colonel Quaritch as a result has become such a caricature of the military that he makes the film comical. This guy has lines like ‘I want this mission high and tight. I want to be home for dinner’. He will run out into a poisonous atmosphere with no protection if he has to, and his eventual death isn’t that far off from that of a child playing Cowboys and Indians. In other words he really milks it. The actor playing Quaritch has even hinted that the character might return in the sequel, stating ‘You think those two arrows in my chest are going to stop me from coming back?’. Cameron has simply picked out a couple of Chuck Norris facts and created a character out of them.

3. The Protagonists
Again, a guy in a wheelchair, a group of scientists and a culture that is one with the environment. Really…

2. The Sense of Déjà vu
Avatar is basically a mixture of Pocahontas, The Last Samurai and Dancing With Wolves BUT IN SPACE!!!!!! Everyone’s said it, even Cameron has. But there’s one more film. Think about it. Two people meet, from different cultures, or maybe classes, fall in love, and then are struck by a great tragedy, be it in the form of a massive tree being destroyed or an iceberg. Avatar = Titanic. Okay, there’s no doomed ship, but Rose basically makes the same journey as Jake, discovering this new world (the lower class), falling in love with it, and eventually shunning the world that she was brought up in. Therefore, what’s the point in Avatar? A means of simply satisfying his massive ego until he releases his documentary on unearthing Jesus’ body.

1. The Na’vi
Cameron puts a lot of effort into making the Na’vi as loveable as possible. Firstly, they have the nose and ears of a cat, and who doesn’t love cats? Secondly, they have massive puppy dog eyes, and who doesn’t love dogs? Lastly, they have human features as well, and who doesn’t love humans? Those Na’vi can’t be savages, they must be a peaceful species. I want to be a Na’vi. Hooray environment. Boo technology. Oh, Cameron, how topical you are… Twat.

Name: Lauren Luke
AKA: Panacea81

Fame came to Lauren through the power of beauty. Her make-up tutorials have hit home with millions of YouTube users and what started off as a few videos for friend quickly snowballed. Now she writes in The Guardian’s beauty column and has her own make-up line as well as recently publishing her first book, Lauren Luke.

Did you ever figure that your make up videos on YouTube would win so many fans?
The size of my audience still amazes me. My video’s were never created with a mass audience in mind, I was mostly offering a service to what I thought would be a few people.

The success of these videos has propelled your career into journalism, your own beauty line and even a video game! How big of a factor were your YouTube videos in achieving this?
I think it had everything to do with the popularity factor. If I had pursued any of these careers such as journalism, TV, cosmetics or game software using traditional routes then I would have had to cross over barriers along the way, not least of which is the social barrier. Average looking girls don’t usually get these breaks.

As mentioned you have done an awful lot since acquiring this celebrity status, is there anything in the pipeline?
There is a lot in the pipeline. I’m exploring more TV opportunities, working on the next set for my cosmetics line which I want to reflect who I am as well as challenging traditional beauty. I don’t rule anything out and I do have a long term goal. I like to keep ahead of the game so I am keen to explore new technologies such as the iPad.

Lots of people like yourself, have showcased their special gifts on YouTube which has then seen them lanched into the public light. Do you feel there should be some form of major award ceremony to acknowledge this?
Yes and yes! Watch this space.

Would you be up for an award then?
I have won two awards for beauty related stuff which still blows my mind, I try not to think of these things,
I’m still pretty grounded at heart. Would I be up for another award? Of course, if I think it is relevant to what I do. I believe that people should be judged on merit and awarded for their efforts.

Name: Bryony Matthewman
AKA: Paperlilies

The queen of British YouTube, Bryony has carved out a place in many viewers’ hearts with her characters and strong opinions. Perhaps one of her most remarkable ideas was her attempt to create YouTube’s first world wide zombie movie. This ambitious projecct caught the attention of the BBC who even filmed its undertaking. With further plans in the pipeline, this is not the last we’ll hear from this prolific YouTube star.

In what ways has your YouTube based celebrity status changed your life, are you recognised on the street for instance?
I’ve been recognised once on the tube, which was weird and awkward! But otherwise, I’ve not really been recognised on the street.

Did you ever imagine those clips that you posted would get such a huge response?
No! Not at first at least…

The Telegraph puts you as their number one up and coming star on youtube, how does this accolade rank for you?
Do they? I haven’t seen this! I think alot of the time, newspapers try to get a hold on youtube and don’t really understand how it works.

When BBC3 tracked the progress of your Zombie Movie, World Wide Dead, were you surpirsed by the worldwide response?
I was surprised at the amount of professional people who wanted to be involved- we had editors and camera people who’d worked on huge film projects that wanted to get involved! Though I think the BBC aspect to the project probably made it seem more legitimate than just a crazy internet project.

Is there more from this project yet to come?
I’d like to finish it, but I have no idea when it’ll ever happen. It was a very stressful time!

Do you think you will ever attempt a similar project again after this experience?
I would! But it would have to be something I was very passionate about. And I would plan it all far more than I did with the Zombie movie.

In light of this and many other’s inventiveness on YouTube to gain millions of hits, do you think there should be some sort of awards to recognise their efforts and if so what would you call it?
There are some youtube awards, but it tends to be the people with the most subscribers who win. I don’t know how else you can judge youtube videos though.

Many people pursue being a celebrity for the wrong reason, were yours right?
I never pursued being a celebrity- I just posted some videos online to interact with other people around the world! I made a lot of friends via youtube, which I am very grateful for! I think some people expect to post a video on youtube and become instantly famous, which I think is a little weird.

Has the YouTube fame helped or hindered areas of your social/love life?
It’s helped! I have so many friends now that I would never otherwise have met! And my pre-existing friends think it’s funny that I make videos. No one’s ever had a problem with it.

Track Records, an independently owned and once-popular music shop previously of Goodramgate, closed its doors in summer 2007, its owner, Keith Howe, blaming the rise of internet downloading for its demise. Howe pointed to the fact that the online retailer play.com is based in the Channel Islands and its goods are therefore exempted from VAT. Likewise, Amazon.co.uk often sells through one of its preferred merchants, indigostarfish, operating from Jersey. Some might argue that the issue is moot: if products can be bought safely, cheaply and quickly online, why buy them anywhere else? The high street market in new books, especially with the recent collapse of Borders, may be cornered by Waterstones (and, for students, perhaps Blackwells), but doesn’t the internet render any loss of choice redundant?

Aesthetic concerns about a colourful city centre are largely trivial, but when the problem affects services as well as goods, one can see that the general problem is anything but. The demise of independent cinemas has pushed students (and residents) into paying extortionate prices either at the City Screen or, following a lengthy bus ride, at the Vue in Clifton Moor. Student nights are a given feature of York’s nightlife and indeed they’re necessary insofar as they provide a definite meeting point, but many students have complained that they effectively put a choker on week-to-week variety. The situation is only exacerbated by the potentially imminent closure of Tru and Gallery. One second year Goodricke student, when asked about the situation, commented, “I’d be gutted if Tru and Gallery closed. York doesn’t have a huge selection of nightclubs as it is… they might not be fantastic but they’ll definitely be missed.” It’s a rare situation, but in this case quantity is more of an issue than quality. The Internet can’t replace Trusdays.

Conversely, the city is faced with an overabundance of other services. Church Street has played host to three make-your-own milkshake shops this year alone. The York Pub Guide has reviews of over 260 pubs in the city, and admits that there may be up to 100 more. One need never walk very far to buy new clothes, as a walk down Spurriergate, Coney Street or Parliament Street will quickly prove. ‘Overabundance’ is perhaps a misleading term.

There is no doubt that there is a market for these services, and the continuity of the stores providing them is a testament to this. The recession can’t be blamed for this. ‘Pandemonium’, a shop dedicated to goth and cult clothing, closed down over 5 years ago, and has since moved all the way to Whitby. Pulse, a popular cyber shop, closed down in early 2004.