Ursula Brunner

Ursula Brunner (; 7 January 1925 – 23 March 2017) was a Swiss politician and advocate of fair trade. Known as the head of the ('Banana women') movement, she raised public awareness about the adverse conditions in some of the countries that produced goods for export to Switzerland, using the example of bananas. Her work drove Swiss suppliers to add a surcharge of 15 centimes per kilogram on Chiquita and Dole bananas, which was in effect between 1974 and 1985 and was used to finance social aid projects in Latin America. In 1986, Brunner and the Bananenfrauen entered the market themselves by importing bananas from Nicaragua with the aim of providing a fairer alternative product. She served on the (legislative council) of Thurgau for the FDP during 1975–1976 and 1978–1984.

Early life, education and family Brunner was born on 7 January 1925, in Frauenfeld, Thurgau, Switzerland, to Otto Storz, a brewery tradesman, and Frieda Storz . She obtained the matura at the Cantonal school of Frauenfeld in 1943, and began her medical studies at the University of Geneva, which she dropped in 1946. Together, they had eight children.

In 1973, the Swiss retailer Migros announced a "banana miracle", a reduction in the price of bananas by 15 centimes, from per kilogram to in response to the dollar devaluation. This was met with objection from Brunner and her peers. The collective's proposal to Migros to keep the price at and use the 15 extra centimes to improve the working conditions of the banana farmers was rejected; Migros responded by saying "We are no charity". The profits from this surcharge were redistributed to Swiss social aid organizations and used to finance projects in Guatemala, Honduras, and Colombia.

For her work, Brunner is frequently described as a pioneer of fair trade in Switzerland. She was elected in the by-elections of 1975 to replace Max Steiner (FDP) for a term length of around half a year, as the first woman for the FDP and the third woman in total in the . In 1980, she again succeeded into the to replace Max Rutishauser (FDP).

Tensions between Brunner and the FDP arose in August 1982, when she organized a demonstration for peace at the , a Swiss army show.

Brunner died on 23 March 2017 at the age of 92 in Frauenfeld.

Works

Awards , Kulturstiftung Landis & Gyr, 2003 , Frauenfeld, together with the , 2013 Women's Business Award, HSLU, 2014