Summer Lewis, Interfaith Liason at fair trade coffee supplier Equal Exchange, and a friend of ours, details the intricacies of coffee production and the inspiring stories of producers in the account of her first visit to a fair trade coffee cooperative.

“Coffee with a Conscience” Nicaragua Study Tour, January 5-14, 2007

In early January of this year, twenty current and soon-to-be Fair Trade advocates and coffee lovers traveled to Nicaragua for 10 days to learn about this unique country, coffee farming and Fair Trade. Our travel group included representatives from Lutheran World Relief and Equal Exchange, delegates (the majority Lutherans) from around the country, and our fearless trip leaders from the Augsburg College Center for Global Education.

Arriving in Managua, we were greeted with sunny, ninety-degree weather (a lovely break for many of us hailing from chilly areas). Our first day was relaxing, allowing us to get to know each other and to prepare for a week of learning and reflection. After meeting with our study tour guides, Juan Carlos Lopez and Joe Connelly, our group met with Mark Lester at the Center for Global Education’s Managua office. Mark, the CGE’s co-regional Director, provided an extensive overview of the history of Nicaragua and the events leading up to the current social, political, and economic situation. Meeting later with Bill Weaver, director of Lutheran World Relief in Nicaragua further reinforced what we had learned that morning. Our study group learned more about the accompaniment work LWR is doing at the grassroots level–working in partnership with local NGOs and Nicaraguans. To finish off a busy, learning-packed day, those of us from Equal Exchange (myself, Aaron Dawson, and Kalista Popp from the Interfaith Program and Brian Crouth from the Organizing Department) presented information about Equal Exchange, Fair Trade and Equal Exchange’s Interfaith Program.

The following morning, Sunday, our study group was warmly received by Bishop Victoria Cortez and her Lutheran congregation in the Monseñor Lezcano Neighborhood. After introducing ourselves and singing a song for the congregation, we were able to share an intimate conversation with Bishop Cortez as she told us about her call to Nicaragua and the Lutheran church, as well as her congregation. Mid-conversation, the congregation’s youth group arrived from an extended retreat and our study group witnessed a warm reuniting of youth with their parents and loved ones. After seeing such a touching reception and celebration, our group was treated to some Managua sight-seeing. We visited some of the historic landmarks in Nicaragua’s capital city. That evening we prepared for a departure from the city and a visit to the “campo”–we would be staying with coffee farmers the following evening in a small community in Matagalpa, the primary coffee growing region of Nicaragua.

On our journey Monday morning in our mini-bus, we traveled from the sprawling Free Trade Zone and neighboring settlements as we exited Managua, to the stunning countryside along the pan-American highway to Matagalpa, thought-provoking scenery. After arriving in Matagalpa, we met with Frank Lanzas, President of ASOCAFEMAT (Association of Coffee Growers of Matagalpa). This organization of coffee producers is working to find new markets and avenues of production, although it is not currently a part of the Fair Trade system. In talking about some of the basic struggles and trials of small coffee farmers in the Matagalpa area, our group had a better understanding of the situation we would soon be entering as we headed off to community of La Reyna, where we would spend a couple of days with coffee farming families.

After arriving in La Reyna and being greeted by community members and the children, we talked with members of the community and the Danilo Gonzalez Cooperative, part of CECOCAFEN, Equal Exchange’s trading partner. We met in the community’s school, a basic structure with wooden desks and drawings upon the walls. After answering questions and sharing greetings, Juan Carlos, Joe, and community members took some time to determine who would stay with whom. This time, of course, provided an opportunity to play with the children. Many folks got to practice some basic Spanish: “Como te llamas? Me llamo _______.” So many smiles and giggles.

Aaron, my sister and fellow delegate, Katrina, and myself were placed with Dona Maximina and Don Juan. We hiked up a small hill for a few minutes, heaving the whole way (with backpacks, this was no easy task for us). We arrived at the casa to smiling and curious faces—the children in the family. After being shown our room in the cinder block home, we located the latrine and the bathing area. Dona Maximina showed us her coffee trees behind the house. We had a great view of the sunset from our hillside abode.
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Now that award mania has delivered us a sufficient dose of best-worst dressed, back-patting, and thank yous, it’s time for most of us to get around to actually watching these movies people have been so happily decorating with praise. Instead of hopping in your car and driving to your nearest Blockbuster, you might consider that Netflix is saving the world. And the golden Oscar’s turned green.

Okay, this might be hyped up hyperbole, but it is nice to see such things considered. While the academy never actually mentions what they’ve done to shrink their eco-footprint, the acknowledgement of their effect on the climate is at the very least a forward step. And while Netflix is a better option than driving to the video store yourself, the best option is still to hop on your bike or enjoy a nice walk. Netflix does not, to my knowledge, invest in carbon offsetting for their service, but perhaps we can make them understand the good (not to mention great publicity) they could achieve through this.

Change is rarely a speed demon, and it is important to acknowledge these baby steps. But it is even more important for us, as consumer’s, to push these clumbsy first steps into a mature, full run.

**Update** Rather than give the actors who presented the awards more useless materials to clutter their home (diamond-encrusted bra and panty set, anyone?) the 79th Oscar presenters received the Lohachara sculpture and a year’s worth of off-sets. The sculpture is named for an island which “In December, 2006, became the first inhabited island to be lost to rising sea levels caused by global warming.”

Sadly, a year’s worth of off-set’s for the average celebrity lifestyle is 100,000 tons reduction; enough to balance 20,000 miles of driving, 40,000 miles on commercial airlines, 20 hours in a private jet and a large house in Los Angeles,” which for some is not even enough! Compare this to an average Joe’s off-set of 30 metric tons of greenhouse gas reduction, translating to “12,000 miles of driving, six commercial plane flights, and a large home.” Let’s hope this beautiful sculpture will inspire these stars to not only invest in carbon off-setting, but also to work towards reducing their footprint through daily activities.

I know Alicia recently questioned Bush’s true environmental nature, but even if his environmentally friendly Crawford ranch hosue indicates an environmentalist in wolf’s clothing, his plan to reduce US oil consumption surely does not.

President Bush spoke strongly about reducing America’s “addiction” to foreign oil in the latest State of the Union address. As soon as the shock wore off, though, most of us remembered to be skeptical. The Bush plan is, uh, detailed here. Go ahead and try to read through the ambiguous mess, but only if you’re of sound mind and body. I took a closer look behind the evasive language and it appears that the plan calls for a reduction of the 2017 forecasted US gas consumption levels by 20%. At the historical rate of increase of about 1.5% per year this plan would, at best, result in simply a decreased increase in US oil consumption in a decade.
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While I don’t think we’ll be hearing the dubbya proclaiming ‘give peace a chance’ from the his rooftop, he is enjoying the view from his eco-friendly home. Surprisingly el presidente’s Crawford home boasts everything from geothermal heating & cooling to gray water. The home, considered small by local standards, is situated to use passive-solar energy and the heating & cooling system uses 25% less electricity than most. There is an underground water purifier which collects used, or gray, water from the house toilet, showers, and sinks, and combines this with collected rain water for irrigation. The house walls are built from discarded construction limestone.

Interesting crib, considering his environmental policy track record. Although he recently announced a federal boost of 30% in 2008 for research and development into sustainable energy alternatives, many believe this is more superficial face saving than effective policy.

Speculations as to why Bush would have such an earth friendly home range from simple frugality, to his concern for his own family’s future and a wish to be energy independent.

Either way, don’t tell the neighbors.

Unless your computer has an incredibly advanced filter for the plethora of award-mania, you most likely know that the Oscars are this Sunday. Following on the success of the Golden Green party held in conjunction with the Golden Globes, the Global Green pre-Oscar party was held last night.

As such movies as Blood Diamond and An Inconvenient Truth bring awareness through film, more and more stars are using their popularity to bring light to causes dear to their heart. While sincerity sometimes feels a bit transparent with some causes, green and fair trade movements allow actors to show, not tell, us how committed they are.

Orlando Bloom has converted his home with “solar panels on the roof, energy efficient light bulbs” while also bringing awareness to easier things everyone can do such as “unplugging their phone chargers and turning off the TV.”

Global Green isn’t stopping with this party, they’re taking the green to the Oscars via hybrid vehicles for a glamorous entrance for the stars, with an eco-footprint more inline with their dainty heels.

Now we just need to get those guys in some fair trade & organic gowns!

Although I am a hearty helping from the ol’ melting pot, I do have some green Irish in me, and that little guy starts to get excited about the prospect of good beer, good company and plenty of green. Speaking of green (nice segue, huh?) I found the great Beer Activist and the first Fair Trade Beer! The guy’s motto “Drink Beer. Save the world.” sums up all that’s near and dear to my heart, and the story of the fair trade beer was wonderful.

Another great discovery which Brady and I have begun experiments upon (insert mad scientist laugh) is home brews! While we’ve only made one brew we aptly named “homebrew” thus far, the possibilities are exciting, with many organic options. Now we just need to expand that to fair trade options!

And if wine is more pleasing to your palette, raise you glass with some fair trade wine.

Regardless what’s in your glass, be safe, have fun, and cheers!

Thanks to the recent attention from An Inconvenient Truth, global warming has entered the pop culture vernacular, unfortunately this means that even more people who know nothing about it suddenly have an opinion. The most disturbing of these is the thought that because Al Gore presented this crisis to the mass consciousness, it therefore must be a partisan political issue: if you “believe” in global warming you must be a lefty. Of course global warming and climate change are not issues of political opinion.

We finally have a general consensus among regular folks that this is a very real and scientifically proven phenomenon. The next step is to decide what we can and should do about it. Because the political denial strategy is no longer viable some conservatives, no doubt in the interest of keeping the greenhouse gas industries thriving, are arguing that doing nothing to halt warming will actually cost less than attempting to halt it. As is often the case with economic cost analysis these arguments ignore the human suffering climate change will cause. The decision to act on climate change cannot be made on the basis of economic cost alone. I agree with George Monboint’s claim in his New Internationalist article:

Either we decide that it is right to spend a lot of money seeking to prevent catastrophic climate change or we decide that it isn’t, but we must make that decision on the grounds of how much we value people and places as people and places, rather than as figures in a ledger.

And even if Susan Solomon, senior scientist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (in the video linked above) doesn’t convince you that global warming is real, this direct and irrefutable evidence most certainly will:

C.S.A is an amazing movie made by one of our own jayhawkers, Kevin Willmott. It is a poignant mock-umentray following our country’s timeline if the confederates had won the war. There are interviews interspersed with old footage and fake commercials. The aspect that is truly shocking is the commercials for actual products and their frequently blatant racism. The film balances the weight of the issue with humor, all the while highlighting how far we are from exorcising our demons.

UPDATE 2/20: The website (and trailer) for Kevin Wilmott’s new film, Bunker Hill, is now live online. Check it out.

There have been some great ideas about ‘greening’ your wedding at Ideal Bite, and having experienced our own wedding madness recently I loved finding more alternatives to the typical $40,000 wedding. There is a wonderful forum Indie Bride, where I found creative ideas and helpful support for anyone who wants to avoid the cookie-cutter ceremony.

With the release of Blood Diamond, there has been much needed attention brought to the dangers of the diamond industry. When finding a ring for Brady, I wanted something different than what was typically offered. I found that there are many options: Leber jewelry has a fair take on the more traditional gold, silver and jeweled options. Touch Wood Rings offers beautiful all wood rings. There are many options for green gold such as Green Karat, but a simple search will bring many others.

The winner of my search was Wood Rings, an amazing combo of wood and silver, plus they plant a tree for each ring purchased! The only warning needed is to make sure you know the ring size you need, as there is no altering these puppies. We ended up with the wrong size for Brady, but it just happend to fit me, instant karma satisfaction.

**Update
Thanks to Jose for pointing us towards the very, uhhhh, different biojewellry. Along those same lines is this, you walk around with a piece of Beethoven wrapped around your little finger. Literally. Wow.

A shop called Gifted Hands Gift Shop Program, at Crown Center in Kansas City, has just been brought to my attention. This is an inspiring example of someone finding a unique way to use business to help others. Their focus is the prevention of domestic violence, giving girls and young women education to help them recognize not only when friends are in abusive relationships, but also how to avoid becoming ensnared in one themselves. Their class teaches:
* The proper definition of domestic violence
* Characteristics of an abuser or “red flags”
* Characteristics of a victim
* Dynamics of the power and control cycle of domestic violence
* Definition of a healthy self-image
* Definition of a healthy relationship/What a healthy relationship looks like, sounds like, feels like…
* Economic empowerment through handcrafting skills
* Self-esteem enrichment through creative expression
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