Posted in Uncategorized, tagged Cecovasa, Peru on February 26, 2009| 1 Comment »
Members of the Governing Board
CECOVASA, one of Equal Exchange’s small farmer coffee co-operative partners, just celebrated an important milestone: the completion of a processing plant owned and controlled by the members themselves.
The plant measures 25 by 50 meters and will begin operation this June, in time for the next harvest.
To read more about CECOVASA, click here.
To read a trip report from a visit to CECOVASA, click here.
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged Chiapas, CIEPAC on February 21, 2009| 6 Comments »
This week we received a letter from our friends at the Center for Economic & Political Research for Community Action (CIEPAC) in Chiapas with an update of the on-going repression (including death threats) that members of their staff, and community leaders with whom they work, have been experiencing.
CIEPAC has been an organizational ally of Equal Exchange for many years. We have tremendous respect for their investigative research and analysis, and for the popular education work they carry out, both in the indigenous farming communities of Chiapas, as well as with international audiences. They have provided highly informative and insightful talks to the groups we bring to Chiapas which provide valuable context to help frame the extremely difficult situation facing small farmers and rural communities in the region.
Please join us in solidarity with those in Mexico who are actively struggling for the economic, political, social and resource rights of small farmer communities. Mexican officials need to know that we will not stand by while these human rights abuses continue.
Nikhil Aziz, Executive Director of Grassroots International, is disseminating the following letter which describes the current situation and asks for our response. Please take a moment to read the letter and send your email to Mexican officials.
Dear Friends,
Human rights and community leaders in Mexico continue to experience threats – including death threats. They ask for help from global activists to protect their lives and their community work.
Current threats follow previous repression, including the unjust prosecution of local organizers of the Civil Resistance against the high cost of energy in the southern state of Campeche. Last December, in response to an emergency action, letters of solidarity with Sara Lopez and Joaquin Aguilar brought authorities in Campeche to the negotiating table.
Your support is still needed.
Sara and Joaquin continue to be defamed and harassed by the Federal Commission of Electricity (CFE), and these tactics are now spreading throughout communities in Mexico who resist the increases in fees for electric service. The resistance of communities in the states of Campeche and Chiapas is spurred by sky-rocketing electricity costs, due to the growth of U.S. backed privatization schemes, and the construction of new dams that cause environmental damage and displace families.
Now people in various communities in the state of Chiapas are also being targeted for their resistance to the electric rate hikes. In one community, the actions of the Federal Commission of Electricity took a step up by fueling conflicts between community members. CFE’s “divide and rule” approach resulted in the death of a farmer and left several people wounded.
In another instance, Nora Cacho, the Executive Director of the Center for Economic & Political Research for Community Action (CIEPAC) – a Grassroots‘ ally – has been receiving threatening phone calls from an unknown individual. The calls began after Nora led the World March of Women in December, during which she spoke out against acts of feminicide and the criminalization of social movements in Mexico . According to an open letter released by CIEPAC last week, government officers and police were filming and taking photographs of the demonstration.
Let’s send a resounding message that the world will not turn a blind eye to government repression of peaceful activists. Please lend your voice once again to pressure federal, state, and municipal authorities in Mexico to stop their tactics of harassment and intimidation against women and organizers. Time is of the essence.
Sincerely,
Nikhil Aziz
Executive Director
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged Ecuador, environmental protection, Fair Trade coffee, FAPECAFES, organic coffee, small farmer co-operative on February 17, 2009| 1 Comment »
It’s been several years now since I traveled to southern Ecuador to visit one of our farmer co-operative partners, the Federation of Ecological Coffee Producer Associations in the Southern Region (FAPECAFES), but it’s a visit I still remember well. I’m sharing it here because I think that many of the issues are still very relevant today: particularly how small farmers are working together (with little support historically from the government) and are making tremendous advances to create and strengthen a high quality Fair Trade coffee co-operative business with international recognition; and because their story highlights the severe environmental degradation that they are confronting and attempting to reverse.
Loja Province
Despite the fact that 98% of the coffee in Ecuador is grown by small-scale farmers, only 5% have organized themselves into associations, or co-operatives. FAPECAFES is one of the only associations of small coffee farmers in Ecuador and the only Fair Trade coffee association in the entire country. (more…)
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged Equal Exchange cafe on February 13, 2009| 11 Comments »
The opening was a great success! We had chocolate tastings, coffee cuppings, baked goods samplings, demos, coffee brewing classes and… of course… the Gala reception with music, food, friends, family, and neighbors! Thanks for making it such a success! For those of you who couldn’t be there…. we invite you to brew yourself a cup of coffee (tea or hot chocolate) and enjoy these awesome photos of the event taken by Ashley Symons.
In the heart of the city…
226 Causeway Street
Brian O'Connell invites folks to the Opening
Cari Senefsky, Esther West & Lisa Valdez take the coffee to the streets
Inside the cafe, the celebration begins with demos, tastings, and classes … (more…)
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged free trade agreements on February 10, 2009| Leave a Comment »
The following press release, from Citizens Trade Campaign, describes this impressive campaign to convert free trade agreements into fair trade policies.
For Immediate Release
Friday, February 6th, 2009
Washington D.C. – In a letter sent to members of Congress yesterday, 347 national, state and local organizations from across the country, representing over eighteen million combined members, vowed to support promises of change made by scores of successful candidates during the 2008 election, and to help “replace the failed trade policies of the past with those that deliver broadly shared benefits.”
The letter, sent by a diverse coalition of faith, family farm, environmental, labor, and consumer groups, promised help push reform, pledging “As the new Congress begins, we look forward to working with you and the Obama Administration to seize this opportunity to create better rules for trade policy.”
“Free trade agreements with Colombia, Panama and Korea represent more-of-the-same failed model backed by the Bush Administration, and strongly rejected by voters,” said Andy Gussert, CTC coalition director. “Hundreds of groups are now organizing, rolling up their sleeves, and pushing for reform, including support for Buy American provisions in the stimulus package.”
At this time, not one environmental, faith or labor organization in America endorses passage of the Colombia Free Trade Agreement in its current form, but many are pushing to construct trade agreements that can gain a majority of congressional support. (more…)
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged Equal Exchange cafe on February 9, 2009| Leave a Comment »
At 226 Causeway St., the café is located between the historic North End and the TD Banknorth Garden, home of the reigning NBA champions – the Boston Celtics. A street-level storefront, the building houses many businesses and organizations in the floors above.
Cafés are one of a number of ways we hope to engage consumers more directly in the years ahead. Here on Causeway Street, we will be able to showcase the fruits of the enormous effort our farmer partners invest in growing the highest quality coffee, tea and chocolate. We hope from time-to-time to have special presentations from farmers as well as “cuppings” led by our roasting and quality control staff.
To supplement our directly sourced products and milk from local family dairy farmers, we will be supporting local independent businesses to provide fresh pastries and healthy light lunch offerings. (more…)
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged Fair Trade, small farmer co-operative on February 5, 2009| 7 Comments »
As the (former) Producer Relations Coordinator at Equal Exchange, people are always asking me why we choose to focus our relationships and purchasing strategies on small farmer co-operatives. Most people familiar with Fair Trade understand the critical importance that higher prices, advance credit and direct relationships have on growers. Through decades of organizing, educating, and advocating, the Fair Trade movement has succeeded in raising the bar for much of the “ethical trade” industry, at least in coffee. Today, many coffee companies source direct, provide credit, and offer higher than market prices –and we’re excited about that.
Yet, there’s another equally – some would say even more important – reason we work with farmer co-operatives. Sometimes I get tired of making this point, but I think it’s actually a hard one for many of us in the U.S. to fully grasp. In our culture, “individualism” is steeped into our subconscious from an early age. From the days of the Wild West, heroic individualism is applauded. It’s the American Dream that anyone who works hard enough can “pull themselves up by their bootstraps.” Anyone can become a millionaire – or the country’s President. At least that’s what we’re told to believe. (more…)
Learn about the history of Authentic Fair Trade
Small Farmers. Big Change. 