United by Coffee

Saturday is World Fair Trade Day and Ten Thousand Villages (TTV) has several ways to celebrate.

As a barista at Starbucks and new volunteer at TTV, it seems like fate that we’ll close the day out with Handmade Expressions to co-host a free outdoor movie showing at Jo’s Coffee about…fair trade coffee!

Delicious Peace is a movie about Jewish, Christian and Muslim coffee farmers who decided “social justice, environmental justice, and economic justice is not enough…what’s needed is peace.” It serves as a model of not just successful organic and kosher fair trade coffee distributors helping the economically disadvantaged, but also interfaith cooperation.

I have not seen the movie, as I’m going to see it at Jo’s on Saturday, but as someone new to the fair trade world, I’m intrigued by the premise of the movie and fair trade coffee.

So what makes coffee “fair trade?” Fair Trade USA takes some of the guesswork out by serving as an intermediary that reviews and certifies products like coffee, tea, cocoa, spices and more to make sure they meet fair trade standards that are established FTUSA. Basically, those standards are the same ones that make jewelry and novelty items fair trade: 1) farmers are compensated for their labor and products so they can maintain a reasonable standard of living; 2) they have safe working environments; and 3) they sell their products directly. This allows for transparency and empowers the communities to set their own prices and build up business skills.

Another cornerstone in fair trade is that the focus is on building up the community through projects designed to bolster education, health care, and basic social needs. Since FTUSA deals with mainly agricultural products, there is the added standard of “environmentally sustainable farming methods that protect farmers’ health and preserve valuable ecosystems for future generations,” although environmentally friendly practices are common in other areas of the fair trade world beyond food.

The movie description makes sure to mention the coffee is kosher, so on a related note (and in the interfaith spirit of the movie), what makes coffee kosher? I mean, isn’t all coffee basically kosher? Generally, yes. This website from an organization that investigates and certifies kosher products is an excellent resource for not only explaining kosher as it applies to coffee, but also explaining how coffee is grown and processed.

Kosher concerns only really come into play with flavored coffee and the process of decaffeinating the coffee beans, as the chemical compound ethanol used to decaffeinate the beans is originally from a grain and therefore not kosher. Those are the main issues inherent to the coffee, but there is also the issue of the establishment selling the coffee.

“This problem stems from the halacha of marris ayin, the appearance of wrongdoing,” Star-K says. “This din states that a Jew is prohibited from doing things that others might interpret as violations of halacha.”

This is where things get tricky and it becomes a judgment call, but Star-K’s rabbis apply the standard that if the business is primarily concerned with non-kosher items, then it’s not kosher to get coffee there. If the business deals in just coffee or a mixture of kosher and non-kosher items, then it’s kosher to get coffee there.

Be sure to stop by Ten Thousand Villages on World Fair Trade Day to try some Fair Trade Certified coffee. It’s a dark, full-bodied French roast. Try it with a little bit of cream to bring out the smokiness in the flavor.

Photo Entry from 2013 Fair Trade Challenge:

Becca Ruiz poses with the fair trade
coffee section at Ten Thousand Villages

Also, don’t forget to show off your fair trade items in our World Fair Trade Day social media challenge for a chance to win a $50 gift card to the store!

- Kathryn
(Find me on twitter)

Are YOU up for the challenge…

In Celebration of World Fair Trade Day, be a challenger and join the movement in raising awareness!  Be an example of what it means to “Live the Fair Trade Life” by eating, drinking, wearing and using Fair Trade products.  Then, tag pictures of you doing these things on Facebook and Twitter (@AustinVillages).  Stick it to ‘em and wear an “I am Fair Trade” sticker each day to show your dedication to the cause.  Come by the store starting May 4 to pick your sticker up!

After you’ve completed the challenge, come join us at the World Fair Trade Day Party May 12 from 10a-7p.  Come pick up your Challenge Award and party with other challengers at Ten Thousand Villages of Austin (1317 South Congress)! Enjoy henna artists, music, coffee, chocolate…and more!

Ready to go?  Alright then-sign up here!

 

RAISE AWARENESS. BE FAIR TRADE.

Being The Change We Want To See

Longtime Ten Thousand Villages volunteer and current board member Taylor Overstreet wrote this article for MISSION DRIVEN, the blog for Greenlights for NonProfit Success.  Taylor shared her excitement (and OURS) for the Austin Fair Trade Film Festival and detailed the process of planning such an event.

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Posted on May 7, 2010 by Taylor Overstreet

Disclaimer: I’m a longtime volunteer and current board member at Ten Thousand Villages of Austin, so please forgive me in advance for swelling with pride during this post!

For nonprofit fair trade organization Ten Thousand Villages of Austin, the big idea was a film festival to raise awareness about fair trade.  A few months ago, board member and volunteer Sharon Matheny had the idea to hold the first annual fair trade film festival in Austin, in conjunction with World Fair Trade Day, held on the second Saturday in May each year.  Ten Thousand Villages of Austin has celebrated for the past several years, but this year, we decided to go big.

But first, we needed to answer three big questions – what, who and how?

1. What do we want to accomplish? Awareness? Fundraising? Recruiting? For this event, awareness was our primary goal. World Fair Trade Day has connected us year after year to people and celebrations all over the world. It’s a special opportunity to celebrate with our local community and to build awareness about fair trade products and the artisans behind them. There are still lots of folks who don’t know about fair trade, so it was important for us to educate in an informal way that is fun for everyone. Film seemed like a natural conduit because of the vibrant film community that already exists in Austin. We decided to include a panel discussion following each film to create a true dialogue as part of raising awareness.

2. Who should be involved? We love our local partners, and the idea of a film festival in Austin just didn’t make sense at any other place than the Alamo Drafthouse. Our timing coincided perfectly with the campaign to secure the Fair Trade Towndesignation for Austin, and that group has played a tremendous role. We turned to our existing partnerships and made new relationships in the process to secure sponsorships from Texas Coffee Traders, Handmade Expressions, The Progressive Populist, Transfair USA, Novica, Texas Fair Trade Coalition, Eastside Cafe, Dominican Joe, Nada Moo, Maine Root Handcrafted Beverages, Austin Tan Cerca de la Frontera,Austin Local & Fair Trade, Ethical City, Marigold-Gateway to India, Fair Trade a Day, and Etnik Fashions. Finally, nothing happens without our volunteers. They have been instrumental leading up to the big day and will be a big part of our success.

3. How do we get there? While the film festival is not a fundraiser, we needed funds to make it happen. We set up a KickStarter fundraising page and set a modest fundraising goal that basically covered our costs. We asked a local designer to donate his time designing a logo for our festival t-shirts, and our fabulous volunteer crew galvanized into action to spread the word via Facebook, e-mail, and good old-fashioned word of mouth.

In an effort to build more connections with the nonprofit community, Ten Thousand Villages of Austin recently became a member of Greenlights. Big ideas aren’t so daunting when you have the support that this community provides. It’s our first time trying this experiment, but that’s what big ideas are all about. How big? The festival, the first of its kind, includes three documentary films, panel discussions, a Fair Trade Market, artisan demonstrations, and (because it’s Austin) live music.

What’s your big idea?

Are We There Yet?

created by Kelly Yarbrough at Handmade Expressions

We have very nearly reached our fundraising goal!!  A huge thank-you to all our backers who have helped us get so very close to realizing our dream of the FIRST EVER Austin Fair Trade Film Festival!  We still need a bit more help, though, so please, visit the Kickstarter.com page and give what you can!  Our deadline is MAY 1st!!  Help us make history and spread the Fair Trade story on World Fair Trade Day!!

And of course, none of this would be possible without the amazing support of our Fair Trade partners.  A huge thank you to Maine Root, Texas Coffee Traders, Novica, Etnik, Eastside Cafe, TransFair USA, Texas Fair Trade Coalition, Ethical City, Marigold, Handmade Expressions, Dominican Joe, and Austin Local and Fair Trade Market.

1st Annual Fair Trade Film Fest Needs You!

May 8th is World Fair Trade Day.  To celebrate, we have decided to do something completely new here in Austin and we’re very excited about it!

Together with the Alamo Drafthouse Theater on South Lamar, we will be hosting the 1st Annual Fair Trade Film Festival.  Three films will be screened and fair trade vendors and entertainment will be featured outside the theater.

This is the first film festival of this kind in Austin and we are hoping to make it an Austin tradition.  Austin has such strong film and fair trade communities, so bringing them together feels very natural and powerful.

If YOU are interested in getting involved as a volunteer please contact us (austin@tenthousandvillages.com) or, if you don’t have time to volunteer but still want to make a difference, we have set up a fundraising page with Kickstart. All donations are TAX DEDUCTIBLE.  The more money we raise, the better our event can be and the bigger our impact on the community will be.

We need your help to make this event happen, so please, check out the film and panel information below and either volunteer or donate to our fundraising project today!

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We will be screening one short film and three documentary films that deal with different aspects of fair trade. Below is a description of each one, along with links to more info.

After each film, we will have Q&A panels with experts and community leaders on trade economics, social justice, and sustainability. Here are the panel topics and a few of our panelists:

Fair Trade Certification: Is it worth the effort?
+RC Beall–CEO of Texas Coffee Traders, a fair trade coffee retailer and wholesaler

Fighting from Within: Worker influence and control in the maquiladoras
+Josefina Castillo–Program coordinator of the American Friends Service Committee-Austin. Co-founder of the Austin Tan Cerca de la Frontera (Austin So Close to the Border) project. 2010 recipient of the Austin Woman Humanitarian Award.http://www.afsc.org/austin/ht/d/ArticleDetails/i/81587
+Judith Rosenberg–Co-founder of the Austin Tan Cerca de la Frontera (Austin So Close to the Border) project.

Humanity and Affordability in the U.S.: Do we have to make a choice?

This event is sponsored by Ten Thousand Villages of Austin (http://www.austin.tenthousandvillages.com), Austin Fair Trade Town (http://fairtradeaustin.ning.com/), and Texas Coffee Traders (http://www.texascoffeetraders.com/).
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Preshow short film (before all three feature films):
“Fair Trade Coffee Production in the Monteverde Cloud Forest”
High in the mountains of the Monteverde region of Costa Rica, some of the world’s best coffee is grown. Coope Santa Elena is made up of 75 small coffee producers who are committed to growing their crops in environmentally friendly ways. Monteverde is also an internationally known research area for cloud forests. Sonya Hernandez at University of Georgia has done a bird population study in the shade-grown coffee in this region. Produced by Patricia Ortiz.
Sponsored by TEXAS COFFEE TRADERS, sellers of Café Monteverde.http://www.texascoffeetraders.com/

Feature Films:
MAQUILAPOLIS [city of factories] (2006) As Carmen and a million other maquiladora workers produce televisions, electrical cables, toys, clothes, batteries and IV tubes, they also confront labor violations, environmental devastation and urban chaos. As they work for change, the world changes too: a global economic crisis and the availability of cheaper labor in China begin to pull the factories away from Tijuana, leaving Carmen and her colleagues with an uncertain future.
http://www.maquilapolis.com/project_eng.htm

THE PRICE OF SUGAR (2007) Follows Father Christopher Hartley as he organizes Haiti’s poorest people to fight for their basic human rights. They toil under armed-guard on plantations harvesting sugarcane, much of which ends up in U.S. kitchens. This film raises key questions about where the products we consume originate and at what human cost they are produced. Narrated by Paul Newman. http://www.thepriceofsugar.com/about.shtml

BUYER BE FAIR: The Promise of Product Certification (2006) Takes viewers to Mexico, the Netherlands, the UK, Sweden, the USA and Canada to explore how conscious consumers and businesses can use the market to promote social justice and environmental sustainability through product labeling, with a focus on Fair Trade coffee and Forest Stewardship Council certified wood.
http://www.buyerbefair.org/