DUers Should Support Co-Op America

[BayCityProgressive]

Co-Op America is a coalition of over 100,000 members. The purpose is to support fair trade, social responsiblity, living wage jobs, environmentalism and organic food. Co-Op America gives you listings of locally owned businesses who fit with all of these things and also gives you banks that put your investments only in socially responsible businesses.

Resources: Bring Fair Trade Coffee to Your Community


Last Monday, Co-op America took action for Fair Trade in our local community here in Washington, DC, by sponsoring a screening of the Fair Trade coffee documentary Black Gold. Black Gold tells the story of Tadesse Meskela, an Ethiopian farmer who travels the world educating coffee retailers and consumers about how Fair Trade helps coffee farmers get a fair price for their crops and strengthen their local communities.

Co-op America began by inviting our local e-newsletter subscribers to the screening, and went on to make free tickets available to anyone who wished to invite their local barista or coffeeshop owner to the screening. We filled the 400-seat theater at the Carnegie Institution, and guests included the store manager for a local Starbucks and a large showing from DC's sizeable Ethiopian ex-pat community.

Members of the audience received a copy of our brochure "The Business Case for Fair Trade Coffee" and a list of local coffeeshops and groceries where Fair Trade coffee is available. Members of the co-sponsoring organizations Oxfam, Fair Trade Federation, Sierra Club DC, and Abol Coffee Inc., were on hand to answer questions and talk with attendees after the film.

You can replicate this strategy in your own local community when the DVD for Black Gold becomes available to the general public later this spring. Download a copy of our brochure, and for advice on how to set up a screening for your community, feel free to contact our organizers.

(Also, TransFair USA is encouraging Black Gold house parties on April 10, when the film will appear on PBS. Visit TransFair for more.)

http://www.coopamerica.org/

[AZBlue]

1. I didn't know anything about it - but now I'm all signed up!

Thank you for posting this!

[BayCityProgressive]

2. Your welcome!

If even just 5% of the Democratic Party supported an organization like this, our country would be a much better place! :)

[AZBlue]

5. I agree.

It makes a lot of sense really. And this site looks fantastic! Has such great information on fair trade and usable environmental tips, things that can be hard to find elsewhere. For example, I know about fluorescent bulbs, etc, but what about furniture and bigger issues like that? I've recently realized that I can buy all organic foods and health supplies but still be toxic as ever because of my surroundings!

[jwirr]

3. I do not know about this new movement but coming from farm country

I know about co-ops. They were the way that electricity was put into the rural areas in the early 1900s. Most rural people still belong the the REA. There are also many gas companies that are cooperative. Grocery stores. It was the way that rural areas developed: working together to accomplish their goals. We need this type of system again to help us make the big changes needed to combat the effects of global warming.

[htuttle]

4. My workplace won a spot in the 'most democratic workplaces' list this year

At http://worldblu.com/

I don't know how many of them are worker-operated coops, but we are, and I've been there 16 years this year. W00t!

[Rainscents]

6. I am 100% paid membership to CO-OP!

I am all for FAIR TRADE! NOT, Slave trade!

[cascadiance]

7. I just found out that the Saeco "expresso vending machines" here in San Diego

are using Fair Trade certified coffee!

We get a lot of freebees at work, including free coffee out of one of these Saeco vending machines that gives us things from Lattes, Mochiatos, etc.

I'd earlier expected that they just were using very cheap coffee, since we couldn't tell what brand the beans were being used that were being funnelled through the machine.

I bumped into the guy refilling the machines about an hour ago and asked him about it, and he at first didn't know, but then we both looked at the Kirkland Starbucks brand wholesale coffee bag he was using, and glory be! It was "Fair Trade Certified"! He'd been picking up his coffee from Costco, and bless Costco's heart for selling persuading Starbucks to provide them with Fair Trade Certified coffee, instead of the non-fair trade certified stuff that they use in their shops! Looking to see if we can get the other coffee we have in our office get purchased from Costco now too!

Anyway, I suddenly felt a lot better about drinking more coffee out of this machine rather than our other coffee machine here or going down the street to Starbucks!

The guy filling our coffee machines now knows another selling point for his services now that I told him about the greatness of Fair Trade coffee and perhaps he'll get more sales (and get Fair Trade coffee more sales) here locally as a result. It's been made a better day for me! :)

Another good documentary that got me persuaded to look for Fair Trade Coffee was "Birdsong and Coffee" that showed on Link TV over the last few weeks. Really highlighted how getting both Shade Grown and Fair Trade Certified coffee is a very good thing for the working people of the world (including us in doing so) as well as the environment.