Back home

Nancy and I have arrived home safely from our trip. Needless to say our cats have made it known to us about our leaving them even though they were well taken care of by Luan. Thanks Luan. We will have a day where we can spend time unwinding and spending time with our grandchildren here in Omaha. We had a great time and the second dinner theater Tuesday was fantastic though not a comedy. We did stop in Galesburg Ill home of Carl Sandburg one of my favorite poets. We also stopped at one fabric store in Grinell Ia the Grinell Fiber Works. I took some pictures of one of their quilts that they did shortly after 9/11 with all the world's religious symbols and people of diversity represented in the quilt. I hope to post that in my next blog.
One other thing to note was that when we stayed at the Holiday Inn in Louisville I was impressed that they use Rainforest Alliance certified coffee. Being Methodist, I am aware and hopefully others are also of Free Trade coffee which guarantees a fair price to be paid to the growers of coffee and other products. Similarly no sweat t-shirts are part of our mission to not exploit workers. Rainforest Alliance is similar with the ideas of sustainable environment, fair markets for all people. Below is their values and mission.
Our Values and Vision for the Future
At the Rainforest Alliance our work is guided by these core values:
Respect and concern for natural environments, local peoples and all stakeholders
Dedication to pioneering pragmatic innovations with respect to common practices
A belief that sustainability is achievable only through collaboration and mutual success
An unwavering commitment to integrity in all that we do. We have taken steps to ensure our integrity
Envisioning a Sustainable Future
The Rainforest Alliance believes that it is possible to create a sustainable society, one that protects the planet and provides sustainable livelihoods for its people.
To achieve our vision, we must transform the current destructive market system into one that values sustainable production, sourcing, consumption and equitable trade.
We believe that sustainable management of businesses of all sizes requires:
Clean air and water
Healthy biodiversity and wildlife habitat
Reduction of waste and toxicity
Reduction and mitigation of global warming
Dignified and safe living and working conditions, with adequate food, education and health care for workers and their families
Equal opportunity for all
We believe that a sustainable market system requires that:
Sustainable sourcing, supply chain management and public accountability are standard practice
Products carry prices that reflect their real environmental, economic and social value
Sustainable producers, small and community-based businesses have equitable market access
People demand and have access to high-quality, sustainable and healthy products and choices
Financial and insurance sectors support sustainable operations and penalize unsustainable ones
Governments support sustainability through procurement, incentives, and regulations
Civil society sources sustainably
I am not sure if this is true for all Holiday Inns but I was impressed. I believe we need to remember [my paraphrase] what Jesus said that how we treat the least of them represents how we treat Jesus. I have tried to change the type of coffee we buy in our church to Fair Trade or Sustainable Certified coffee. Too often major coffee producers do not offer fair and equatible pay to those who raise their product and thus continue to exploit not only the workers but the land itself. I hope that in some small way we can become more aware of the injustice of this and do what we can to support fair trade, Rainforest Alliance, and Sustainable Certified products whenever we can.
This is especially true as we come to World Communion Sunday this Sunday. Let us be in community with the world not exploiting it.