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Fair Trade Travel
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Travel, for Cooperative Coffees and its roaster members, is crucial to establishing and maintaining strong relationships with producer coops from all over the coffee-growing world. Exchanging information face-to-face with our partners and experiencing first-hand their daily context is an indispensable aspect of what we do. In addition to providing a wonderful opportunity for members and staff of Coop Coffees to visit with producers, many roasters have opened up delegations to the public and encourage their clients, friends, and family to join them abroad! To learn more about these chance-of-a-lifetime tours that our roasters will be leading, scroll down or click: |
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Fair Trade Tours with Higher Grounds Trading
**Visit their website for more info: http://www.highergroundstrading.com/fair-trade-tours.html**
Harvest Tour: Fair Trade and Indigenous Autonomy in the Mayan Highlands
February 4th – February 11th, 2010
Join us on an adventure through the Mayan Highlands of Chiapas, Mexico where we'll be meeting up with our many partners in the struggle for a just and dignified world. We'll be visiting organic and fair trade coffee co-ops working to create community sustainability and various autonomous projects that your coffee dollars support here at Higher Grounds.
Participants will have the opportunity to experience the reality of the rich culture of Mayan people struggling for autonomy and self-sufficiency and learn about the current threats to the existence of their culture.
The delegation will meet with organic farmers, women's fair trade artisan cooperatives, Fair Trade coffee co-ops, traditional healers, biodiversity and economic rights activists, and autonomous indigenous communities and leaders.
In addition to learning about the farmers' perspective of the powerful coffee industry, participants will find more in depth knowledge about fair trade and how to "plug in" when they return home.
Chiapas burst into the world's headlines New Year's Day 1994 - the day that NAFTA went into effect - when an uprising led by the Zapatista movement reminded the world that indigenous people are still struggling for their rights 500 years after the European conquest. Nestled in the mountains of Chiapas, San Cristobal de las Casas is the gateway to the Lacandon rainforests and forest-blanketed highlands. The city, full of colonial charm and vibrant indigenous culture, will serve as the base from which the delegation will visit a variety of non-governmental organizations, autonomous indigenous communities, and coffee co-ops.
Trip Highlights:
* Spend the day at a certified organic, Fair Trade Coffee Cooperative to learn about the positive impacts of Fair Trade
* Visit local coffee growing communities to learn about indigenous culture and the use of organic agriculture as a means to self-sufficiency
* Learn about the struggle for a just and equitable world through the eyes and words of the Zapatista Autonomous communities
* Examine the issue of land rights and see first hand the global threats to the Mayan communities very existence
* Learn about innovative, sustainable water projects taking place to support communal access to fresh water
* Meet with a successful women's artisan cooperative in the highlands and learn about the production of fair trade artisan goods
* Witness first-hand the effects the global economy has on indigenous peoples
Price: $700 - Includes double occupancy lodging, two meals a day, translations, guides, donations to each organization and community we visit and all in-country transportation.
Contact usor call chris@highergroundstrading.com at 231.922.9009 for more information
Just Coffee Fair Trade Travel Delegations
A number of times each year Just Coffee offers customized travel delegations to visit our coffee producers all over the world. Delegations are available to Just Coffee customers, friends, community members, avid coffee drinkers, and anyone with an interest in fair trade and cultural diversity.
Join Just Coffee on any number of informative and inspirational learning delegations that are sure to be unforgettable!
In 2009, we will be traveling to:
Guatemala: May 16-25 -- sign up before May 1
Nicaragua: May 29-June 3 -- sign up before May 1
El Salvador: June 16-19 -- sign up before June 1
Chiapas: June 21-26 -- sign up before June 1
Colombia: July 7-13 -- sign up before June 1
Bolivia: July 16-22 -- sign up before June 1
Dominican Republic: July 31-August 4 -- sign up before July 1
Timor-Leste: August 18-23 -- sign up before August 15
ABOUT JUST COFFEE DELEGATIONS: A number of times each year Just Coffee offers customized travel delegations to visit the coffee producers we work with around the world. These delegations serve as a way for our company to stay in close contact with the coffee producing groups we work with, a value we feel is integral to truly fair trade. Delegations are educational travel experiences that focus on the lengthy production process of coffee from the tree to your cup, the ideologies and realities of fair trade as it currently exists, and include discussions about globalization, cultural diversity, autonomy and indigenous rights, issues related specifically to women, international relations, the histories of the communities and countries we visit, current events, and much, much, more! Our delegations aim to offer a safe and supportive environment for people of different ages, genders, capabilities, nationalities, religions, and backgrounds to participate in exchanges that are meaningful for all.
WHAT HAPPENS ON OUR DELEGATIONS: Formally, delegations meet with, share meals, and often stay overnight in coffee growing communities. We also visit local crafts people, artist collectives, traditional medicine healers, local radio stations, locally produced magazines, research organizations, Permaculture and sustainable agriculture groups, United Nations and government officials, environmental groups, and many others depending upon the place we travel to. We seek to learn not just about where our coffee comes from but also about people's lives. Informally, we take every opportunity to immerse ourselves in their culture and environment, visiting local markets, eating traditional foods, and attending local events. We facilitate positive, creative, social interactions, and work together to process of all that we are taking in, learning about, and experiencing.
CUSTOMIZED DELEGATIONS: Each delegation's focus is developed specifically to the needs, interests and capabilities of its travelers whether they be university or high-school students, community or faith groups, environmental or agricultural groups, coffee addicts, or just interested individuals. In order to keep our delegations small we generally accept a maximum of 12-15 people per trip but often take much smaller groups. Trips are generally between 5 and 7 days (although longer or shorter trips can be arranged depending on group requirements). Delegations may also include additional activities, such as guided ecological tours, volcano climbing, snorkeling and scuba-diving, etc.
WHO JOINS JUST COFFEE DELEGATIONS: Delegations are available to Just Coffee customers, friends, community members, avid coffee drinkers, and anyone with an interest in fair trade and cultural diversity. There are no language requirements nor age limits for our delegations. No matter where you live, if you have a positive attitude and desire to learn and participate, you are encouraged to join a Just Coffee delegation!
TO GET INFORMATION AND SIGN UP: For more information visit the delegation page of Just Coffee's website at: http://justcoffee.coop/en/delegations . To see photos of previous delegations please visit: http://justcoffee.coop/en/photo/48 . To sign up to join one of our upcoming delegations, or to plan a customized delegation specifically for your group, please contact Delegation Coordinator, Colleen Coy at: colleen (at) just coffee (dot) coop.
⇒ Cost: Delegations range from $700-$1500 depending on destination, length of stay, etc (airfare not included)
⇒ Contact colleen@justcoffee.coop for more information!
**Delegations subject to to minimum number of participants**
