Editorial
“Do not follow where the path
may lead. Go, instead,
where there is no path and leave a trail.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson
In our daily lives, with the demands
of work and family responsibilities, we often do not
find the time to help make the world a better place
in which to live. Recently, I came across a very useful
website called Charity Guide that provides excellent
information and myriad opportunities for people searching
for ways to help others and our planet. In the “environmental
protection” section, editor Deborah Mitchell outlines
the importance of drinking shade-grown coffee and what
this simple change in your life will help accomplish.
According to Mitchell, “Americans
drink 400 million cups of coffee per day, making them
the world’s leading consumers of coffee. But since
most of that coffee does not come from organic or shade-grown
coffee plantations, their coffee habit supports environmentally
damaging practices. You can help reverse the damage
by buying and insisting upon shade-grown and organic
coffee.”
Mitchell adds, “Most of the $4
billion worth of coffee imported by the United States
each year is grown under conditions that severely damage
the environment and jeopardize wildlife, especially
migratory birds. By contrast, organic, shade-grown coffee
plantations are environmentally supportive and provide
critical habitat for as many as 200 species of birds,
as well as dozens of species of insects, amphibians,
and plants.
Traditionally, shade-grown coffee was
the norm on the large coffee plantations throughout
Mexico and Central and South America. While coffee is
still grown in these areas, most of the coffee-growing
plantations have been largely stripped of their trees
in an attempt to get higher yielding harvests, but the
move has resulted in devastating damage to the environment
and wildlife. In some areas, environmentally sensitive
rainforest is being cleared to make way for coffee growing.
The resulting sun-grown coffee plantations are plagued
by erosion, the need for year-round use of pesticides,
high levels of toxic run-off, and poor soil quality.”
If you want to help make a difference,
Mitchell suggests that you “let your next cup of
coffee, latte, cappuccino, or espresso lift more than
your spirits; let it contribute to the preservation
of habitats for migratory birds. You can make that difference
starting right now by having a cup of organic, shade-grown
coffee.” For more information, as well as a list
of shade-grown coffee sources, visit www.charityguide.org
—Robert Adams
[Published:
October, 2009]
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