Equal
Exchange and Lutheran World Relief (LWR) are strongly committed to furthering
Fair Trade and environmental justice together with Lutheran congregations
across the U.S.
As a participant in the LWR Coffee Project, you make a positive impact on the
planet and on the people who grow our food through your regular purchases of
Equal Exchange fairly traded products and your contributions to
LWR. Luther Memorial shares in the vision of protecting the
environment--a vision that connects you to our planet and to the small-scale
farmer co-operatives who produce food in a sustainable way.
CreationCare Challenge: Reduce your energy usage this winter and save
money!
It's
cold, windy, snowy and icy outside, and your furnace or heat pump is running
constantly. Electricity rates are climbing just in time for winter. The
CreationCare Committee challenges you to reduce your fuel and electricity use
this winter. Check your last power bill for your kilowatt usage for the previous
month and the same month the previous year. Now start implementing some easy
methods for reducing your kilowatt usage and save money! Following are some
easy tips that will help you to reduce your usage and bill. Be sure to check
your energy usage when you receive your power bill each month. We think you will
be pleased with the results of lower kilowatt usage and you will care for
creation in a way that affects your wallet.
1.
For every 1 degree you lower your thermostat you will save as much as 10%
off your heating bill. 2. Lower the temperature setting on your hot water
tank to 120 to 130 degrees. 3. Wash
clothes in cold water, not hot and full loads
only. 4. Take advantage of southern
exposures for passive solar heat and lighting. 5. Have you switched yet
from incandescent light bulbs to CFL bulbs? If you haven't, there is no time
like the present! Replace the 5 most used light bulbs in your home with CFL's.
See the February newsletter article for more information and
several websites for more energy saving tips including http://www.sierraclub.org/energy/cleanenergy/conservation/index.asp
Farmer
Partners are Greening the Planet:
*
Over 90% of the fairly traded products offered by Equal Exchange are certified
organic, meaning that no toxic chemical fertilizers or chemical pesticides are
used that pollute the air or harm the earth.
*Equal
Exchange supports small-scale farmer practices such as terracing, water
conservation, manual weeding, and crop diversification--all of which lead to
greater soil fertility and reduce erosion.
*Farmers
in Fair Trade co-operatives are encouraged to plant additional coffee trees and
citrus plants to assist and increase bio-diversity and wildlife habitats.
These practices also improve pest control, help to avoid soil erosion, and
provide other food sources to the community.
*Co-op
farmers plant shade trees as opposed to clear-cutting trees in conventional
monocrop plantations. This helps to preserve songbird habitat, shield farmers
from harmful UV rays, cool the planet, and absorb carbon dioxide, a harmful
greenhouse gas. All of these techniques help to remedy the extensive
landscape degradation and deforestation that has occurred in countries over
decades of environmental abuse. Thanks to your support, small farmers
have the means to help restore these landscapes as a result of the market
access and improved income from the Fair Trade system.
