Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of DeKalb

Equal Exchange Fair Trade Coffee Program

"When you drink a cup of fairly traded coffee from Equal Exchange, you are supporting one or two or three small scale farmers on the other side of the world so that they can have a better life and education for their children."
-Gabriel Ulomi, Kilimanjaro Native Cooperative Union, Tanzania

For many of us, coffee is an essential part of community - a warm, invigorating beverage to enjoy in the company of friends and neighbors. But it is also a vital source of income for thousands of small farmers and their families in some of the poorest countries in the world. Unfortunately, these communities are facing the brunt of low market prices and are being devastated. For example, in 2001, world market prices for coffee fell drastically from $1.40 per pound to $.45. Many farmers reported receiving as little as $.15 to $.20 per pound from local middlemen. As a result, farmers all over the world are forced out of their jobs or reduced to barely sustainable income, which means they are unable to meet their basic needs such as food, medicine, and education for their children.

At the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of DeKalb, members are learning about the coffee trade and promoting an alternative: fairly traded coffee. The coffee comes from Equal Exchange, a fair trade organization founded in 1986 to create a different model of trade with small farmers. By working directly with small farmer cooperatives, Equal Exchange cuts out middlemen, ensuring that more money reaches those who do the hard work of growing coffee. Equal Exchange pays farmers a fair price, including a guaranteed minimum of $1.26 per pound, which is double the world market price.

At the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in DeKalb, our Board of Trustees made the commitment to purchase only Fair Trade Coffee for our coffee hour and other church events. In addition, our Social Justice Committee has Fair Trade coffee products (coffee, hot chocolate, tea, and baking chocolate) available for sale in our Fellowship Hall following Sunday services.

"Communities of faith are looking for ways to do justice in our daily lives, said Erbin Crowell of Equal Exchange. "One simple way to reach out to communities in need is with the cup of coffee that we hold in our hand." At the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of DeKalb, members have taken this message to heart, sharing a cup of justice with small coffee farmers.

Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of DeKalb
158 N. Fourth Street
DeKalb, IL 60115
815-756-7089
uufdchurchoffice@aol.com

9:00 a.m. - Church opens for Coffee & Conversation
9:45-11:00 a.m. Worship Service - Note: Children (age 4+ stay with us through the entire service)
11:00-11:15 a.m. - Coffee quick break
11:15-12:15 p.m. - Faith Development programming for all ages.

Child care services available. Our church is handicapped accessible. For directions to our church, please click [map]