Coming out of our recent review, the trustees, staff, shop volunteers and directors got together to work out their new development plan. Guided by our wonderful facilitators, Sylvia Morrison and Susan McLean, we came up with the enclosed document. This will be a living plan that we will be updating every few months. Watch this space for the results.
Author: rainbowturtle2002
Fairtrade Calculator
Have you ever wondered how much of an impact you could make just by switching one everyday item to a Fair Trade equivalent? Well, the Fairtrade Foundation have made it easy for you with this calculator to celebrate 25 years of the Fairtrade Mark. You simply choose your favourite Fairtrade product (I went with coffee!) and let them know how much of it you consume (I have 2 cups, although sometimes a bit more…) and the handy calculator works out just how many bathtubs that would fill in 25 years, and gives you some really interesting information on how your Fair Trade purchase helps farmers and producers. This is what I learned:
Hugo Guerrero is fighting for the future of his family coffee farm. The climate crisis and plummeting coffee prices is making life harder at the Peruvian cooperative his father founded. Extreme weather is making plant diseases more common and more destructive, while market prices for coffee are the lowest in decades.
But thanks to Fairtrade, he is hopeful. ‘Without Fairtrade, we would not be growing coffee. It would not be profitable.’
Cafedirect are one of the companies buying the Guerreros’ beans on Fairtrade terms, meaning they get a much fairer deal and a better price.
Hugo, who studied Agronomy at university, is also introducing new organic farming methods to tackle the climate crisis. And he’s sharing this knowledge with the rest of his cooperative and the local community, leading to positive change across the region.
The Guerrero family can only succeed if we continue to buy Fairtrade coffee – so let’s drink to that!
Rainbow Turtle Review
The staff, trustees, directors and volunteers at Rainbow Turtle recently underwent a review of the organisation. Rainbow Turtle has been trading for 17 years and over the last two to three years has undergone a lot of changes in terms of personnel and activity. We wanted to look at what we were doing and see what was done well and what could be improved.
An external consultant kindly offered her services free of charge and interviewed a total of 24 people within the organisation. Her report is attached to this entry.
Watch this space for the development plan that came out of the report.
Scottish Fair Trade Forum Regional Sessions
The Scottish Fair Trade Forum are holding a series of local sessions across Scotland, where you can find out more about what’s happening in your area and connect with people who share your passion for Fair Trade. You can find out more about the sessions here or book (for free!) for the Glasgow and the West one, which is taking place in Robertson House on Saturday 7th December, here.
Fair Trade Baking
Do you sometimes wish there was a way to make your sweet treats a little less sinful? Well, we at Rainbow Turtle don’t have any advice on reducing sugar or calorie content, but we can help you to make your baking fairer on those who produce the ingredients. We sell a wide variety of sugar, dried fruit, and chocolate that can help to make your cakes fairer. This video from the Fairtrade Foundation explains why you might want to switch over some of your ingredients:
But we’re not the only ones who have had the idea to mix things up with fairer ingredients. This Co-op recipe for Fairtrade Chocolate and Banana Loaf Cake and this BBC Good Food recipe for Fair Trade Chocolate Brownies both show how easy it is to make an impact with some small changes, and the Fairtrade Foundation provide a comprehensive guide to Fairtrade ingredients. Even Delia Smith has got in on the act, showing her support for Fair Trade in one of her cookbooks.
Organic September
Organic September is an annual campaign organised by the Soil Association. They say:
“Organic September is a month-long campaign designed to encourage more people to try organic as a way to promote and educate people about organic food & farming practices.
Following a year of unprecedented environmental protest and ground-breaking research, there’s never been a better moment to shout about the role organic farming has to play in the climate change debate:
🌿 Benefiting nature
🐝 Wildlife
🌍 The planet
🌾 And building healthy soils.
Campaigning for more organic food and farming means that together, we can slow down climate change.”
At Rainbow Turtle, we sell a wide variety of products which are not only Fairtrade certified, but organic as well because we believe that Fair Trade should care about the environment, as well as about people. These products include:
Bird & Wild Coffee
£4.89
Traidcraft Orange Marmalade & Strawberry Jam
£2.65
Hampstead Rosehip & Hibiscus and Peppermint & Spearmint Teas
£2.40/£2.49
Ma’s Happy Life Coconut Milk
£1.85
Clipper Green Teas with Echinacea and with Lemon
£1.98/£1.79
Bye Lynsay!
This week we were very sad to say goodbye to our lovely office manager Lynsay as she moved on to new adventures. Lynsay had been working with Rainbow Turtle for six years and saw us through lots of changes and both good and bad times. Her commitment to Rainbow Turtle and fair trade, as well as her sunny disposition and amazing office skills, mean that we’ll miss her very very much. From all at Rainbow Turtle we wish Lynsay good luck in whatever comes next!
Volunteering at Rainbow Turtle
Last week we went along to the UWS Students’ Union for their annual Volunteering Fair. It was really great to speak to new students about what we do for Fair Trade in Paisley and how they can get involved. I hope we’ve picked up some new volunteers by going along, but at the very least we attracted some new customers to our lovely shop by showing off just some of the amazing products we sell which help producers and the environment.
But don’t worry – it’s not only students that we’re looking for as volunteers! Coming into the Christmas season we’ll be very busy and need lots of extra help so if you’d like a bit of retail experience in a laid-back, friendly environment, or you’re simply a supporter of the shop and want to help out even more then please get in touch. You can find out more about our volunteering opportunities here and we’d be delighted to hear from anyone, regardless of your previous experience or skills. Get in touch!
Rainbow Turtle AGM
Our Annual General Meeting will take place at 7pm on Tuesday 8th October in the lounge of Paisley Methodist Central Halls. The first half of the evening will follow a formal AGM format, while the second half will be a presentation of the outcomes from our recent review of Rainbow Turtle. Tea and coffee wil be available. All are welcome to attend.
Doors Open Day This Saturday!
On Saturday 7th September from 11am until 4pm we’ll have a stall of some of our products (and lots and lots of info about Rainbow Turtle!) in the Paisley Methodist Central Hall for Renfrewshire Doors Open Day. This will give you a chance to explore the interesting building where we have our office, as well as lots of other places around Paisley and beyond! You can pick up a brochure with details of all venues in the Rainbow Turtle shop or view it online here.
