We’d love it if you could vote for our amazing Christmas window in Paisley First’s Best Dressed Christmas Window Competition (which you can vote for here) although the picture was taken before the talented pupils from Mary Russell installed their snowpeople! Voting ends at 5pm on Wednesday 11th December so get in there quick!
The Paisley Daily Express have also written about our fantastic window display, which you can read here or see below:
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This week we had the fantastic pupils from Mary Russell School in our shop to install a Christmas window for us which they had designed and made themselves (with a bit of help from their lovely art teacher Miss Ferguson) on the theme of sustainability. Just by using things you might find around the house (lampshades, waste paper…) the pupils managed to make a really creative and eye-catching display for us this festive season. We hope you like it as much as we do!
P.S. Keep an eye out in the Paisley Daily Express early next week to see if you spot any familiar snow people…
We’ll be open from 10am until 4pm on Mondays 2nd, 9th, 16th and 23rd December!
Are you part of a church or community group who would like a private shopping experience in Rainbow Turtle this Christmas? Get in touch and we’ll see what we can do!
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.
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!
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.
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.
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.
