Goals

Day 2 of the UNBOUND Conference, the breathing was a bit easier. David Batstone gave a morning address, which was just as good as the previous evening's. One thing he said stuck out to me in particular. In this overwhelming, complex, seemingly insurmountable, discouraging, horrifying, frustrating...(well, I may have added these words of my own...!)...search to combat human trafficking, we have to make tangible, measurable goals. He was speaking in terms of nonprofit organizations, but I need to apply this to my own life. I am so overwhelmed, and jump on every anti-trafficking bandwagon, but realize that I do not set specific goals for my efforts.

So, today I did.

As difficult as it will be financially, I will not knowingly purchase chocolate, coffee, or tea that is not fairly-traded.

I mean, how many more times do we need the facts - most of our coffee is not fairly-traded (in America, something like only 4% of the coffee we consume is fairly-traded; other countries are demanding fair-trade chocolate, so chocolate companies are beginning to send even more of their unfairly-traded chocolate to America; and tea, well, fairly-traded tea is a whole new realm for me, but I consume a lot of tea, and know that some tea is not fairly-traded - I need to explore this one more.

And the crazy (read: not) thing is, there are plenty of alternative options to the chocolate we are used to consuming. The catch? It usually costs a lot more. Why? Because it represents THE ACTUAL cost of the product. We have cheap coffee and chocolate because somewhere along the supply chain, someone is being exploited, and it certainly isn't the consumer.

On a budget (like me)? SHIFT YOUR PERSPECTIVE. Chocolate can become a treat instead of a lifeblood. Break your addiction to two cups of coffee today and enjoy one delicious cup of fairly-traded coffee.

I have reached the point where I know the facts, and I know that so much of my lifestyle contribues to trafficking. But, as Batstone encourages, set goals and celebrate the successes. Yes, I will still buy tomatoes that have probably been picked by exploited laborers; I will still buy clothing that was probably manufactured by children; and yes, I will still buy all kinds of products that are tainted with slave labor. BUT, I can success in chocolate, tea, and coffee, and I can celebrate that success instead of being overwhelmed by how many actions I'm not taking. Slowly I can add more anti-trafficking actions to my lifestyle in tangible, measurable ways.

For now, I'll enjoyed my Coffee-flavored chocolate bar from Theo with a clear conscious, and a happy belly.

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