Shalom, Salaam, Peace

by Zarah Patriana

Published December 25, 2008 @ 10:50AM PT

December is full of holidays celebrated by many different faiths. Today is Christmas and the fifth night of Chanukah. Kwanzaa starts tomorrow and Eid al-Adha was observed earlier this month.

When I think of December, I think about people coming together and sharing. Sharing stories, hugs, food, gifts, traditions and culture. A big part of Fair Trade is the idea of sharing and teaching one culture about their own. It's about connecting people. The sharing and connecting usually takes the form of people in the 'Global North' learning about the cultures of those in the 'Global South'. But what happens when Fair Trade brings together different cultures -- specifically Christians, Muslims and Jews -- within the 'Global South'? Well, you get the Mirembe Kawomera Coffee Cooperative, or "Delicious Peace". I asked someone working with the Mirembe Kawomera Coffee Cooperative to help out and give us small introduction to the group and Ben Corey-Moran was kind enough to write up a short piece on them. I am looking forward to working with Ben more in the future to help bring their story to the Change.org Fair Trade blog, because the Mirembe Kawomera Cooperative truly is an example what is right with the world.

How do neighbors living with a history of conflict, violence and mistrust change their reality and build a future of shared prosperity and peace? This was the question on JJ Keki’s mind when he was elected district governor of a municipality on the slopes of Mt. Elgon, in eastern Uganda. JJ’s election alone was a step in the right direction: as leader of a small minority Jewish community, he had to win the trust and support of his Christian and Muslim neighbors even to be elected.  

This was almost a decade ago, in 2000. Coffee prices had plummeted on the world market, and farmers—like JJ and his neighbors—were being offered prices that didn’t even come close to the cost of production. JJ and his community were literally losing money growing coffee.  

The way forward, quoting JJ, was to “hit the two birds of poverty and conflict with one stone: cooperation.” With his leadership, the farmers formed a cooperative, and with the help of US-based Kulanu.org, found a Fair Trade buyer and project partner, northern California-based Thanksgiving Coffee Company. 

Now celebrating their fifth harvest, the cooperative has tripled its membership to 750. Farmers are seeing prices of at least four times what they received before, and the cooperative has the security of a guaranteed buyer. Farmers who didn’t trust each other now rely on each other. Unity has grown where division flourished, and farmers are building a prosperous future, using fair trade to fight poverty and the conflict it so often causes. The farmer’s named their cooperative Peace Kawomera, which translates from Luganda to “delicious peace”.  

This is a story to share with anyone who thinks that people of different backgrounds or faiths can’t live well with each other, for anyone who thinks that fair trade doesn’t matter, and for all of you who believe that change is possible. 

Thanks Ben and also the Mirembe Kawomera Cooperative for sharing their story of peace and togetherness this holiday season. Happy Holidays everyone.

[photos: Mirembe Kawomera]