One easy way to amplify your voice is to schedule a meeting at your senators’ and representative’s local office while they’re on recess for the Memorial Day holiday during the week of May 27-31, 2013. While you may not be able to get a visit with your senator or representative, you should be able to meet with the district director who can relay your message to your legislator. Research from the Congressional Management Foundation  has shown that constituent visits carry a great deal of weight when legislators are making decisions about how to vote on legislation. For some basic guidelines on how to set up a visit, please refer back to this website. You can also call your regional CRS office for assistance.

Please also join us to celebrate World Fair Trade Day throughout the month of May. CRS is a sponsor of World Fair Trade Day and this year’s theme is particularly close to our heart “Advocate, Organize, and Enjoy”. Our faith calls us to live out our Gospel values on a daily basis.  The Catholic social teaching principles of respecting the dignity of work and caring for the poor are key ways in which we can do this.  Through fair trade and advocacy, you can use our economic power and your voice to contribute to the common good and live out these values. Be sure to enjoy this special day with some coffee, chocolate, or hand-crafts.

This week we learned that the Israeli Special Appeals Committee ruled in favor of the proposed separation barrier route, rejecting the pleas from the Salesians and the surrounding farming community to keep the valley intact. Now, more than 50 Palestinian families and the Salesian monastery and convent will lose access to their lands and possibly their livelihoods. The Salesian Sisters Convent and School that provides education to more than 400 children in the adjacent villages will be surrounded by walls and a military presence on three sides, inhibiting many children from going to school. Families will lose access to important green space, and Palestinian youth will be cut off from friends, teachers, and mentors.

The situation in the Cremisan Valley gives a glimpse of what has been happening throughout the West Bank, seriously undermining the possibility of lasting Israeli-Palestinian peace. This statement by the Catholic Bishops Conferences in Support of the Church in the Holy Land reiterates this point. As the wall encroaches on Palestinian lands and livelihoods, resentment against the State of Israel grows. Such policies ultimately put Israeli citizens at risk and undermine the prospects for peace as noted in a letter by Bishop Richard Pates, Bishop of Des Moines and Chair of the USCCB Committee on International Justice and Peace.  The Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem reminded Israelis that “expropriation of lands does not serve the cause of peace.” The Catholic Bishops of the United States and Catholic Relief Services have long called for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that will build just and lasting peace for all people of the Holy Land. Please send a message to Secretary of State Kerry now to press for peace in this troubled region and for justice for all in the Holy Land, including the Cremisan Valley community.

Thank you for your ongoing commitment to pursue peace for our brothers and sisters living in the Holy Land!

These groups often bring together people whose backgrounds might put them in conflict, but as they work together, they learn that they really have much in common.

One group in Ethiopia helps people with HIV and AIDS. Although the members save money and start businesses, they also talk about their problems without the stigmatization they might experience elsewhere. It’s a SILC group, as well as a health club and group therapy session.

This SILC group met in the home of a woman who was a member. Her husband had died of AIDS, leaving her with their seven children. She had borrowed from the SILC account to buy a cow. She fattened it up and sold it for a profit. She then bought another one and did the same thing. She was on her third, and showed it off in her enclosed garden.

The money she made from these transactions allowed her to set up her oldest child, a daughter, with a hair salon in a small building at the front of her property. She was first and foremost a mother, now a widow, who knew that her primary task was to care for her children. You could just imagine her buying and selling those cattle, providing for her fatherless children one by one.

I thought of this because, as Mothers’ Day approaches, I realize how much of the CRS programming that you make possible is designed to support and help mothers. This support starts at conception, with programs offering prenatal care and proper nutrition for pregnant mothers and their unborn children. In India, one program allows expectant mothers to consult with doctors over cell phones, getting advice and automatic reminders about each stage of pregnancy.

Working through local partners, CRS provides programs that get expectant mothers to proper medical facilities for the birth, reducing the risk of complication. We support clinics, many of them run by dedicated religious. In the months after delivery, through many of our food aid programs, CRS helps mothers ensure that their smallest children get proper nutrition.

Wherever CRS works, we have come to understand that timeless wisdom: Mothers are the most important people in any community, anywhere around the world. It is through mothers, it is in partnership with mothers, that the lives of all people can be improved.

“God is love,” John tells us in his first epistle—not once, but twice in the fourth chapter. And there are few higher expressions of that than maternal love—the bond between mother and child, between Mary and Jesus. It is so tragic when material want, no matter its cause, keeps that love from its proper expression.

Wherever we work at CRS, we recognize and are humbled by the power of that love, by the power of mothers. We put ourselves at their disposal, knowing that they are the ones who can bring about the change we all want to see: children growing up healthy and happy, equipped with all they need to lead lives of fulfillment and dignity.

This month in particular, let us humbly put ourselves in service to mothers around the world. We share with them the love that has touched us all.

May blessings overflow,

Dr. Carolyn Y. Woo
President & CEO

Just over 10 years ago, the global coffee market collapsed. The prices farmers earned for their coffee fell to their lowest levels in a generation – less than $0.50 per pound. Sometimes much less. Coffee-growing families saw their incomes halved overnight (or worse) due to market forces beyond their control. Farmers struggled to feed their families. Some gave up on coffee. Others gave up on farming altogether and migrated in search of work. The impacts of the price collapse were so severe that the episode became known simply as “the coffee crisis.”

CRS responded to the coffee crisis in the communities where farmers grow coffee overseas and the communities where they drink it in the United States. In Nicaragua, CRS mounted a humanitarian response to help coffee growers feed their families and stay on their farms. In the United States, CRS launched its Fair Trade Coffee Project to enlist U.S. Catholics in the effort to support small-scale family farmers through the purchase of Fair Trade coffee. For more than 10 years, CRS has worked to create new and improved opportunities for the family farmers who grow our coffee through programming in coffee communities overseas and the promotion of Fair Trade and sustainable coffees in the United States.

Today, the coffee sector is in crisis again. This time the crisis is driven not by what is happening in the marketplace, but by what is happening in the field. Coffee leaf rust, a fungus from the same family of “rusts” that affect U.S. staple crops like corn and wheat, has reached epidemic proportions in Central America. As much as 70 percent of Central America’s coffee fields are affected. Production losses for this harvest exceed 100 million pounds. Farmers have lost hundreds of millions of dollars in revenues due to low production. And hundreds of thousands of jobs have been lost as there is less coffee to pick, process and export. Estimates of missed revenues are well into the hundreds of millions of dollars.

The humanitarian impacts of the coffee rust epidemic on vulnerable farm families are still not entirely understood. Farmers still have money they earned during the recent harvest, but we know from our experience in the field – and from research conducted by our partners Green Mountain Coffee Roasters and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture – that money doesn’t last long. Coffee-growing families quickly settle into the long lean season between the coffee and staple crop harvests, when cash flows slow to a trickle and families routinely cope with food scarcity. The early indications are that we will not see famine or acute suffering this year, but with official data suggesting that coffee rust could have twice the impact next harvest, I worry that we may be watching a humanitarian crisis unfold in slow motion.

This week, I will be representing CRS during four days of meetings with a broad range of actors – national governments, research institutes, coffee roasters, non-profit agencies, banks, coffee certifiers and others – trying to develop a strategy for coordinated action to mitigate the negative impacts of the current crisis and help vulnerable family farmers prepare for the next one.

In preparation for the meetings, I have been reflecting on the idea of crisis, trying to remember that challenges and opportunities are two sides of the same coin. The last crisis caused a lot of suffering in the coffeelands, but it also created opportunities. It awakened many actors to the social and economic realities of life in the coffeelands – not just coffee consumers, but even importers and roasters who were engaged in the trade but perhaps didn’t fully understand the challenges a small-scale farming family faces. It catalyzed innovation, unleashing a wave of creative initiatives to make the coffee trade more sustainable. It drove the phenomenal growth of the U.S. Fair Trade market, as roasters and consumers sought opportunities to be part of the solution through purchases that generated more benefits for farmers and their communities

Before the current crisis, we had already begun to recognize the shortcomings of the leading approaches to sustainable coffee. My hope is that a new generation of leaders in coffee will rise to the challenge of the current crisis to create a new wave of opportunities for small-scale coffee farmers and their families.

Michael Sheridan has worked on coffee for CRS since 2004. From 2004-2007, he directed the CRS Fair Trade Coffee Project. Since 2007, he has been involved with CRS coffee projects overseas in Central and South America. He currently lives in Ecuador and publishes more detailed analyses of the coffee leaf rust epidemic and the ways CRS is working to respond on the CRS Coffeelands Blog at coffeelands.crs.org.

Green coffee cherries of new plants in Nuevo Amanecer, Pochuta municipality, Chimaltenango Department, Guatemala. Photo by Silverlight for CRS

Guatemalan coffee is world famous for its rich, understated taste. It is exported to North America, and Europe as signature blends by companies such as McDonalds, Starbucks, and Green Mountain Coffee Roasters. In fact, the whole Central American region produces rich blends which are exported globally. However, this important crop, valued around the world, is under attack, and subsequently so are the small-scale producers that derive their livelihoods from the sale of coffee beans. The assailant is the innocuously named, coffee leaf rust (Hemileia vastatrix).

Coffee leaf rust is a fungus which attacks the leaves of the coffee plant. The orange-yellow blotches which develop on the leaf´s surface appear like rust spots. It is a very aggressive pathogen, and it can spread rapidly across a plantation, leaving a trail of defoliated plants in its wake when its advance is unchecked. There are various ways to combat the leaf rust ranging from replacing older plants with new seedlings, using more resistant seeds, integrating other productive crops into a coffee monoculture, and the use of fungicides. However, all of these methods require a sizeable investment, something which is often out of reach for small-scale producers living below or near the poverty line.

In Guatemala, CRS works with poor coffee farmers (less than 2 acres of land) who are part of the Cooperative Todos Hermanos. Todos Hermanos was founded in 2008 through the efforts of CRS and the local bishop. The cooperative has grown in recent years to include over 400 members. Farmer members provide their coffee to the Cooperative where it is processed, packaged, and exported to the US or Europe as Fair Trade coffee by Green Mountain Coffee Roasters. These Signature and Fair Trade blends exported by the Cooperative are sold at prices up to 30 percent above the usual 100lb sack price. This added income is pivotal in supporting these families´ daily lives. The Cooperative, with the assistance of CRS, also works with farmers to diversify their income sources. Through the recent implementation of home gardens, chicken coops, and vegetable production plots, the cooperative is trying to move families away from over-dependence on coffee income so that when there is a shock, like coffee leaf rust, they are less affected.

Unfortunately, the Cooperative´s primary work is currently in jeopardy thanks to the outbreak of coffee leaf rust. The leaf rust is expected to reduce yields by up to 15 percent this year and by a staggering 40 percent in 2014. Day labor as coffee harvesters on the region´s mega farms accounts for 32 percent of unskilled labor demand in Guatemala. Falling yields could result in a 10% loss of labor demand. An income loss of this magnitude, a result of the widespread fall in yields, will set farmers back years, and prevent them from investing in improving their coffee plantations and continuing diversification activities.

CRS proposes to work with farmers to prevent further damage from the leaf rust while also building their resilience to future outbreaks. The CRS-led integrated approach will focus on expanding livelihood opportunities and rebuilding and securing farmers´ primary income source while also protecting the natural environment. This combination of defenses is the best way to help farmers weather the current storm while at the same time preparing themselves for a more prosperous and resilient future.

This week at the international coffee rust summit, CRS will lead group discussions on how to mitigate the social and economic impacts of the epidemic on coffee farmers. For more on leaf rust and coffee from the smallholder perspective, visit CRS Coffeelands blog.

One of the issues we will be monitoring closely is the President’s proposal to significantly change Food for Peace, the U.S. program that uses food commodities to address global hunger. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and Catholic Relief Services (CRS) have long sought reforms to this program, but to do so in a way that prevents cuts to the life-saving work of existing programs. The President’s proposal would also move Food for Peace funding allocated for food needs during emergencies to a different account, known as International Disaster Assistance (IDA), while substantially cutting existing IDA programs. If enacted, these cuts would impact vital humanitarian needs such as shelter and medical assistance for the most vulnerable people around the world. The USCCB and CRS strongly urge Congress to reject cuts to disaster response programs.

As the President’s budget request is considered by Congress, you can rest assured that with your help, we will continue to advocate for our brothers and sisters who live in poverty.

This week, we also see signs of hope for enactment of comprehensive immigration reform in our country. Imitating Jesus, we as the Church are called to be a beacon of light for the world and in the process dispel the darkness, wherever it might be. The image of light overcoming darkness has parallels with debates on immigration.

Undocumented migrants are often thought of as “living in the shadows” and “on the margins of society” and are thus particularly vulnerable to abuse and exploitation. Bringing them out of the shadows and integrating them fully into our communities is an important step towards upholding their dignity and helping them realize their God-given potential.

Please stay tuned for more information about upcoming immigration reform legislation. Until then, please take action in support of comprehensive immigration reform and if you can, join others in Washington, DC on April 10 for a special Mass in support of immigrant families.

May the joy of this Easter season be with you and your loved ones,
Your Catholics Confront Global Poverty Team

During this Holy Week, we look forward to the hope and joy that Christ’s resurrection brings to us and to our broken world. With so much global conflict and poverty before us, at times we can feel overwhelmed, but we have Christ’s compassion and love to renew us.

Last week, your e-mails and calls to your Senators’ offices to protect lifesaving poverty-focused international assistance in the Senate’s fiscal year 2014 Budget were a strong symbol of love and hope on Capitol Hill. Thanks in part to your efforts the budget passed with funding levels for poverty-focused international assistance above those of the current fiscal year!  Several amendments that would have cut aid were defeated, including two that would have practically gutted U.S. international assistance.  Find out how your Senators voted on these amendments here and here. Thank you for raising your voice on behalf of our brothers and sisters in need. Your voice made a difference.

As we celebrate the events of Holy Week, our thoughts naturally turn to the Holy Land.  Last week we hosted CRS staff, Hanan Nasrallah, for our live webcast from Jerusalem. Steve Colecchi from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops and Hanan spoke about the Church’s work to pursue peace in the Holy Land. With President Obama’s recent trip to the region and his reaffirmation of the two-state solution for Israelis and Palestinians, we are hopeful for a renewed peace process. The Church stands ready to help advance a peaceful and just solution for all of our Jewish, Christian and Muslim brothers and sisters living in Israel and Palestine. You, too, can add your voice to the call for peace. Thank President Obama for his leadership on this issue by sending your message today.

May the Peace of Christ be with you this Holy Week and throughout the Easter season,
Your Catholics Confront Global Poverty Team

“By turning in their rice bowls, participants have the chance to make sure their Lenten sacrifices help our brothers and sisters in need around the world through the work of CRS,” said Joan Rosenhauer, executive vice president of U.S. Operations for CRS.

While you can always give to CRS Rice Bowl online, educators and parish leaders are finding fun ways to collect rice bowl donations. This class from Sacred Heart School in Lake Worth, Florida, outgrew their little cardboard box by the second week of Lent!

CRS Rice Bowl Coordinators: How are you collecting CRS Rice Bowl donations? Tell CRS Rice Bowl on Facebook.

Need ideas for making your community’s CRS Rice Bowl collection fun and easy? Check out our guide to collecting rice bowls.

Whether you collect your donation in a water jug, the traditional cardboard bowl, or give to CRS Rice Bowl online, you are providing food for the hungry, clean water for the thirsty, or even an education for a child in need.

Seventy-five percent of your gift helps poor and vulnerable people overseas. The remaining 25 percent stays in your diocese to combat hunger and poverty in your community.

Read these stories of hope to meet the people you help with your donation to CRS Rice Bowl.

We close the month of March by celebrating Easter, the cry “He is risen!” resonating through our churches, our lives and our souls.

April, the first full month of spring, launches us into the season of resurrection, when the promise that God made to the world is abundantly evident. We see the buds break, the flowers bloom, the seedlings erupt. We see life return to our blessed earth. “Hallelujah” is the appropriate response to this miracle, just as it was to the miracle that forms a foundation of our faith.

This spring, as Pope Francis begins his reign, we see the promise of rebirth in the Church. He reminds us that we are part of the universal Church, whose teachings and traditions transcend all boundaries, whether political or personal.

He is the first pope from Latin America, where God’s message of redemption was first heard six centuries ago. It fell on fertile land that continues to produce millions of the faithful, including this humble son of Italian immigrants, born Jorge Mario Bergoglio.

At Catholic Relief Services, we believe that solidarity can change the world. As brothers and sisters in Christ, we know that nothing can stop our hope, our message, our fulfillment. Pope Francis’ journey from Buenos Aires to Rome illustrates this beautifully.

Throughout his time in Argentina, Pope Francis lived the Gospel by devoting his attention to the poor, the sick and the vulnerable. Through his actions and words, he spoke of the necessity of economic justice, echoing the eloquent writings of his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI.

As you know, Pope Francis is the first Jesuit pope. He took as his name that of Saint Francis, whose devotion to the poor, and call for humility on the part of the Church and its leaders, changed history. I hope we at CRS combine the same traditions our new pope calls on: St. Francis’ cry for the common good and the uncommon excellence of the Jesuit intellectual tradition. And I hope that we, too, are humbled by our tasks, knowing that we are your servants as together we seek to fulfill the message of the Gospel.

Even as we celebrate the burgeoning of spring, we recognize that there are many places in the world where the promise of the season will not be fulfilled—places where want, disease and hunger are the harvest.

Thank you for bringing hope to our brothers and sisters overseas, and for letting them know that in this season of resurrection, God’s love shines the world over—even in its darkest corners.

May blessings overflow,

Dr. Carolyn Y. Woo
President & CEO