Nepali Compassion and Ethical Consumerism by Jeni Dodd
Article by Jeni Dodd, Images by Sushme Bhataa
I was in Nepal April 25th, 2015 11:56am in my apartment in the Bhatbhateni neighborhood of Kathmandu. Sitting on my couch in black shorts and a purple t-shirt catching up on CLE for my law license. I am precise about these details because living through a 7.8 magnitude earthquake indelibly etches the moment on your soul.
My business partner who is from the Ilam tea growing region was staying in my spare room. He and I had just hosted tea buyers on a two-week trip through the Nepal tea growing regions and frankly, we were sick of each other. That morning, I said to him “why don’t you go see your sister” and he was out the door before I finished the sentence. So, when the rumbles of the earth splitting started, this girl from the plains of Kansas with only tornado experience, was all alone with no idea of what to do in an earthquake.
I even tried calling my husband in New York City, thinking perhaps he could Google what to do. Your brain does not work logically at a time like that. Standing in the doorway of my bedroom screaming “This country is trying to kill me” (to myself, I guess), my front door flew open. There was my business partner. He had borrowed someone’s motorbike, ridden through the streets as they were cracking open, ran up five flights of stairs to come take care of me. And take care of me he did. I could not get out of the country for another week. Even though I asked him to return to Ilam to be with his family, he would not even consider leaving until I was safely on a plane back to the US. He told me, “You are my family, there is no way I am leaving you alone. It is my great honor to take care of you.”
This is the Nepali heart. And, this is at the heart of my heart for Nepalese tea.
I am often asked to reflect on why focus Nepal? When I try to answer this question, my earthquake story always comes to mind first (among many others). Compassion and kindness expand exponentially. Nepali compassion has grown in me as advocacy.
Compassion and kindness are the heart and soul of the Nepali people. Each of my 28 trips to Nepal has confirmed these traits. But, more remarkably you too can connect to the Nepali heart and soul. When Nepali toil, pouring their labor and passion into producing remarkable teas, they infuse the leaf with heart and soul. Then, through the alchemy that is tea, each sip from our cup connects our heart to the Nepali heart.
When you have experienced the Nepali kindness and compassion in person, in a cup, there is nothing you want more than return compassion and kindness to them. So, it is not surprising, the next question I often receive is “how can I help?”
Ethical consumerism – use your consumer dollars to promote what is in your heart. Besides being kind, compassionate people, the Nepali are fiercely independent. While Nepal is an impoverished country, a handout is not what the tea farmers and producers seek. It actually won’t help them in the long run financially, not to mention perpetuates patriarchy and perceived western superiority.
They have a fantastic product that has value. Improving their schools, their living conditions, their roads comes through buying their amazing tea at a fair price, a price that reflects their labor and costs. My success barometer for Nepali tea includes an assessment of how much I can expand their access to the global market so that they can have long-term, independent, economic sustainability. In this way, the Nepali control their own destiny, you get a unique tea experience and we all have the honor taking care of each other through compassion and kindness.
Support through their tea: Nepal Gold Tips and Nepal Silver Tips.
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