Products
Steep Thoughts: History of International Tea Day 2020
May
Welcome to Specialtea Gifts first blog post. My name is Karen. I am the owner of Specialtea Gifts, a woman-owned business. Over the past few weeks, I have been thinking about what the focus of this blog should be. I am excited to tell you the story behind how I found it.
Yesterday we had a big day. We announced our latest product, the Dunk A Trump Tea Infuser with a press release. It was exhilarating to wake up in the morning to the excitement of what our fans would think of our product. We had decided to launch our new “tea” product on International Tea Day. In my research on International Tea Day, I discovered that the purpose is to highlight key issues in the tea labor force. I felt compelled to ensure that Specialtea Gifts do this day justice and to honor these workers and their families. Instead of posting a shameless Instagram post about International Tea Day with our website link, I wanted to use my voice to share as much information as I can about this worldwide initiative.
While International Tea Day highlights the importance of drinking tea for health benefits, the overarching theme is about the workers in the tea industry. It advocates that the workers are insured that their working situations are fair and their civil rights are protected.
What began in 2005 by small tea growers, trade unions and civil society organizations in Asian and African nations, grew into an international movement to support workers in poor nations in this important industry.
According to the release on International Tea Day 21 May on their website at https://www.un.org/en/observances/tea-day, the United Nations reports:
“Tea production and processing constitutes a main source of livelihoods for millions of families in developing countries and is the main means of subsistence for millions of poor families, who live in a number of least developed countries.
The tea industry is a main source of income and export revenues for some of the poorest countries and, as a labour-intensive sector, provides jobs, especially in remote and economically disadvantaged areas. Tea can play a significant role in rural development, poverty reduction and food security in developing countries, being one of the most important cash crops”.
These workers often work long hours for little pay to support their families. Their access to necessities such as fresh drinking water and adequate shelter is tenuous at best. They rely on this industry for basic survival. I am not trying to preach. This is where this journey has led me and how I plan to change this in the future.
Brand owners in this industry must use our platform to show the importance of responsible tea-drinking. So there will be a page on the Specialtea Gifts website dedicated to tea production, sustainable development goals, and climate change.
I have decided to use our (Specialtea Gifts) voice to share content that has a message.
HOW my blog is different: I have been a licensed clinical social worker for over 20 years working in several different types of clinical settings. Social workers inherently see the world with a different lens. We view the world with a psycho-social view of human behavior, of cultural institutions, and how these factors all intercept. Also, the global pandemic has changed EVERY ASPECT of our lives. There has never been a more important time to make sure these issues are highlighted.
WHY you should read it: The blog is thought-provoking and different. It is different because of the effects of a global pandemic that has already taken more than 330,000 lives worldwide.
WHEN: I will be posting a weekly blog on Fridays. I promise to also make it as entertaining and funny as possible. Content with a message. Plus, we will be keeping our site full of funny images and gifts in our product pages to entertain you.
WHERE: https://specialteagifts.com/blog/
I have not named the blog yet. If you have any suggestions, let me know in the comments section.
Hope to will join me again next week.
Karen
Please check out the United Nations website for further information at https://www.un.org/en/observances/tea-day.
