| We need to take care of the trees! Shea trees, as you will know from my newsletters, are central to the ecology of the Sahel, a vast semi-arid stretch of land between the Sahara Desert and the tropical climate further south. And in the East Village, we need to protect our trees, too! A new initiative in the city is a welcome effort to protect trees, called Coolest Block in the Lower East Side! I attended the information session on Feb. 27 at Sixth Street Community Center and am so excited that this is happening.
Learn more about the initiative here
Trees are so important to our environment. We must protect them. Â The destruction of the world’s forests is one of the great travesties of our time. Let’s make every effort to change this!
When you buy Shea products, you create an economic incentive for women’s groups to produce Shea butter — and a disincentive for people to cut down Shea trees for other uses! People in my home village of Gando-Namoni in Togo will sometimes cut down Shea trees for firewood. But as women sell more Shea butter, cutting down Shea trees is seen as a great crime. In fact, in many countries in West Africa it is now illegal to cut down Shea trees. So, you are contributing to this change when you buy my products! |
