After a surprisingly (though not completely) painless drive from midnight to 10:30am, Andrew, Joe, Alfredo, and I arrived at Willamette University in Salem, OR. We facilitated an event at the weekly convocation address, which, despite some time constraints, ended up being really energizing and positive. There was a game that demonstrated the basics of the coffee chain from the points of view of plantation owners, farmworkers, and small coffee farmers, and then Alfredo spoke about his experience with Comercio Justo. It ended on a very motivated note. Willamette is absolutely gorgeous, and there are some pretty cool people here, too.

After an hour to nap (who am I kidding, we just spooned), we all headed over to the Ten Thousand Villages store near campus and had a discussion of Fair Trade with the TTV board members. Alfredo answered some questions about how his community has been affected by Fair Trade, and the board members answered questions about the products they sold and the artisans who made them. It was a great way to see an alternative resource for student organizers - don't forget about the Fair Trade stores in your area! The TTV really supported Willamette students and has apparently been a big help in a lot of the students' efforts on campus.

We are all now running on very little sleep and a delicious home-cooked meal - I don't expect we'll be conscious for much longer.