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Hello to all blog visitors and followers. I'm a senior Urban & Environmental Policy major from Portland, Oregon. I also serve on the student government and help manage the student garden. I'm excited to start sharing what it's like to attend Occidental College! This past summer I worked with two other Oxy students as a summer fellow at Sustainable Harvest Coffee Importers (SH). SH was started by Oxy grad David Griswald '84 and has become one of the largest U.S. importers of certified organic and fairtrade coffee beans. The summer fellowships are facilitated through Occidental's Career Development Center and provide a great summer job and learning experience. Sustainable Harvest’s success is due not only to the company’s innovative practices but also its strong commitment to the environment and the communities it works with. SH has a triple bottom line: people, planet, and profit. Over half of the company’s profits are reinvested into the 100 or so farmer co-ops SH works with. The support is not just monetary, the company improves food security in many of the rural farming villages with drip irrigation technology, financially stabilizes the harvest dependent communities by teaching co-op managers how to apply and qualify for loans, and has helped plant over 200,000 nitrogen fixing native trees that restore habitat, prevent erosion and increase coffee bean yields. Over fall break the two other fellows and myself were fortunate enough to receive funding to fly down to El Salvador where SH's annual conference "Let's Talk Coffee" was held. All employees attend the event as well two representatives from over 100 of the farmer Co-ops SH works with. Others partners in the tail end of the supply chain are invited as well. This creates a transparent relationship between the growers, suppliers, buyers, roasters and financiers. In all there were over 300 people from 20 different countries attended the conference. During the trip I met the extended members of the SH community and saw first hand how SH continues to balance people and planet while maintaining profit. [gallery]