Since August 2021, the women of Afghanistan have been banned from universities and only have access to secondary schools in seven of the country’s thirty-four provinces. They are banned from working outside the home and from participating in political and social life; they can only go out covered and accompanied by their husband or a male relative. They are even denied access to health care because of gender segregation.

We are here to put our money where our mouths are.

What would really make us happy is the chance to promote acts of courage – real struggles for freedom, rights and emancipation. This year, we’ve often found ourselves thinking about the struggle for rights. We followed another adventurous season with the girls of Horizons CC, chasing their dreams one pedal stroke at a time. We supported the development of Marianella Bargilli and Paolo Bettini’s “Pedale Rosso” project, which inspired an entire city to mobilise against gender-based violence. Working closely with projects that promote these values has made us even more sensitive and united in such an important fight for individual freedom.

For these and many other reasons, we have decided to offer our customers  “Il Fiore di Herat”, a herbal tea. This blend contains saffron grown by a community of 12 Afghan women in a land scarred by the wounds of war and the harsh impositions of the Taliban regime. By buying this tea, we are helping to support the “ColtiviAMO il cambiamento” project, in collaboration with the Costa Family Foundation, PETER’S Tea House and the Associazione Gruppi “Insieme si può…”.

The project not only allows the women involved to become economically independent, but also gives them the opportunity to achieve self-sufficiency and improve the living conditions of their families. In a context of deep marginalisation and poverty, this contribution represents a real hope for the future.