As my time at the coffee shop where I work draws to a close, I can not help but think about everyone's favorite topic, elephant poo. One time a lady came into the shop and examined our tea. "Is this tea grown in Holland?" she asked. I was forced to admit that I had never really given much thought as to its origins, but suggested she check the box. "Well, it says 'Made in Holland' but I don't think they grow tea there." She went on to explain that she was from Sri Lanka, where they in fact DO grow a lot of tea, and that she suspected this tea was actually grown there, and maybe processed or shipped from Holland.
Anyways that started a whole conversation on Sri Lanka and what she did there and how she came to be here, and it turns out she lives on an elephant ranch, where they rescue and raise orphaned elephants. Sadly, many elephant orphans have to be destroyed because they simply do not have the resources to care for them. So what my new friend was doing was traveling North America trying to raise awareness, as well as interest and possible investment in their ranch's unique line of paper products. They recycle elephant poo and turn it into paper! Cool, eh?
As far as I can tell, this article is about just exactly this very ranch.
Such are the the things you can learn as a barista.