Pre-planned back to school baskets for teachers?  Yes, please!

Berry Excited to Be in Your Class!
Tea:  Raspberry Refuge
Treat:  Chocolate covered berries
Supplies:  Fun Post-it notes

You're a Peachy Keen Teaching Machine!
Tea:  Amber Peach
Treat:  Muffins
Supplies:  Pencils and a fun pencil cup

Prepped for Class Peppermint!
Tea:  Peaceful Peppermint
Treat:  Gourmet chocolates
Supplies: Chalk and mini-chalkboard

Mix it up and make it your own!  What kind of back to school presents are your go-tos?

A picture is worth a thousand words but it's worth even more if there's tea in it!  Check out these 5 fun tea-centered Instagrams!

​Gorgeous, earthy pictures with an every day feel to let you live your tea drinking dreams!

​HOME SECRETARY: REUNITE REFUGEE FAMILIES
Via Amnesty International UK

In their push for reuniting refugee families, Amnesty International UK lists a few short stories of those separated from their families or forced to choose between safety for some and safety for none. Their video about family free zones is particularly striking.  

, ​How a Syrian refugee in Lebanon found his dream job in Niagara Falls
By Margaret Evans

This in-depth article highlights a young couple and their family, as well as the agencies which helped create opportunities for them in another country.  More about Talent Beyond Boundaries, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, and Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada here.

ASEAN: Don’t Whitewash Atrocities Against Rohingya, Repatriation Report Ignores Dire Situation in Myanmar
Via Human Rights Watch

Prepared for the 34th ASEAN Summit in Bangkok, Thailand, which took place in June, the Human Rights Watch summarizes not only what took place at the last summit but also what many hope to accomplish in the coming months to assist oppressed people groups.

​Canada now leads the world in refugee resettlement, surpassing the U.S.
By Jynnah Radford and Phillip Connor

Researchers at the PEW Research Center break down the refugee crisis by numbers.  While the United States has typically topped the refugee acceptance chart each year since the 1980s, Canada is now accepting higher numbers of refugees. Jynnah Radford and Phillip Connor explains reasons why and provide charts to convey the changes through the years.

​In their own words:
“In rural Turkey, tea is a way of life. In a series of vignettes, three women tea farmers let us into their kitchens, their fields, and even their choir group to share the integral role tea plays in their lives. They offer their firsthand wisdom on sustainable tea production - after all, it has been part of their families for generations.”

Highlight: Turkish friends singing about tea and supporting a cause. It really doesn’t get much better than that.

​In their own words:
“Tea is the second most consumed beverage in the world after water –– and from sugary Turkish Rize tea to salty Tibetan butter tea, there are almost as many ways of preparing the beverage as there are cultures on the globe. Where did this beverage originate, and how did it become so popular? Shunan Teng details tea's long history.”

Highlight: Tea used to be consumed as a food! It became a drink approximately 1500 years ago.

​In their own words:
“In (Zagat’s) Staples series, we show you the stories behind the ingredients you probably take for granted. In this video, we visit Wadmalaw Island, South Carolina for an inside look at America's only tea plantation.”

Highlight: All tea stems from three types of tea (green tea, black tea, and oolong tea), but they all come from the same plant!