Silicon Valley EcoTuesday will feature Paul Kotta, Owner of Mellow Monk Japanese Green Tea, as our speaker in Palo Alto in less than a week! Want to learn everything you have ever wanted to learn about green tea, then this event should be perfect for you. Paul Kotta will discuss from field to cup, how green tea is made on artisans’ estates in Japan as well as issues associated with small green tea farms.
As many of you know, green tea is thought to have many benefits. The antioxidants destroy chemicals known as free radicals, which speed up cell death and are believed to be involved in the body aging process. Ever wonder why Japanese elders look so young? Maybe it is due to their cultural green tea drinking.
Mellow Monk’s green tea is thought to contain higher percentage of catechins, antioxidants, due to their tea being produced at independent small tea artisans’ estates. Due to their small size, they harvest only what they can craft into fresh tea that day. If harvested but not immediately produced into tea, oxidation and fermentation occurs that can destroy antioxidants.
Mellow Monk’s tea is made by steaming instead of pan frying. In comparison to frying, this is thought to help preserve more of the disease-fighting antioxidants and keep the tea’s natural earthy flavor.
The green tea family farms are certified under Japan’s Eco-Farmer Program, a voluntary local government program that is monitored by Japan’s Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries to promote environmentally responsible farming practices. Mellow Monk is also certified under Co-Op America as a green business as well as a certified green business under the San Francisco Bay Area Green Business Program.
Paul Kotta along with his wife, Akimi Kotta founded Mellow Monk’s Green Teas in 2004. For more information on Mellow Monk’s Tea go to http://mellowmonk.com
Jina became interested in environmental issues after surviving a rare cancer at age 19, caused by a drug her mother had taken during pregnancy. This led her to many years of organic gardening, child-rearing and cooking. All while building and selling a small business. Now, Jina puts that passion into "Ethically-Aligned Weath Management"; designing socially responsible investment & financial “life” plans for her individual, family and business clients as the owner of Raeheart Financial.
Jina believes that EcoTuesday networking should be fill us with inspiration, buoy our spirits, and help us to create a foundation of support in our lives so we can accomplish greater and greater things. She believes that deeper than the fight or flight instinct is the true survival instinct; the instinct in humans to come together, cooperate and create a better and more fulfilling tomorrow. EcoTuesday is a place to do just that. For more, click 
Pandora is very active in the Sustainability community in Portland. She volunteers with environmental non-profit groups and is active in my neighborhood association. She is also a fan of public transportation and bicycling. Pandora has a Website Development company and actively promotes implementing green business practices. She thinks through education we can show how businesses can be green and financially sustainable. She also believes that business should include the 3 pillars of sustainability: Social Responsibility, Respect for our Environment and Financial Sustainability. She loves PDX and believes it’s one of the most livable cities in the world. They have such great local businesses and resources in our great city. Continue to keep Portland ahead of the curve to be the most livable city anywhere! For more, click 
Kristy is a budding creative mind, who has a background in visual communication. It is important for her to provide a well-executed design in all forms of media; print, web and photo, for small businesses. She is currently part of sales and marketing for Eclectic Home, a local business that provides unique, innovated, sustainable solutions for a healthy space. It is her goal to show that eco-friendly is more than paper bags and muted colors, she can show that it is fun, cutting edge and a trendsetter. For more, click 
Fenja holds a BS in Business Administration with a concentration in Marketing and a minor in Environmental Analysis and Policy from Boston University. While at BU, Fenja built an Excel VBA metric model to assess a household's environmental impact with data collected from a self-developed comprehensive questionnaire. In May 2008, she received her LEED AP. Growing up in Germany and California influenced her understanding of how different cultures, habits, and norms can affect people's behavior towards the environment. Most recently, she lived an enlightening year in Tokyo, where she entrenched herself in Japan's sustainability industry. For more, click 
