How a passionate campaign in South America led to the arrival of mate emoji

If you visit Uruguay, it's likely that one of the first things you will notice will be people carrying around this odd wooden cup as they go about their days. In Argentina, you might be offered a drink from that cup when visiting someone. The same is true for homes in the south of Brazil. The beverage at issue is mate, a hot water infusion of leaves of yerba mate.

Drinking mate is a tradition of the indigenous Guarani and Kaingang people dating from thousands of years before the Christian era. Today, the custom is widespread in the south of South