CLIMATE - POSITIVE CAFE COLLECTIVE
A group of cafes, committed to transparency and inclusivity, each serving at least one climate-positive coffee, working together to solve climate crisis
Knowing whether a cup of coffee is environmentally friendly can be a challenge. With so many factors at play, it can be difficult to ask all the necessary questions before placing your order at a cafe. Thankfully, you can put your mind at ease by choosing cafes that are members of the Climate Positive Cafe Collective. The coffees they serve are not only delicious but also climate-positive, capturing a minimum of 300 grams of greenhouse gases for every cup.
DID YOU KNOW?
Members of the Climate-Positive Cafe Collective program are required to serve at least one climate-positive coffee to maintain their membership. And the highly transparent audit process is free!
ENSURING CLIMATE-FRIENDLINESS OF COFFEE
CLIMATE WAVE BASICS / CERTIFIED CLIMATE WAVE COFFEE
After extensive fieldwork in the Global Coffee Value Chain, we have identified several social and environmental injustices occurring within it, and the list is growing as we continue to work within the industry. We have developed solutions for each of these issues and named them the Climate Wave Coffee Solutions. Our entire work at Climate Wave Coffee is based on these solutions. Among these solutions, some are particularly critical as they directly affect the climate. These high-priority solutions cannot be overlooked and must be implemented immediately if we hope to reverse global warming. We have grouped them as the Climate Wave Basics. Simply put, coffees that solve Climate Wave Basics solutions are shade-grown, fairly traded, preserve water, and protect biodiversity. They are climate-positive coffees.
Shade grown coffee is important because the trees in the forest that provide shade to coffee plants capture 300 grams of greenhouse gases for every cup of coffee produced.
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Fair trade is important because we need farmers to continue their regenerative farming practices in the forest. Without fair trade support, the land is at risk of being converted for development.
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Water preservation is crucial because water is essential for life and ensures the survival of the forest.
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Biodiversity protection is vital to prevent the use of toxic pesticides and herbicides and to support the presence of birds, animals, and indigenous people who protect the forest.
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Climate Wave Basics and our definition of climate-positive coffee are strict and take a holistic approach, carefully integrating the intersectionality of social and environmental justice. If any one of the four pillars discussed above is missing, the coffee cannot be considered climate-positive.
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THE FOUNDING STORY
In 2016, I fell in love with Victoria’s cafe culture. I proudly call those cozy local coffee shops where the local community gets together for coffee and conversations as my most preferred hangout spots. At such cafes, I feel a sense of unity among humanity. I am addicted to those friendly faces, laughter, and happy vibes. But as I learned more about coffee's impact on people, animals, and the planet, I realized that I wanted to make sure my cafe culture addiction was contributing to solving the climate crisis rather than fueling it. So, I decided to ask baristas a long list of questions before ordering my favourite espresso or flat white. But, more often than not, they were not knowledgeable about the climate-friendliness of their coffee. And with the long line behind me, I felt hesitant to ask too many questions. Eventually, I reduced my cafe visits, and it felt like a significant part of my life was missing. I never thought my passion for solving the climate crisis and walking the talk would actually make me sad until that moment. But I wasn't about to let that stop me. That’s when I decided to make the process of choosing climate-friendly coffee easy, not just for me, but for every other human who truly loves coffee, humans, animals, and the planet. I founded the Climate-positive Cafe Collective program in the summer of 2023. With this certification program, I am on a mission to make climate-friendly cafe culture easily accessible to everyone in our community. Together, we can reverse global warming one cafe visit at a time!