WHAT'S NEW!
We could all use more music in our lives.. Join us on Thursday, July 19th, when Fado Blues 15 performs at the cafe from 7 - 9pm. Fado Blues features the talented Mike Siracusa, Catarina Cardeal and John Yelland performing traditional Portuguese Fado meets jazz, blues and classic rock for a captivating and delightful treat to the soul!!
Hey local artists! Interested in playing at the cafe? Email Brenda at: cafe@alternativegrounds.com
Any one who knows us, knows that we feel deeply about good ol'fashioned face-to-face encounters! Hence we have come up with Twosome TwosDays!! Bring a friend, a mate, a buddy or someone who enjoys a good cup of joe as much as you do & have two for only one twoonie, yippie!!
Kudos to all who picked up a pound or more of our tasty Taste for Justice! 25 percent of all sales of this great blend during the month of June will be contributed to Amnesty International and their campaign to stop violence against women. Cheers to all!
Many thanks go to all the lovely people who joined us for our 14th Annniversary Open House at the Roastery. Picture below are some coffee keeners who participated in our cupping sessions. Much slurping we did and great great treats and java we enjoyed! And here's looking to our 15th!!
Have you met the cool bike warrior riding in front of our trailer? Her name is Laurie Featherstone, and she is our new "Java on 2-Wheels" delivery person responsible for making sure our cafe bean wall is well stocked with the freshest offerings on a daily basis. Laurie has her own one woman Green delivery business which does runs throughout Downtown Toronto. If you are interested in contracting her services, contact lfeather09@gmail.com. Best of all, there are no fuel surcharges to her service!
Sweet Update! A freshly packaged batch of fairtrade fruit jams have arrived to the cafe. And they are just delicious, you should try one! They come in four different flavours: Orange, Mango, Papaya Passion and Lime & Pineapple. These sweet things are the product of diversification efforts by our partners in Peru at CEPICAFE in the Andes region.
And for those who don't know.. The rumors are indeed true! We have gone wireless at the cafe!! So now you can work, surf and enjoy your java while spending time away from home. Our connectivity comes to us thanks in part to Wireless Toronto, a not-for-profit community group dedicated to bringing no-fee wireless access to Toronto. They aim to build community in interesting and innovative ways. You can find out more about them at www.wirelesstoronto.ca.
Interested in using fairtrade and organic products for a good cause? Many school clubs and groups use our coffee to fundraise for great projects. Have one in mind? Give us a call and we will be happy to provide you with more information and ideas, the number is 416-534-6335.
In our Artspace
This month's art gracing our back room walls is by Carol Sterne, a Brampton born nd Toronto based artist. For 10 years Carol successfully ran an art consulting business and has used her creative force through painting and scultpure. After becoming a recent cancer survivor, Carol has returned to painting for enjoyment and healing. Visit and be inspired!
Artists and creative community folks interested in displaying work in the cafe can contact our cafe manager Brenda via email at cafe@alternativegrounds.com if you wish to showcase your work on our walls.
In the spotlight!
Every month, on this What's New! page, we will place the spotlight on one of our customers as a way to say "Thanks! Merci! and Gracias" for your continued support and for choosing fairtrade. To get things off to a good start here's to Delight, our first superstar in this series:
"As summer heats up, Jeff and Jennifer at Delight are chilling things down with delicious, organic fair trade ice cream! The month of July promises to be especially sweet with the arrival of fresh Ontario organic fruits used as the base for Delights Strawberry, Raspberry, Apricot Ice Cream and other seasonal fruits. Delight's Ice Cream is made from the best all natural, local ingredients, including Harmony Organic milk and cream, Certified Local Food plus eggs and flour for waffle cones from Merrylynd Organic Stone ground flour." And don't forget, Delight continues to offer a wide variety of tantalizingly handmade fairtrade chocolates throughout the summer season. Their sweet digs are located at 3040 Dundas Street West (in the Junction). For more info and hours of operation, contact 416-760-9995 or info@delightchocolate.ca. And make sure to visit them online at: www.delightchocolate.ca
Events
Parkdale is having its Spring Fling this Saturday June 20th. At the Diane McGrath Studio Gallery you can contribute to a Mural Project. Cheri DiNovo will host a "We Want Electric Trains" event in front of the Parkdale Library. The parking lot of the library will be the site of an all day art show - come and show off your work. There is all kinds of cool stuff going on! For a full listing go to http://theambler.net/PSF/Schedule_of_Events.htm
Saturday June 27th is the date for The Fundraiser to beat all fundraisers in support of the Parkdale Community Food Bank. The venue is Hughs Room, time 8:30pm. $16 in advance or $20 at the door. The musical line-up includes: "Big Rude Jake, the Gypsy Rebels, Michael Holt, Up All Night, the Parkdale revolutionary orchestra, and Ronley Teper and her Lipliners. See you there!
Did you know July 19th is the 30th anniversary of the Sandinista Revolution in Nicaragua? To help mark the occasion, Casa Canadiense is having a picnic 1pm at Christie Pits. Come celebrate! All are welcome
Heard of the Clean Train Coalition? If not, we encourage you to visit www.cleantrain.ca/may4th.php to learn more about this group's efforts to get the provincial government to explore "enviromentally sound" transit options as it expands the Georgetown South Service corridor and the Union-Pearson Rail Link which will most certainly affect the air quality and noise pollution in the area and the everyday life of those living closer to the railways. So, if you are concerned and want to get involved click on this link for more information.
Itching to ride? West Toronto Services for Seniors is looking for Volunteer Cyclists to deliver Meals on Wheels, any day Mon-Friday from 10:30 - 12pm. Drivers, runners, cyclists call Joanne at 416-653-3535 ext 247 or email jalfonsi@wtss.org
And though not right around the corner but in a few months, Feast of Fields is set to unravel in a good way on September 13 at the Korthright Centre. This year's gathering of chefs, purveyors and advocates of all things edible, delicious and organic is extra special as the Feast is marking its 20th anniversary, yes siree! And we will be there to celebrate and participate. We hope to see some of you up at the Korthright too! For more info make sure to visit: www.feastoffields.org.
Other Great Stuff
Have we got bags for you?! Our popular and practical tote bags have arrived and are they ever cool!! Roomy, stretchy and in a funky denim black, these bags are great for shopping or strutting around town - just check out one of our Valantine's Day contest winners at left as she happily displays her new shopping buddy. They are $14 each and make for great gifts. They are also sweatshop free and made by the truly inspiring Single Mothers Cooperative of El Salvador. Drop by and check them out for yourselves (we double dare you leave without picking one up)!!
And did we mention our Biodegradable Alternative Grounds travel mugs are in? At $16, these babies are hot! Five dollars from the sale of each mug goes towards our continued support of the Survivors of Domestic Violence Foundation (Fundacion Sobrevivientes) in Guatemala City. This organization and its director Norma Cruz came to our attention through the film "Killer's Paradise" which was co-produced by the NFB and Amnesty. You can learn more about the foundation through their website at www.sobrevivientes.org/apy
Remember to visit the Greenstuff page for tips and suggestions to help us soften our collective and individual footprint as we take residence on this beautiful planet of ours! In this section you will find neat and fun ideas for the use and re-use of our burlap/jute bags, paper bags, etc. (for regular and worm composting, bulk shopping, and halloween custume making ideas!!). And I'll bet your compost could use a little of our coffee chaff to lighten its load after a long winter!! If you can use chaff or burlap/jute bags, give Linda a call at 416-534-6335
Bean Update!
Our latest "natural" offering is from the Sidamo region of Ethiopia. Roasted at a full city, this is a bean that literally bursts with sweet fruitiness - distinctly aromatic too! "Natural" coffees are also called "unwashed". Instead of taking the fleshy fruit off the coffee bean, the fruit is left intact to dry on the bean. Hence, the intense fruitiness of the resulting coffee. It is generally a love or hate relationship and we weigh-in heavy on the love side!
Heard about Faitrade Proof? It is Coop Coffees' latest initiative which addresses "transparency" in our fairtrade transactions. At fairtradeproof.org, you can trace the beans you love from farmer to roaster and learn about the intricate yet rewarding inner workings of fairtrade partnerships. Click, browse and learn!
Educate/Advocate!
Interested in learning more about Fairtrade, Organics and Social Justice? Make sure to check our Resources page for more info and great links!
Students do care about fairtrade!! We just got word of a great article written by Vesna Plazacic which was published on Ryerson's 2nd Year Journalism student online magazine. The article features Delight, our humble efforts and lots of great insight on fairtrade from a student perspective. Read on!
Are you looking for news and updates from the frontlines of the struggle towards a more ethical and fair trade system??! Read Coop Coffees Newsletter here. It's a good read and is also available en Español!!
Noticed fairtrade items on the shelfs of large chain supermarkets and retailers lately?? Wondering how significant this action may be? Is corporate involvement good or bad for fairtrade? Read a full article here that will shed some light on this topic and how it may affect small-scale farmers and fair-trade initiatives in general. And if you have any comments, thoughts or burning questions, send them our way care of info@alternativegrounds.com.
Coop Coffees member & roaster Dean Cycon has published a great book titled Javatrekker: Dispatches from the World of Fair Trade Coffee. This is a wonderful exploration of the world of social justice and good coffee from someone who has been there and done that! So if you are looking for a good read or a great gift idea, drop by the cafe and get a copy! And check out a video at www.youtube.com/watch?v=mD8EBiQZs3M produced by Dean featuring Tadesse Meskela, General Manager of the Oromia Coop in Ethiopia.
Our friends at Zatoun have pointed out for us a great audio documentary on their history! "Zatoun, a life story in 4 parts" is a great way to learn about this great initiative which is supporting the development of fairtrade opportunities in Palestine and helping olive farming cooperatives connect with the North American market. So do check it out at at www.zatoun.com/audiozatoun.htm!
The radio doc Building a Just World is another great tool that helps make sense of the fair and ethical trade vs. unfair free trade. This 3-part series was produced by local writer Asad Ismi and radio producer Kristin Schwartz. We have purchased a couple of copies to add to our stock of resources. Contact us if you would like to borrow a copy. For more info, you can email aismi@can.rogers.com.
Interested in learning more about fairly traded and sweatshop free apparel? Do visit the following websites: Nueva Vida Women's Sewing Cooperative (producers of our swanky organic tshirts!) and Just Shirts Canada (suppliers of the lovely t's we sell at the cafe manufactured by the Single Mothers Cooperative of El Salvador).
Remember, if you want to become better acquainted with our fairtrade pricing policy, check out the Fairtrade section of the website. We are always on the look-out for great ideas - things that partner well with us and what we are trying to accomplish through Alternative Grounds. So feel free to drop us a line and share suggestions with our staff.
Our Solidarity Corner
Many of you will be familiar with Los Cuchareros, a spoon making cooperative venture we have been supportive of since we learned of them through Linda during her participation at Coop Coffees AGM in Xela (Guatemala) several years ago. Brenda, our cafe manager had a chance to visit the workshop on a recent Coop coffe tour. Check out some great pics and a report of her visit on the Co-ops section of our site or click here.
Before we forget, the Maquilla Solidartity Network has put out a discussion paper entitled "Is Fairtrade a good fit for the garment industry?" It is well written and researched and can be downloaded at www.maquilasolidarity.org
More Good Stuff!!
Curious about where our cafe specials come from? Meet The Local Café! a small for-profit social enterprise and an experiment in local street food, an initiative begun by Carole Ferrari. The Local Café sources locally grown, high quality, environmentally sound, ethical, and fair trade produce and other goods to make really good meals and snacks that are affordable and accessible. You can find them at a wide variety of community events. They provide many of the yummy specials at Alternative Grounds. You can contact them for your event at 416-534-0454 or thelocalcafe@gmail.com.
Need a good Caterer? For those of you who don't know, the folks at Lemon and Allspice who make our yummy gingerbread and chocolate chip cookies (yes they use real butter) also do catering.The company which is run by and for folks with developmental dissabilities, does a mean lunch! The shortbread is my personal favourite. You can contact them at info@commongroundco-op.ca or 416-686-1906 (yes, I have a vested interest as I am on the board and love what these guys do!!)
We're Passionate About Fairtrade and Love to Share Our Passion! Over the years we have gathered a good collection of articles, books and videos about different aspects of Fairtrade and coffee. These are available for your perusal at the cafe or on loan. We're also available to do slide shows and presentations. So give us a call at 416-534-6335.
And thanks to...
Gerry for bringing a quotation from the late Tommy Douglas to our attention: "Courage, my friends. It is not too late to build a better world." Words to live by!!