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Events
Cooperative Coffees AGM 2011
For our 2011 AGM we set up shop in Whitehorse, Yukon in northern Canada (what best place to cool off of that late summer heat!) at the beautiful facilities of Bean North and at the Sundog Retreat for three days of heated discussion from August 18 to the 21.
2012 International Year of Cooperatives
The United Nations General Assembly has declared 2012 as the International Year of Cooperatives (IYC), highlighting the contribution of cooperatives to socio-economic development, in particular recognizing their impact on poverty reduction, employment generation and social integration.
2011 Events
Time to pull out your calendars: 2011 is shaping up to be a full and fruitful year! From cupping courses to conferences, there are several events on the horizon that are happening within our networks. Here's a list of upcoming happenings to give you an initial snapshot of the year...be sure to check back in for additional updates!
2012 Events
Time to pull out your calendars: 2012 is shaping up to be a full and fruitful year! From cupping courses to conferences, there are several events on the horizon that are happening within our networks. Here's a list of upcoming happenings to give you an initial snapshot of the year...be sure to check back in for additional updates!
CoopSol AGM 2011 Report
Jet-lag behind us, piles of snow built up around us, and lots of work to catch up on...January’s visit to Ethiopia seems a distant memory for the roasters, staff members, and kids who participated in the delegation. The two-week visit covered a lot of ground, beginning with a 10-kilometer run that marked the last stretch of the Run Across Ethiopia, and ending with a tour of the impressive new dry processing facilities of Oromia Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union.
Sustainable Foods Summit
Eco-labels continue to gain popularity in the food industry, however are they going far enough to meet consumer demand for ethical & ecological products? The third edition of the Sustainable Foods Summit explores new horizons in sustainability for eco-labels. How do organic, fair trade and other eco-labels contribute to sustainability? What role should they play in a food industry that is increasingly looking at the triple bottom line? The summit aims to debate and discuss such issues in a high-level forum.
AGM 2010: Paving the path of our future
From September 16th to the 18th, a group of 45 people – including nearly all members, the full team of staff, and a couple producer reps – gathered in member-roaster Just Coffee’s offices for our annual general meeting: three days of discussing, debating, slurping (we are coffee roasters after all), and catching up on the latest news in our local and global communities.
A New Chapter for Fair Trade
On September 10th 2010, over 760 Fair Traders from all over the country, the continent, and the global community squeezed into the main conference room of the Marriott in Quincy, Massachusetts to begin the largest Fair Trade extravaganza of the year…if not, in history!
SCAA Fair Trade meeting in Anaheim
As always – the SCAA annual conference is an excellent opportunity to get back in touch with friends and allies and to get “up to speed” on all that is new in the specialty coffee industry and in the wonderful world of Fair Trade. This year in particular – we were able to get a clear overview of Fair Trade landscape.
Market Challenges (and Solutions) in Nicaragua
As part of the ongoing CRS project "CAFE Livelihoods," three representatives from Coop Coffees -- Bill Harris, Tripp Pomeroy of Cafe Campesino, and Chris Treter of Higher Grounds -- spent a week in Nicaragua facilitating and participating in workshops on market management and commercialization in the coffee industry. They worked alongside 5 different cooperatives which included CC producer partners. Below is a trip report by Chris Treter, roaster-member and participant in the CRS Project.
Coop Sol opens its doors to the Green Team
In a short but productive weekend, Coop Coffees' Green Committee met in the new office space and site of the coop's future quality control lab to discuss pressing green bean issues and evaluate the next steps in getting the internal lab established.
World Fair Trade Day reaches thousands!
Every year, Fair Traders all over the world join forces for "World Fair Trade Day." This year, May 9 was the special day and the Fair Trade Resource Network worked very hard to organize and promote the largest FT Coffee Break in North America. They surpassed their lofty goal of 55,000 participants and successfully reached thousands of consumers all over the continent! Congratulations FTRN and keep up the good work!
SCAA and Party in Americus!
There's one more SCAA under our belt! This year, the event happened in Atlanta and brought together the usual suspects: everyone and anyone involved in the specialty coffee world. Following SCAA mayhem, Coop Coffees members, partners, and friends rode 3 hours, caravan-style, to Americus, Georgia for day of productive meetings, useful exchanges, and a fabulously fun soiree! A true celebration for all!
FTF Conference Highlights
The annual Fair Trade Federation conference offers an excellent opportunity for members of the North American FT movement and their international partners/allies to exchange useful experiences and information. This year's conference was particularly special as FTF launches into its 15th year anniversary in 2009! CoopSol's intern, Sophie Verdon was able to get the scoop in an interview with Carmen Iezzi, Exec. Dir of FTF.
Cooperative Coffees joins hands with the Art Miles Mural Project
In March, roaster-member Amavida participated in an international, 9-years-running peace project called the Art Miles Mural Project in which communities -- and children in particular -- are encouraged to create peace through art, namely through mural-painting. This year, the organization that runs the project chose the Seaside community, home to Amavida, to host the event. After a trip to Chiapas, Amavida delivered several murals produced by producer partner Maya Vinic's children. Read Dan Bailey's summary of the event below!
World Fair Trade Day
Coop Coffees is a proud sponsor of World Fair Trade Day (WFTD), an international celebration of Fair Trade. This year’s events will be taking place in over 80 countries worldwide and in North America, Fair Traders plan on breaking the record number of participants (50,000!) in the Fair Trade Coffee Break! The theme of this year’s World Fair Trade Day is Everything is better when it’s fair.
BALLE 2009 Conference
The 7th annual BALLE conference is the place for independent business owners, social entrepreneurs, and all those interested in building strong local economies to discover and discuss how local, independent businesses will shape and influence the new economy. The 2009 BALLE conference will showcase the many ways that local networks of independent businesses are already building the next North American economy; one that is local, green, and fair.
CLAC 2008 Assembly
More than 300 producer delegates and observers from 25 countries celebrated together the Third Bi-Annual CLAC Assembly – held this year in Antigua, Guatemala October 28 - 29, 2008. CLAC – the Latin American and Caribbean Network of Small-Scale Fair Trade Producers – is an association of 300 farmer associations representing some 250,000 men and women working to promote sustainable development through Fair Trade in 20 Latin American countries.
CoopCoffees' AGM 2008
Roaster members and staff of Cooperative Coffees gathered at Higher Grounds’ recently inaugerated café and roastery in the beautiful lakeside town of Traverse City, Michigan from Oct 2 - 5 for the Annual General Meeting of Members. The three-day weekend was action-packed with coffee cupping, discussion and debate around the internal politics of pricing and positions within Fair Trade, as well as clarifying the functions and responsabilities of staff and member alike.
