Keeling Curve

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Project Summary / Description:

Climate Cafe exists to attract a much broader group of people to the climate movement than is currently engaged. Coffee offers several benefits to this approach. Firstly, it's under threat from climate change like everything else. People are passionate about coffee; for many of them, coffee is life. Meanwhile, coffeehouses offer a great model for the kind of community and culture we want to build. There's an entire culture that already exists around coffee that provides a foundation to build our own community. Coffee also is a very tangible thing, which makes it an easy shorthand for a contribution. Donating a coffee to Mother Earth once a month - $5 - will actually go a long way, engaging supporters in the climate movement in a way that protests can't. We lure people in with coffee, we connect coffee to climate, and we connect them to climate movements. It's that simple.

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How Project Affects Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions:

Replaces/avoids GHGs (e.g., projects that replace sources of GHGs, such as the burning of fossil fuels for electricity, heat, transport, or other energy uses), Reduces GHGs (e.g., projects that reduce sources of GHGs, such as through efficiency or other changes in consumption), Removes/stores GHGs (e.g., projects that capture, sequester, or otherwise enhance the "sinks" that accumulate and store GHGs)

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Impact on Underrepresented Groups:

The social sphere of the climate movement, at least in New York City, is presently dominated by a litany of various "happy hours" for working professionals - not always the most welcoming environment. In contrast, coffee is an accessible beverage for many more people, and unlike alcohol, is conducive to productivity and hard work. There is much work to do in the climate movement, but not enough people interested in doing it. 

Right now the movement is essentially gatekeeping climate action by making it seem like the only measures worth taking are extreme measures: throwing soup on famous works of art, blocking traffic during the rush hour commute, or skipping school to go march. The fact is that these actions aren't inspiring the general public, and in many cases are alienating would-be allies. We emphasize that in fact anyone can be a climate activist - all it takes is a meaningful, sustained commitment. 

In this way, we empower the youth who aren't inclined to miss school, who aren't old enough to drink, who are simply looking for ways to connect to this massive problem and find reasons to hope for their future again. We also offer alternatives for people of color and vulnerable or immigrant communities, who see the climate movement primarily as a space of public protest, and who don't see themselves in that role given the legal risks they would face if arrested. We don't want you to get arrested. We just want you to have coffee.

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