New Book Deliverys Java Jolt

The near cult status of coffee in North America has done little to improve the conditions of the people in the countries growing the sought-after bean. A new book, Coffee With Pleasure—Just Java and World Trade, traces the often complicated and circuitous route of coffee beans from producer to consumer and the human and economic toll left behind. Written as part of her master’s thesis by UVic environmental studies student Laure Waridel, the book examines how the current coffee trading system perpetuates poverty and injustice and explains how an alternative system, known as “fair trade,” gives coffee growers the opportunity to maintain their families, and control of their land and provide for a sustainable future. The system gives small-scale producers a better price for their coffee and brings consumers closer to producers by eliminating numerous middlemen. Waridel is a researcher with the UVic POLIS Project on Ecological Governance and is a co-founder of “equiterre,” a Montreal-based organization that promotes ecological and socially responsible choices.

A slide show and public book launch of Coffee With Pleasure—Just Java and World Trade will take place on Friday, May 24 at 7:30 p.m. at the Solstice Café, 529 Pandora Street, Victoria.

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