The Ritual of Coffee

Meet Praveen, the founder of Climate Wave Coffee. You can find him every morning waking up at 5 am roasting and brewing. For him, brewing and drinking coffee is a mindfulness ritual – he calls it his daily meditation routine.

Praveen’s Quest

Praveen and his life partner Monica live an eco-conscious lifestyle. They are fondly known as ‘That Sustainable Couple’ by their friends, and even have an Instagram account under that name. In 2018, Praveen began asking questions about the sustainability of coffee, and sought accurate answers. Since then, Praveen has been researching sustainability in the entire Coffee Value Chain: from growing coffee plants to serving coffee beverages and every step in between. He knew that the internet alone could not provide all the answers he sought, so he travelled to many cafés, roasteries, and farms to learn directly from the key stakeholders in the coffee industry, including farmers, distributors, roasters, baristas, and coffee drinkers. Through his inter- and intra-national travels, questions, and conversations, he discovered a variety of unsustainable processes at various stages of the Coffee Value Chain:

• Deforestation for coffee and growing coffee on deforested land
• Cultivation in monoculture
• Usage of toxic pesticides and herbicides
• Disrespectful treatment of farmers and farm workers
• Fresh water wastage and pollution of rivers and streams
• Pushing wild species to extinction
• High waste from single-use cups and bags
• Use of fossil fuels in the roasting process

The Art of Climate Action

What he learnt shocked him, and he felt like a hypocrite for living an eco-conscious lifestyle while enjoying unsustainable cups of coffee. But he didn’t give up. As a professionally trained engineer, a project manager, and a business management professional, he knew he could solve complex problems. He started to think outside the box and used multiple problem-solving tools to figure out climate-friendly solutions for the issues he had identified. To apply the solutions in real life and to inspire many more sustainability enthusiasts to take climate action in the Coffee Value Chain, he founded Climate Wave Coffee.

Here is how Climate Wave Coffee is different from other coffee brands:

• Only sources fairly-traded, unwashed, dry-processed, shade-grown coffee
• Roasts the beans using the most energy-efficient induction-style electric-powered coffee roasting machine available
• Sells the coffee in reusable or zero-waste containers via zero-emission or carbon-neutral transportation
• Consults fellow coffee professionals to adopt a sustainable way of crafting coffee from growing to serving (and discarding spent grounds)
• Hosts sustainable tasting experiences and workshops
• Develops useful products from wastes produced in Coffee Value Chain

Climate Wave Coffee is shaking up the industry from forest to cup. Find Praveen’s coffee at climatewave.ca