Climate Cafés

The show "Friends" always captured my attention. The camaraderie of this group of buddies & pals, I wanted that. I loved the fact that they had Central Perk as their local hangout in NYC when they weren't hanging out at either Joey & Chandler's or Monica and Rachel's apartment. Who wouldn't want that level of connection and community?

Well picture this....a new kind of café, one that has been popping up worldwide for the last decade. A Climate Café. What is this, you ask? It's kind of the Central Perk for eco-minded individuals, looking for the fellowship that comes from shared interest. For those who are seeking commonality in others and a place to go to talk about climate concerns. This includes the science, the eco-anxiety, and a place to ask "what can we do to take action" with other like-minded individuals who care about the same things.

 The first climate café cropped up in 2015 in rural Scotland after a Climate Reality presentation. Those who attended continued their climate change conversation, and in inspired some folks to create a space to come together collectively. Thus was born the first Climate Café, a safe space to gather together to chat. From their "About" story page:

"It was proposed that the Climate Café should be a place to chat, and that those who came together proposed it should also be a place to act. The pop up space was created and began to meet monthly in the community arts centre. Just a kettle, tea and biscuits!"

From there, an idea was born, and more followed... because like-minded people need to find their people. First there was a mailing list, then a Facebook page, then visitors came, and like dandelion seeds in the wind, the idea traveled. All with the same ideology: "free, open, welcoming to all, inclusive, informal and a space to talk, listen, share and inspire action – without judgement or party politics or requiring particular expertise. They are often very creative spaces and benefit from intergenerational conversations."

Check out their map to see if there are any in your neck of the woods. 

If there aren't any, consider creating your own Climate Café space. Then don't forget to register it. From the looks the map, we definitely need more in the US!

To learn more about their philosophy, check out this link. 

Get inspired and learn along the way by visiting their Projects,  Collaboration, News, and Resources pages.

Images from: https://friends.fandom.com/wiki/Central_Perk?file=Central_Perk.jpg, Climate Café logo from https://www.climate.cafe/, "Climate Cafes are helping people Cope with Climate Change" pictures from Future Earth's Instagram Page from March 26, 2024 https://www.instagram.com/p/C4-wbNQg8RQ/?img_index=5