Ever seeking out new ways to engage and educate coffee professionals, Go Fund Bean is taking a turn at the written word with a brand new book club. Titled Fine Grinds, Fine Reads, the GFB book club is a series of three summer reads that look to โbring coffee professionals together in open and productive discussions to learn from the material and each other.โ
Part of the Bean Development initiative, Fine Grinds, Fine Reads was originally inspired by the (Un)Learning Club, another book club in the specialty coffee space started by Oatlyโs Diana Mnatsakanyan-Sapp andย 2019 Sprudge Twenty memberย and founder ofย the Chain Collaborativeย Nora Burkey. For GFB, the focus of the three-book will be more on issues relevant to a career in the specialty coffee industry.
For July, August, and September, Fine Grinds, Fine Reads will feature one book a month for individuals to read and then come together to discuss. The goal, per GFB, is to โcreate a space where coffee professionals can come together to learn more about our industryโand how we can improve it.โ
The curriculum includes:
July: A Collective Bargain, Jane McAlevey
August: Coffeeland: One Man’s Dark Empire and the Making of Our Favorite Drug, Augustine Sedgewick
September: Forked: A New Standard for American Dining, Saru Jayaraman
Along with gatherings to discuss each read, Go Fund Bean will be hosting special events corresponding to that monthโs book. In August, for instance, author Augustine Sedgewick will be on hand to discuss the researcher into the US-El Salvador supply chain that went into this book.
Like with the rest of Go Fund Beanโs Bean Development initiatives, the book club is completely free to join, and sign ups can be made here. The only cost will come via purchasing the books to be discussed, and GFB has worked out a deal with Skylight Books where participants will be able to order their copies at a 15% discount. They are also currently raising $600 (which can be made here) to offer 10 scholarship spots. Scholarship applications can be submitted here.
Fine Grinds, Fine Reads officially kicks off July 14th. For more information, visit Go Fund Bean’s book club sign-up page, and any questions can be directed to GFBโs Director of Marketing Valorie Clark.
Zac Cadwaladerย is the managing editor at Sprudge Media Network and a staff writer based in Dallas.ย Read more Zac Cadwaladerย on Sprudge.