Grounds to Gardens

Hi, We are Anne Veal and Ariana Hodes. We are part of the organizing team behind a first ever coffee and arts festival in Nashville, TN called First Sip Fest. We started The Which House, a brand new 501(c)3 non-profit arts organization in order to foster community-development through creative practices. We are SO excited by the opportunities a festival offers our communities to strengthen existing bonds, and creating new ties. There's lots of first sips happening around here, and we need your help! There's gold in these here grounds if you know where to look...

 

Grounds to Gardens is a new initiative inspired by listening to the vendors participating in First Sip Fest. Coffee grounds are "black gold" for plant growth - their high nitrogen levels, as well as calcium, potassium, iron, phosphorus, magnesium and chromium enrich the soil. There is evidence that they may even help absorb heavy metal contaminants. Coffee grounds can be sprinkled directly onto plants and soil or added to compost. Studies have shown that higher levels of coffee grounds in compost result in fewer greenhouse gas emissions and higher levels of nutrients. So freaking cool, right?

 

Coffee shops have an excess of used coffee grounds which usually end up going in the trash, and meanwhile local food growers would dramatically benefit from access to them. We know that storage and transport logistics become overwhelming without a reliable infrastructure to get these grounds to farms and gardens. And while we honor the entrepreneurs doing good in the commercial compost pick-up world, the high cost is often not sustainable for many food & beverage services which have slim profit margins.

 

By partnering with Honest Roaster Coffee Co and Brooklyn Heights Community Garden, The Which House aims to develop a reliable, free-to-ultra low-cost process to connect this valuable resource back to the food system that needs it. Once we have tested and developed a system which is not only sustainable for the earth, but also for the pocketbooks, time, and bandwidth of the people involved, we will scale it to other Nashville-area coffee shops, community gardens, and urban farms. The money raised at this event and through GoFundMe will fund the development process. From our central belief that everyone is an artist, this project engages the artistic community of farmers, baristas, coffee roasters, and coffee lovers alike. THANK YOU SO MUCH! Your donation tells us you believe in local communities, creative solutions to problems, and the power of connection. THANK YOU! 

The number we've chosen for this GoFundMe is an open-ended number. As we're entering a world of unknowns any amount is helpful, and all of it will go toward streamlining the most sustainable process for each coffee shop and garden. All of the money raised will go toward gas and known transportation materials like containers, as well as extra for unknown, to-be-discovered needs and nominal stipends for folks involved.  Again, thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your generous donation.