sustainable cinema series: Black Gold
The CAMP in Costa Mesa launched its Sustainable Cinema Series on Sunday with the help of you-know-who 
to show thought-provoking and socially conscious films with great discussion after.
The first film on the summer line-up: Black Gold. This wonderful film takes a look at the one of the most traded commodities in the world’s marketplace: your morning cup of Joe. The film concentrates on Ethiopia, the “birthplace of coffee” and how an unregulated market has drastically altered the livelihood of so many farmers who depend on coffee prices to afford the most basic of necessities.
(film watchers enjoying the film and awesome weather)
I have to say, i was super excited to be sitting next to Mr. Martin Diedrich (yes from the beloved Diedrich Coffeehouse and now LOVED Kean Coffee). Raised in Guatemala and in the essence of coffee-culture, Martin knows the ins-and-outs of what is means to grow, roast, sell and market the bean through and through. I cannot think of a better person of talk to after such a film.
(our panel-hey, that’s me!)
Martin did make some interesting points: from his perspective, fair-trade coffee has suffered in quality and that the film only examines coffee trade in the form of the BIG players (think bigger than Starbucks even-they are the fifth largest!) like Nestle & Proctor and Gamble-types. His solution: buy from small-indie outfits that give a damn about quality, beans, roasting and creating an end-product that respects the environment, people & palate…a coffee triple-bottom-line!