Blog

Bike theft stinks [UPDATE!]
Bike theft stinks [UPDATE!]
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Yirgacheffe Idido + our Good Food Friends
Yirgacheffe Idido + our Good Food Friends
  We're proud to announce we've won a 2017 Good Food Award for our Ethiopian Yirgacheffe Idido. Ethiopia is the birthplace of coffee. So it’s no surprise that the country produces some... Read more...
Relationships and Reality: The Incredible True Story of Jose Perez Vazquez
Relationships and Reality: The Incredible True Story of Jose Perez Vazquez
He has walked the corridors of Oslo City Hall as a Nobel Peace Prize nominee, but last December Jose Perez Vasquez had his eyes searching the concrete sidewalks of Chicago for... Read more...
Spicy mocha with whipped cream
6 Tips for a Low-Stress, Waste-Free Holiday Season
Let's step back and look carefully at a few areas where we can minimize the piles of paper and plastic amassed by this season of sharing and celebration. Read more...
Chiapas Highlands
Join the 2017 Chiapas Sustainable Coffee Origin Trip
Join us on an adventure through the Chiapan Highlands of Mexico to spend time with our longest standing coffee growing partners, Maya Vinic, and learn about the Chiapas Water Projects we support.... Read more...
Jose with coffee starts, 2013
Jose's Dreams: Farmer Stories (Jose, Part 3)
"Poverty has been the biggest challenge I’ve had to face in my life, but with time and dedication, I’ve been able to overcome it. I’m now able to grow some... Read more...
Jose Perez Vazquez of Maya Vinic
Daily Life: Farmer Stories (Jose, Part 2)
"Producing high-quality coffee requires a lot of passion, care, enthusiasm and hope, because the process is long. Today we plant coffee trees that we won’t be able to harvest any... Read more...
Growing Organic Coffee in Chenalho, Chiapas, Mexico
Growing Organic Coffee in Chenalho, Chiapas, Mexico
How much does it actually cost to grow organic coffee in the highlands of Chiapas, Mexico? Jose, our long time friend and co-founder of the Maya Vinic cooperative, explains how much... Read more...
Muungano farmer 2016
Supporting Gender Equality in Eastern Congo
"The GALS has improved the economy of so many households. The women and children are now participating in the decision-making in their household and community, and they have now joint... Read more...
The Power of Co-ops: Farmer stories (Jose, Part 1)
The Power of Co-ops: Farmer stories (Jose, Part 1)
“Before the creation of Maya Vinic, I had to deal with middlemen—coyoteros—who would use their own unreliable scales to cheat us out of kilos of coffee. Many told us coffee... Read more...
bikes on rack at HG
Higher Grounds Recognized as a Bicycle Friendly Business
The League of American Bicyclists recognized Higher Grounds with a Bronze Level Bicycle Friendly Business (BFB℠) award, joining nearly 1,200 progressive businesses from across the country.  Read more...
The Power of Collaboration
The Power of Collaboration
"It is not just in our economic lives that we suffer. We also suffer contempt, marginalization, and oblivion as indigenous people in Mexico. But we remain hopeful because of the real... Read more...