OK people...we need spoke cards for the Bikes to Rwanda benefit...see Aly's kick ass poster below...there will be lots of things going on. Even if you can't make a spoke card, come to the cookout, Pecha Kucha or cupping. Meanwhile, you will enjoy only coffees from Rwands for the month of April, some exclusive to Octane.

Here are some details. Bikes to Rwanda is a Portland based non profit. BTR's goal is to improve quality of life in Rwandan farming communities through a bike workshop and maintenance program that provides transportation resources for basic needs and enhances production of quality coffee. Cargo bikes help farmers harvest their crops quicker and easier, making it possible for more of the coffee cherries to reach a potential buyer. In the past few years, Rwanda has developed a reputation to producing top-quality specialty coffee for export throughout the world. The result has been tremendous economic and social benefits for the people of Rwanda: coffee now generates more than half of Rwanda's export income—some US $46 million in 2006—and it helps support thousands of families. As Rwandans earn more for their coffee beans, families take a step up the ladder of economic development toward a better life.

This year, BTR will be focusing its efforts on building bike shops for Rwandan co-ops. The shops will be gathering places where people in the co-op can maintain, service, and construct the bicycles that help them succeed. It is our goal at Octane to support this community, our global coffee family, as we work to raise enough funds to construct a bike shop in Rwanda.