Contact InformationThe Evergreen State College

CAB 304 2700 Evergreen Parkway NW

Olympia, WashingtonOutreach: flamingoutreach@gmail.com

Working Party: theflamingeggplant@gmail.comInstagram @TheFlamingEggplant

Find us on Facebook!

WHO ARE WE?

MENU HACKS AT THE FLAMING EGGPLANT

Ask to have your bowl lined with cheese ($1) before the line cook puts your soup (especially chili) or grain n bean on top (IT MELTS IN REALLY WELL) get it ICED grizzle on g&bgrilled onions and kale in a grilled cheesefritters with like hella toppings (cheese, aioli, pickles, grilled onions, kraut are my go-to picks)side of rice with soup on top (especially chili)Salmon burger as tacos ;-)

Everything in this zine is a compilation of material created by many collective members throughout the years that we

are putting together for you to read, and learn a little bit about our history, how we work, and our visions. The

material in this zine includes material from our archives of business plans, budgets, and training material. We hope that future Flamers, Evergreen students, our customers,

and people in Olympia can learn about our journey, and are inspired to continue supporting us and asking questions

about crafting all sorts of creative solutions.

● Support local production● See to the long term health of the business● Assist in the development of local community resources

The Northwest Construction Cooperative203 4th Ave E, Suite 205Olympia, WA 98501info@northwestconstruction.coop

The Northwest Construction Cooperative is a custom-build socio-economic enterprise that focuses on intentional design and its effects on labor, the community, and the environment. We strive to provide exceptional work at fair prices by developing creative and innovative solutions to reduce waste, limit unnecessary energy consumption, and provide non-invasive and healthy living environments. As a worker-owned and -operated Cooperative we aspire to maintain transparent business practices and communicate directly and openly with clients. With a collectively managed structure we prioritize worker’s rights, well-being, and the involvement of the community.

CoSound

CoSound is a network made up of local cooperatives in Olympia, but also of people who previously were involved in cooperatives, or have interest. They meet twice a month and have done work such as organize a cooperative exchange with another network, Cecosesola, from Venezuela. For more info contact us at the Flaming Eggplant to connect you with CoSound.

Northwest Cooperative Development Center 407 4th Avenue East Suite 201

Olympia, WA 98501

NWCDC is a nonprofit organization devoted to assisting new and existing cooperative businesses, from daycare centers to credit unions.

We have a long history of collaborating with communities, governments, economic development agencies and other cooperatives, sharing expertise and building cross-sector support for new and existing cooperatives

We understand that when consumers, producers or workers become business owners of a cooperative, their individual and collective responsibilities greatly increase. New owners face significant challenges to organize, get started and stay on track with a new cooperative business.

To help with these challenges, NWCDC provides facilitation, advising, analysis and access to information and tools for cooperatives. Our pre-development work with startups helps to build business ownership, sound management practices, and economic health.

The New Moon Cooperative Cafe113 4th Ave W, Olympia, WA 98501(360) 357-3452

As a worker-owned and collectively-managed restaurant, we believe in the right of all people to have control over their lives and livelihoods. We honor our collective and individual autonomy by creating jobs that foster self-development and well-being; that affirm our worth and equality as workers. We strive to make good food accessible to more people and to grow strong relationships with local farmers, producers, and distributors. We seek to utilize our resources and space to support the greater Olympia community.

The Olympia Food Co-op(Eastside) 3111 Pacific Ave SE, Olympia, WA 98501(Westside) 921 Rogers St NW, Olympia, WA 98502The purpose of the cooperative is to contribute to the health and well being of people by providing wholesome foods and other goods and services, accessible to all, through a locally oriented, collectively managed, not-for-profit cooperative organization that relies on consensus decision making. We strive to make human effects on the earth and its inhabitants positive and renewing, and to encourage economic and social justice. Our goals are to:

●Provide information about food●Make good food accessible to more people●Support efforts to increase democratic process●Support efforts to foster a socially and economically egalitarian society●Provide information about collective process and consensus decision

making

Mission Statement “The Flaming Eggplant Café exists to provide a non-corporate food

option to people at The Evergreen State College located on occupied Nisqually and Squaxin land, in Olympia, WA. As a

student-run collective, we make efforts to source our food carefully, considering the impact of our vendors and distributors – balancing

rising food costs and declining planetary stability while recognizing unjust treatment of workers and the world-wide effects of

greenwashing. We prioritize our worker’s needs and education while providing learning experience in food service and cooperative management. The café is intended to be a safer space that opposes

systemic oppression, where students, faculty, and staff can hold events, organize, decompress, and – importantly – eat. ”

Our current mission statement was re-written and consented on by the collective on February 16, 2016

The first flamers wrote a mission statement in 2006, (10 YEARS AGO!!!), it was then rewritten by collective members in 2011, of which maybe one was around when the Flaming Eggplant first opened. Why was it rewritten? Because as the collective changes, slowly, drastically, in many ways, so do our values!! Hopefully mission statements are rewritten many more times to ensure that the collective is satisfied and living up to it’s principles and commitments.

FAQ’s

Q: Why is there no Eggplant on your menu???A: If it’s not something we order or have a recipe for, it’s sometimes hard to find time to work new items into our

menu. Where do we even get Eggplant? Q : Are you hiring?

A: Maybe! We hire at the end of each quarter, usually. Be sure to follow us on our various social media accounts for

the announcements, as well as checking our Get Involved page to download the application when it's

available. Q: Do you need work-study to work at the Eggplant?

A: Nope! But it is really great when people have it.

Q: Why is the Eggplant not open in the Summer?A: School’s out and there’s not enough customers for us

to operate the cafe.Q: Who’s your boss?

A: We don’t have one! We are a student run non-hierarchical collective.

A:Why don’t you take debit/credit cards?Q: Setting up the system to take cards is tricky because

of our current Point of Sales system. Also, it would require us directly work through the Bank of America

(which the college uses), and we don’t want to give them more of our money than we already have to (in the form

of processing fees). Q: What’s a co-op?

A: the International Co-operative Alliance definition is: “An autonomous association of persons united voluntarily

to meet their common economic, social, and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and

democratically controlled enterprise.”

2011 version:

As a student-worker collective, the mission of the Flaming Eggplant Café is to nourish the local food system by making

delicious, healthy, ecologically and socially just food accessible to all. We strive to empower the campus and greater Olympia

community to organize, study, teach, seed, and create an egalitarian society together beginning with the act of eating.

The 2006 version of the mission statement:

We look to inspire enlightened thought through food. Our most intimate connection to the Earth is primarily through what we eat and where we lay our tracks. We want people to understand where their food comes from. We do this by using seasonal recipes based

on the availability of local and organic ingredients. At The Flaming Eggplant Café we want our patrons to know exactly where each ingredient has come from. The bulk of our fresh ingredients will come from farms within a 100 mile radius of Olympia including the organic farm on The Evergreen State

College campus. We do this to provide more enjoyable, nutritional, fresh, tasty, and ecologically sound foods to our

customers.

The Flaming Eggplant Café’s Safer Space Policy:One of the goals of The Flaming Eggplant Cafe is to provide a "safer space" for community participation, engagement, and enjoyment. Our Safer Space Policy exists to, as best we can, prevent or eliminate any oppressive actions, behaviors, and language in our space. These include, but are not limited to, racism, sexism, ageism, sizeism, classism, ableism, transphobia, heterosexism, and sexual harassment. As we live in a society where oppression is institutionalized and plays out on interpersonal levels every day, to claim this space as completely "safe" would be impossible. We strive to provide a community space that is safe and welcoming, and prioritize the needs of those who are targets of oppression. We ask all people who enter our space to respect others' physical and emotional boundaries, to be aware of the effects your actions and presence have on others, and to be responsible for your language, behavior, and actions. Please feel free to approach a collective member in confidence should anyone or anything in the cafe make you feel unsafe, including the actions of collective members.Whenever possible, we may ask people to change or address unsafe behavior or language. As a last resort, we reserve the right to ask people to leave the cafe.

What / Who Do We Support?The Flaming Eggplant believes in developing relationships

with local growers, businesses, and people who are interested in working together.

How Do We Operate?The Flaming Eggplant Café is run by, funded by, and for, the students. About 20 working students run the café in paid positions and participate in shift and committee work. All students are considered members however and can participate in the cooperative by attending meetings. We operate utilizing a consensus model in which all the Flaming Eggplant employees participate to make decisions which affect the whole collective together

Where did the Flaming Eggplant start? Here’s a timeline...

1980Judith, an Evergreen student, starts up “The Corner”, a student-run cafe after Saga/Marriott’s attempt at a separate late night sandwich gig under the administration of housing falls through.

1988“The Corner” moves to the Housing Community Center. Majority of the customers are people around lower campus, first year housing, apartment residents, and Cooper Glen residents. The Corner became the only vegetarian option on campus.

1988-2000The Corner moves towards being not just a vegetarian dining option, but vegan. At that point only a small percentage of the housing residents were vegan, that plus other factors led to its end in 2000.

1990-2001Fine Host was signed as Evergreen’s food vendor until they retracted due to substantial financial losses.

2001Students wrote a business plan for a coffee/pastry shop and a pizza place, which became the Subterranean, located in the H.C.C. They did pizza delivery, but lost money.

2001Food Service Disappearing Task Force committee decides it would be in Evergreen’s best interest to make preparation to transition to Self-Op, meaning college run and not managed by any outsiders.

2001Masked students with a declaration to keep Sodexho, corporate human rights violators, off campus attend an open meeting between TESC and Sodexho. The corporate executives were intimidated and retracted bid due to an anti-corporate climate on campus.Evergreen signs with Bon Appetit, soon after bought out by Compass Group.

2001-2004Bon Appetit becomes Evergreen’s food service provider .

2003Subterranean reformed from pizza place to sub shop. They lose $7,000 in a year and the student-run cafe closes permanently. In 2-3 years the various incarnations of the H.C.C. student cafe lost $134,000, at their worst losing $25,000 in a year.

2004Bon Appetit loses an average of half a million dollars a year for TESC, ending their contract. A bid for food contractors is put out to be bid on in the fall.

Spring 2004S.O.F.A. campaigns to end corporate food service and transition to a sustainable self-operated food service collect over 600 signatures for their petition.

Fall 2004-2013 Aramark is the only bidder on food service contract therefore winning the contract, despite not meeting Evergreen’s specifications on the bid.

Winter 2005S.O.F.A. organizes weekly potlucks with all of its members to show support for food service change on campus. Hundreds of members join and attend potlucks. Potlucks have been happening for about 2 years and are still churning with support.

Fall 2006Aramark’s sustainability intern helps them achieve 17% local or organic purchasing (based upon their definitions of local and organic).

Winter 2006Convinced going self-op is unfeasible, SOFA members begin to direct energy into a side operation student run/owned cafe with hopes of eventually transitioning to self-op.

Winter – Spring 20067 Evergreen students complete 44 credits in a group contract on food service issues and write a business plan and feasibility study for the cafe.

Operating as a student run cooperative/collective at The Evergreen State College has many challenges. Currently, the

Flaming Eggplant Cafe is the only place at the college to purchase non-corporate food. Since

we are student run and operated, we have a relatively high turnover rate as collective

members graduate over time. We have been learning to adapt to the different needs of our always evolving collective. This entails what it means to reassess our goals, as well as change

our structures to support the learning and training of The Flaming Eggplant collective through our committee and shift work. We strive to continue operating effectively and

efficiently and providing our customers with delicious food, as well as maintain our commitment and participation in the

Evergreen and Olympia communities. As a result of the high turnover, we are challenged by institutional memory loss. We recognize the importance of documenting history and processes to pass down to newer members.

Spring 2006Using the selling point of a student run café, the Campus Activities Building redesign is approved by students. This is a self imposed fee of 156 million dollars, only 300k of which goes to the student run café, it will be paid for by students over 20 years at hundreds a dollar a year for every full time student.

Summer 2006Students vote on the Flaming Eggplant Cafe as the name of the cafe. The Flaming Eggplant registers as an official student group and completes their first business plan.

Winter 2007The Flaming Eggplant writes its budget proposal to apply for the S&A board for funding of the operation. The budget is presented to the board in March with a record turnout of about 75 students.

Spring 2007The S&A board denies the Flaming Eggplant budget request, citing depleted reserves from the funding of the recent million dollar child care center renovations. Undeterred, members of the Cafe add a fee proposal to a student vote process already underway through the Geoduck Union. the proposal requests $2 per credit from each student registered in Fall quarter 2007. The proposal passes with nearly 90% approval and grants about $120,00 to the cafe for startup and operational costs.

Fall 2007Evergreen and The Flaming Eggplant sign a Memorandum of Understanding, a contract that stipulates the conditions under which the cafe may operate. This contract represents official approval from Evergreen for the Cafe to Operate.

Spring 2008Residential and Dining Services (RAD) offers to buy a commissary trailer and lease it to The Flaming Eggplant until the space in the redesigned CAB is completed. RAD will then use the trailer as an emergency kitchen for its residents.

October 10, 2008The Flaming Eggplant (on red square) opens!

2010CAB building redesign on the 3rd floor with space for restaurant complete with kitchen equipment and promises of rooftop greenhouse dining.

2010The Flaming Eggplant Cafe in new CAB space officially opens!

2011 The Flaming Eggplant Cafe revises its mission statement

2012The Flaming Eggplant transitions it’s structure to become a cooperatively run collective, a shift from it’s previously managerial structure

Winter 2012A few collective members leave The Flaming Eggplant to begin working at the New Moon Cafe, turning it into a worker cooperative.

2013Contract with Aramark is renewed, with push to promote and provide organic, locally sourced food.

Fall 2015The cafe participates in an exchange with companer@s from Cecosesola, a cooperative network in Venezuela, along with other Olympia cooperatives

2016Mission statement is revisited for the third time

** Credit Note **This timeline was taken from the Disorientation Manual year 2009-2010, with some edits made to update.

Consensus is a collaborative decision-making process. Different groups structure consensus differently, but the idea is that in order for a decision to be made, everyone must consent on the decisions for the group to move forward with action.

If someone decides to block the action proposed, it is tabled and talked about once more until it is thought through or decided that the group does not want to move forward with it. If some people feel a bias or conflict, they are allowage of the group are choosing to stand aside. Many groups have a quorum which is a standard of X amount of people must be present at meetings for proposals and decisions to be passed collectively.

Our consensus model is inspired by the Olympia Food Co-Operative’s consensus model. We decide collectively on larger decisions that affect the collective and cafe as a whole. Though there are things that our committees have autonomy in deciding based off of the way their committee functions.

To learn more about consensus please see: http://consensusdecisionmaking.org/

How is work structured at The

Flaming Eggplant Cafe?

All collective members work in shift and committee work to manage both the daily

tasks of staying open, as well as the ‘managerial’ tasks which are distributed

amongst all the workers.

Shift WorkCollective members coming in during open hours to work the line, cooking breakfast and lunch. Prep cooks who prepare soups, sauces, all of the food that is then cooked by line. The baristas/cashiers who take orders, make drinks and keep the front of house clean.

Committee WorkIn addition to shift work, we have 21 leadership positions that serve the management functions of the café. In our commitment to collaborative leadership, collective members take on committee positions which are filled and consented to on a quarterly basis, or as needed. Much like other aspects of the Flaming Eggplant Café, our working structures are constantly evolving to meet the needs of the collective and the community we serve. The café’s committee positions are as follows: