(Photo/Tang Yue)

Collaborations among cafés, schools, and foundations in Nanjing not only offer barista training for individuals with disabilities but also promote employment and societal integration, infusing the city’s streets with the aroma of coffee and the spirit of kindness.

At Jingxinzhou, an island in the middle of the Yangtze River in Nanjing’s Jianye District, a silent café named KAN has gained popularity for its sweet aroma of coffee, and bright and warm interior.

Juan Juan, the store’s barista, graduated from Nanjing Normal University of Special Education. Hard of hearing, she previously worked in a garment factory and then served in pizza and milk tea stores before achieving her dream as a barista.

“The store has been renovated to be friendly to the communities. For example, the napkins are printed with sign language gestures,” said Wu Dan, owner of KAN.

Juan Juan can timely respond to customer needs thanks to various devices, such as a light indicating the customer table number. Customers find it natural to place orders and communicate their needs effortlessly, even when everything is done in a quieter way, sometimes with just a smile or a gesture.

During the store’s free coffee workshops, Juan Juan is always ready to share the professional tips for latte art. Through these interactions, she has grown more confident. "Compared to sympathy and pity, what we want is to be treated with dignity and respect," she wrote.

Besides Jiangxinzhou, Wu also operates a silent coffee shop on Phoenix West Street in Nanjing’s Gulou District. Satisfied with the service, a loyal customer of the store has invited Wu and a barista with hearing difficulties to visit her daughter’s school and offer coffee and sign language lessons to children.

At the end of last year, Wu's coffee store cooperated with a foundation to organize a training course for the hearing-impaired, including Ruo Nan.

Ruo Nan recalled her initial coffee tasting experience. “It was bitter at first, but with a gentle sip, a special flavor emerges - slightly bitter and then sweet, much like life itself.”

Similar programs are also offered at Nanjing Normal University of Special Education. The school’s barista training room mirrors a coffee store, from the furniture to coffee-making machine and materials. "They need to overcome personal difficulties and adapt to the market, as finding a job or starting a business is particularly difficult for them," said Zhao Yanxia, the school principal.

The school have organized two training sessions with a hotel. Zhao's plan is to open a café in the community, allowing students to gain real-life work experience and offering them the chance to participate in its operation.

Chu Jian, director of the Employment Management Centre of the Nanjing Disabled Persons' Federation, said more than 50 students had received training for hotel operation and management at the school, with 9 employed at the district government’s canteen and another securing a job in a star-rated hotel.

"We hope that both locals and tourists can remember us for a cup of coffee, and remember Nanjing as a city of kindness," said Wu Dan.