The wheelchair barista 'making the world better' with 'inclusive cafe' in Poland

Sasha Avdevich, exiled Belarusian disability rights activist, makes coffee during the opening of his coffee house 'Inclusive Barista', the first cafe in Poland with a workspace fully adapted for employees in wheelchairs, in Warsaw on April 7, 2024. — Photos:Sergei GAPON / AFP)

With its sleek interior and freshly ground coffee, the cafe run by Belarusian exile Sasha Avdevich may at first glance seem like yet another trendy spot in Warsaw.

But the lowered, wheelchair-accessible countertop and a sticker reading: "The barista on shift has a hearing impairment" in Polish, English and Belarusian reveal this is no ordinary business.