Лес: История Эдинбургского Социального Центра

The Forest, also referred to as Forest Café, was an independent social centre and arts centre located in central Edinburgh, Scotland. It was notable for being run by volunteers as a charitable, self sustaining not for profit. The Forest was initially housed at a West Port venue from 2000 to 2003, then housed at 3 Bristo Place in the former Edinburgh Seventh Day Adventist Church, a building owned by the Edinburgh University Settlement until August 2011. It featured a two room café with performance space, a single room art gallery named Total Kunst, a radical library named Old Hat Books housed in the café front room, an Action Room for consensus process based organisational working group meetings and internet access, artist gallery spaces, a meeting cum screen printing and crafting room, a rehearsal/music studio, a walk in freezer, a woodworking and machining room, a darkroom specialising in alternative photographic process, and unisex toilets. In August 2012 The Forest reopened at 141 Lauriston Place, Tollcross where it continued its activity as a volunteer run vegetarian cafe with regular free events and workshops, assuming a pivotal role in the revival of the independent community development in central Edinburgh. In 2022 the physical space closed citing difficulties arising from the COVID 19 pandemic, despite arts activities continuing decentrally.

The Forest organisation itself started in August 2000 on the site of a former Baptist Chapel. The category B listed building has of floor space and was previously owned by the National Museums of Scotland, who sold the building for £600,000 during 2003. The plaque over the door reflects its subsequent use as a Seventh day Adventist Church, who had purchased the building in 1942 and used it until 2000. In 2004, the Forest Café became one of only four internet cafés in the United Kingdom to have won a highly recommended citation in the Yahoo! Mail Internet Café Awards. A volunteer guide booklet called Don't Panic! was drawn up to record and spread information about how The Forest worked. The Edinburgh University Settlement the charity that owned the Bristo Place building went bankrupt in October 2010, and it was announced that the premises were to be sold. The Forest launched a campaign to raise £500,000 to try to buy the building, or buy or rent another property elsewhere in Edinburgh.

The upper floors of the Bristo Place building are the former church, the centre piece of which is a Gray & Davison built pipe organ. This is powered by compressed air and has 16 feet (5 m) high pipes. It was originally installed at the Chapel Royal, Dublin Castle in the late 19th century and transferred to its present location in 1900. The organ fell into disrepair at which point it was played by Keith Packard. In 2008–2009, Project Waldflöte (English: "Forest Flute") was initiated, a musical experiment to control sections of the mechanical musical keyboard via an electronic MIDI interface from a computer. Waldflöte is the designation of one of the organ stops available and was chosen because of the connection of the word "forest". The argumentation of the keyboards was undertaken by Dorkbot Alba without any long term modification of the original organ. In its new guise, the space played host to several events and affiliate groups before being finally evicted.

The Forest moved to 141 Lauriston Place.

The café served vegetarian cuisine, locally produced organic food, The menu consisted of salads, wraps, chili, burritos, falafel based dishes and soups. Customers were able to pay for hot drinks for others through a Caffè sospeso system which worked on a pay it forward basis, this meant that a customer may pay for a coffee for someone who is unable to afford one themselves. Free Wi Fi was available for public use, instruments and board games were also provided. There was a free shop where visitors to the café could exchange goods which might otherwise have gone to waste.

Due to local noise restrictions the café was no longer able to provide late night music or loud entertainment, however during the daytime the café was often host to free performances by local musicians, poets or artists. All events were always free of charge and were never ticketed. The renovated basement was home to a pop up art gallery space which rotated exhibitions on a twice monthly basis.

The Forest maintained close relationships with other alternative community spaces and socially oriented projects in the local area such as the Edinburgh Student Housing Co operative, and the Swap and Reuse Hub (SHRUB).