Announcing the FIRST SCA Sustainability Coffee course, ever taught in Africa, will be held in Kenya on Saturday, September 21 and 28 in partnership with Safari Lounge and Karibu Kahawa Camps! This “Foundation-level” course runs for 8 hours of teaching, so we will hold it on two consecutive Saturdays — students must attend both days to qualify to take the exam and receive their SCA certificate.

For details or to register, email Erika on the contact page.

The Intermediate level builds on concepts introduced in Foundation to develop student ability to analyze and interpret a variety of different types of sustainability projects. This course is co-taught with Nora Burkey, in partnership with The Chain Collaborative.

A Panel Discussion: Nora Burkey, Kate Fischer, Erika Koss, & Hanes Motsinger – the four creators of the new SCA Sustainability Skills Program

Until now, the coffee industry has lacked a comprehensive curriculum to train sustainability professionals. This panel will discuss how the program came to be and how it relates to everyone’s work in coffee. The panelists will offer insights into the new program and how, through education, we can build a more sustainable supply chain.

Kate Fischer will discuss the vision for the program and the challenges in creating courses to cover issues ranging from paper cups to climate change, compost bags, and the C price. Hanes Motsinger will discuss how current trends in individual sustainability initiatives inspired the program, and the role collective action can play in building more effective, inclusive, and relevant initiatives. Erika Koss will discuss the history of the terms sustainability and resilience, encouraging us to consider why the word “sustainability” matters—and what we should know about the concept. Finally, Nora Burkey will talk about the challenges of putting learning into action in an industry where specialty coffee is confused with sustainable coffee, and how the courses can create the enabling environment the industry needs to ensure that specialty coffee is equal to sustainable coffee.

Panelists:

• Nora Burkey, Founder and Executive Director, The Chain Collaborative
• Erika Koss, PhD Candidate, Writer & Researcher, Saint Mary’s University, Halifax, Nova Scotia
• Kate Fischer, Ph.D., Faculty, University of Colorado – Boulder
• Hanes Motsinger, Program Manager, ABQid

Co-taught by Erika Koss and Nora Burkey

For the specialty coffee industry to survive, sustainability must be embraced by all actors in the value chain. This course is designed to offer baseline knowledge of what the term ‘sustainability’ means and how it is connected to current and historical events and coffee projects. Attendees will learn the vocabulary and techniques needed to begin assessing their company or organization’s economic, social, and environmental sustainability as well as that of the industry at large. This course or equivalent experience and education is required for the Intermediate level. Introduction to Coffee is a recommended (but not mandatory) prerequisite module.

To register or for more information, please visit the 2019 Coffee Expo website.

‘Resilient Coffee?: What “Resilience” Means & Why This Matters for All Members of Coffee’s Supply Chain’

The use of the word “resilience” has exploded in the 21st-century. Originally a term used in psychology and ecology, it’s now a concept used in dozens of fields from zoology to geography, and, more recently, in political science and international development – and now, in specialty coffee. From “resilient seeds” to “resilient farmers,” from “resilient communities,” to “resilient cities,” what do we all mean when we talk about “resilience,” and why does this matter? Our global panel of interdisciplinary academics and practitioners will examine the impact that “resilience” thinking has on all members of the coffee chain, with a particular focus on the intersection between “sustainability” and “resilience” as we consider challenges of climate change and gender equity.

Panel

Erika Koss, moderator and opening remarks, St. Mary’s University, Nova Scotia, Canada

Vava Angwengi, founder of Vava Specialty Coffee, Inc., Nairobi, Kenya

Shadi Atallah, Assistant Professor, Agricultural and Resource Economics, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire

Phyllis Johnson, founder & President, BD Imports, Atlanta, Georgia

Can you imagine life without coffee or chocolate? No one wants to find out, but that’s exactly what could happen if climate change and gender injustice continue to challenge the future of these products. Learn how two local producers, Barrington Coffee Roasting Company and Goodnow Farms Chocolate, are grappling with these issues while remaining committed to superior quality and ethical sourcing of cacao and coffee beans. Join HUBWeeek 2017 and the Harvard Ed Portal for a talk and tasting led by Erika Koss of St. Mary’s University and Carla Martin of Harvard University and the Fine Cacao & Chocolate Institute.

Panel

Barth Anderson, Barrington Coffee Roasting Company

Erika Koss, St. Mary’s University

Carla Martin, Harvard University & the Fine Cacao & Chocolate Institute

Monica Rogan, Goodnow Farms Chocolate

The Summit Program

Session One: Exploring the Global Picture of Cacao and Coffee

Opening Remarks

Dr. Christopher Bosso, Professor, School of Public Policy & Urban Affairs; Coordinator, Consortium on Food Systems Sustainability, Health, & Equity; Northeastern University

An Overview of Two Global Supply Chains (1-1:45pm)
“Why Cacao Matters”,
Carla Martin, Harvard University

“Why Coffee Matters”
Erika Koss, Northeastern University

The Global Picture: Sustainability & Gender Equity in Coffee & Cacao (1:45-2:30pm)
“Sustainability & Gender Equity in Coffee: Partnership for Global Impact”
Kimberly Easson, Coffee Quality Institute

“Sustainability & Gender Equity in Cacao: Oxfam’s Work and Goals”
Sarah Zoen, Oxfam

Session Two: Exploring Beantown’s Fine Chocolate & Specialty Coffee ~ 3-4:30 p.m.

Opening Remarks: Erika Koss & Carla Martin (3-3:15 p.m.)

Panels: Exploring Ways MetroBoston’s Fine Chocolate & Specialty Coffee Companies Consider & Apply Sustainability & Gender Equity

Fine Chocolate Panel, moderated by Carla Martin (3:15-45 p.m.)

• Katie Reed and Josiah Mayo, Founders, Chequessett Chocolate
• Enna Grazier, Founder, Enna Chocolate
• Cristina Liberati, Equal Exchange
• Monica Rogan, Co-Founder, Goodnow Farms Chocolate
• Colin Gasko, Founder, Rogue Chocolatier

Specialty Coffee Panel, moderated by Erika Koss (3:45-4:15 p.m.)

• George Howell, Founder & CEO, George Howell Coffee
• Barth Anderson, Co-Founder, Barrington Coffee Roasting Company
• Patrick Barter, Gracenote Coffee Roasters
• Jeff Chatlos, Co-Founder, Flat Black Coffee Company
• Miriam Morales, Co-Founder, Recreo Coffee & Roasterie

Presented by NU’s Consortium of Food Sustainability, Health, and Equity and NU’s School of Public Policy and Urban Affairs

Sponsored by NU’s Office of Institutional Diversity and Inclusion

Summit partners:

• Fine Cacao and Chocolate Institute
• Oxfam
• Coffee Quality Institute

Do you drink coffee? Join us for a special preview of Erika’s book-in-progress, where she shares what she’s learned from her travels to Kenya, particularly in connection to the Danish writer, Karen Blixen, who left Denmark in 1914 to move to a coffee plantation in Kenya. She later wrote about her years in ‘British East Africa’ in her best-selling work of non-fiction, Out of Africa (1937).