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programs
The programs Coffee Kids sponsors are as unique as the communities in which they are based. That’s because Coffee Kids helps communities develop their own programs creating self-sufficiency and ownership that afford coffee-farming families a higher quality of life while still working in coffee. Our projects are classified by four categories, including: Microcredit, Education, Health Care, and Community-Based Projects. (Click the map to view a larger version.)
You can also see where our partners work on Google Earth. Simply download the program at http://earth.google.com and install it on your computer. Then download the link below and double-click it to open up a list of all of Coffee Kids partners.
CoffeeKids_2008-2009.kmz
Below is a list of our partner organizations and how they are creating opportunities in their communities. Click on a name to jump down the page to that program.
| ACMUV | Microcredit & Education |
| ADESPA | Community-Based Projects |
| APROS | Health Care |
| AUGE | Microcredit & Community-Based Projects |
| CAMPO | Community-Based Projects |
| CECOCAFEN | Microcredit & Education |
| COCLA | Health Care |
| FomCafé | Microcredit & Community-Based Projects |
| FHC | Education |
| ICSUR | Community-Based Projects |
| SOPPEXCCA | Education |
| STIAP | Community-Based Projects |
ACMUV (The Chajulense Association of Women United for Life)
Chajul, GuatemalaMicrocredit and Education – Coffee Kids partner since Fall 2007
ACMUV Case Study (PDF; 144 KB)
Look at ACMUV photos on Flickr
ACMUV, based in the community of Chajul, Guatemala, was formed in 2008 by a group of women working with the Chajulense Association (a Coffee Kids partner in 2007-2008). The organization was created to give the women economic alternatives and an independent voice in the community. ACMUV manages a textile project that provides additional income for local women.
In 2008-2009, ACMUV will launch a microcredit project to provide business training and access to small loans to the women of ACMUV. Members of ACMUV will also participate in an exchange with Coffee Kids’ partner AUGE of Veracruz, Mexico, to benefit from their extensive experience in microcredit.
ADESPA (Association for Sustainable Development of Paraxaj)
Aldea Paraxaj, GuatemalaCommunity-Based Projects – Coffee Kids partner since 2006
ADESPA Case Study (PDF; 136 KB)
Look at ADESPA photos on Flickr
ADESPA works with 125 families living on a coffee plantation in Paraxaj, Guatemala. They offer adult literacy classes to community members and basic business training to increase economic opportunities and lessen the impact of adult illiteracy.
This year ADESPA adopted an adult-specific curriculum to teach reading more effectively. They also provide business and management training through a small bakery and an embroidery project. ADESPA hopes to stimulate confidence and self-esteem and an increased awareness of human rights among project participants.
APROS (Association of Health Promoters of San Pedro)
Lake Atitlán, GuatemalaHealth Care – Coffee Kids partner since 1995
APROS Case Study (PDF; 156 KB)
Look at APROS photos on Flickr
APROS is an organization of female health promoters from six rural, isolated coffee-growing communities around Lake Atitlán in Guatemala. Their community-based health care project trains new health promoters, teaches women and children about basic health care and hygiene and provides support to widows.
APROS’ health care project teaches pre- and post-natal care, the use of medicinal plants and the importance of a nutritious diet. Their widow’s project offers medical check-ups, basic food supplies, recreational activities, and a sense of belonging for women who have lost their husbands to migration or years of civil war. APROS also coordinates an environmental education project for children in two local schools that illustrates how the health of the community is tied to the health of the surrounding environment.
AUGE (Self-Managed Development)
Veracruz, MexicoMicrocredit and Community-Based Projects – Coffee Kids partner since 1995
AUGE Case Study (PDF; 176 KB)
Look at AUGE photos on Flickr
Developed by AUGE, the Groups of Women Saving in Solidarity (GMAS) microcredit project serves thousands of women and their families. The project provides access to small, low-interest loans to start or expand small businesses. They range from selling tortillas and vegetables to opening a general store or bakery.
The GMAS project is unique for its emphasis on financial literacy and savings practices in addition to loans. To qualify for loans, members first demonstrate an ability to save, guaranteeing that they can manage personal finances. AUGE incorporates a food security component in its educational curriculum to teach community members how to deal with rising food prices. Efforts focus on creating awareness of the problem and encouraging the production of fresh, locally-grown food.
CAMPO (Center of Support for the Popular Movement of Oaxaca)
Oaxaca, MexicoCommunity-Based Projects – Coffee Kids partner since 1996
CAMPO Case Study (PDF; 152 KB)
Look at CAMPO photos on Flickr
CAMPO works with indigenous populations in Oaxaca, Mexico to foster community activism, human rights awareness, and sustainable agriculture. The organization supports projects including chicken-raising, organic honey production, worm- composting for organic family gardens, fruit and vegetable canning, and wood-saving stoves.
This year, CAMPO will complete the Regional Center for Technological Innovation on Sustainable Development of Oaxaca (CRITED). The center will provide educational opportunities for impoverished populations and will be used to educate municipal authorities and others interested in sustainable development.
CECOCAFEN (Organization of Northern Coffee Cooperatives)
Matagalpa, Jinotega and Nueva Segovia, NicaraguaMicrocredit and Education – Coffee Kids partner since 1998
CECOCAFEN Case Study (PDF; 136 KB)
CECOCAFEN, an association of coffee cooperatives representing more than 2,000 farmers, has two successful projects modeled on other Coffee Kids projects. The Groups of Women Saving in Solidarity (GMAS) project supports microcredit and savings groups for women. Participants have access to small low-interest loans which they invest in small businesses to help diversify and strengthen the local economy. This year, the GMAS project will add a new component that helps participants with the commercialization of their products.
CECOCAFEN’s Rural Education Project provides scholarships to high school, vocational and university students. Scholarship recipients receive work experience by working in the cooperative. These scholarships make it possible for children from poor coffee-growing communities to continue their education, even when the cost of doing so is beyond their parents’ reach.
COCLA (Organization of Agrarian Coffee Cooperatives)
Vilcabamba, PeruHealth Care – Coffee Kids partner since 2007
COCLA Case Study (PDF; 160 KB)
Look at COCLA photos on Flickr
COCLA is a cooperative that comprises approximately 8,500 coffee-producing families in the Cusco region of Peru. COCLA’s health project promotes the importance of preventive health care, increases awareness of and access to government-sponsored health services, and advocates for public health resources in the region.
The goals of the project are to train and organize 15 groups of volunteer health promoters to provide health education in the community; organize a board to advocate for increased government-sponsored health services in the region; and create a local emergency response network that can provide first aid and emergency transportation when necessary.
FomCafé (Fostering Community Initiatives in Coffee Regions)
Oaxaca, MexicoMicrocredit and Community-Based Projects – Coffee Kids partner since 2000
FomCafé Case Study (PDF; 152 KB)
Look at FomCafé photos on Flickr
Iniciativa FomCafé works with coffee-growing communities in the state of Oaxaca, Mexico, helping participants create and implement community-based projects including edible mushroom production, microcredit and savings groups, family gardens, organic honey production and health care education.
FomCafé’s projects promote economic diversification as a means of alleviating poverty. In 2008-2009, Coffee Kids will provide FomCafé with seed capital to create eight new microcredit groups and the funds to bolster seven established microcredit groups through monitoring and follow-up.
Fundación Hijos del Campo (The Rural Children’s Education Foundation)
Costa RicaEducation – Coffee Kids partner since 1996
FHC Case Study (PDF; 156 KB)
Look at FHC photos on Flickr
Fundación Hijos del Campo (FHC) began in 1996 as an initiative to provide educational opportunities for the children of coffee farmers in 40 communities belonging to the cooperative COOCAFE in Costa Rica. Since its inception, FHC has provided educational opportunities to thousands of students.
Over the past two years, the organization created an innovative system to make the education project completely self-sustaining. FHC leverages government loans to provide scholarships and created a trust to provide financial guarantees on the loans. FHC will also provide scholarship recipients with computers. Over three years, students pay back the cost of the equipment plus interest, which will allow FHC to purchase more equipment for other students.
ICSUR (Association for Research and Training of Southeastern Mexico)
Chiapas, MexicoCommunity-Based Projects – Coffee Kids partner since 2006
ICSUR Case Study (PDF; 144 KB)
Look at ICSUR photos on Flickr
ICSUR supports social and economic development in the northern region of Chiapas, Mexico, home to several small-scale coffee-growing communities, primarily of the Zoque indigenous group. Their chicken-raising project provides a local source of meat and eggs; their edible mushroom project uses organic waste to grow mushrooms; and their new gardening project will focus on medicinal and decorative plant production.
All of ICSUR’s projects help alleviate dependence on the coffee harvest by providing supplemental income through the sale of products in the local market. They also promote a healthier, more varied diet and help women build business and leadership skills. In addition, a team of health promoters will be given training in the use of traditional medicines.
SOPPEXCCA (Society of Small Producers for Coffee Export)
Jinotega, NicaraguaEducation- Coffee Kids partner since 2007
SOPPEXCCA Case Study (PDF; 144 KB)
SOPPEXCCA, an association of coffee cooperatives representing 650 farmers, manages two projects for youth in coffee-growing communities. Jóvenes Ambientalistas (Environmental Youth Movement) and Muchachitos del Café (Coffee Children) work with teens and children at rural schools to identify local environmental issues and carry out education campaigns concerning them.
The programs educate students about environmental stewardship, leadership and democratic ideology through extracurricular activities and workshops. The projects’ goal is to nurture a new generation of people who have the confidence and leadership skills to improve their own quality of life and that of their community.
STIAP (Union of Independent Workers of Alianza Ranch)
El Palmar, GuatemalaCommunity-Based Projects – Coffee Kids partner since 2007
STIAP Case Study (PDF; 136 KB)
Look at STIAP Photos on Flickr
STIAP represents 40 families who in 2004, bought the ranch where they previously worked under a landowner. The community has since instituted a variety of development efforts, including: coffee and macadamia nut production, a water purification plant, eco-tourism and animal husbandry. In 2007, Coffee Kids supported their efforts to increase biodiesel production.
This year STIAP hopes to improve their community’s food security by creating an organic gardening project that will benefit their community and the surrounding areas. Training in organic gardening will be given to interested families and STIAP employees will manage a community parcel. The project will reduce community reliance on outside food sources and provide families with additional income through the sale of surplus food.