Kickstarter

• Courage (n): the ability to confront fear, pain, danger, uncertainty, or intimidation. Acting in spite of fear.
• Coffee (n): one of the most consumed beverages in the world.

Behind every cup of coffee are the stories of millions of women who are confronted with challenges of poverty, poor health, illiteracy and discrimination. You may not know their names, but they are in the fields hand-picking coffee, in the factories hand-selecting the quality beans, they are in the board rooms, roasting plants, and the commodities exchange. These are the women in coffee…the unseen engines behind the global coffee industry.

• Meet Eugenie, who during the Rwandan Genocide was in hiding for months, then sold to a man to save her life. Afterwards, she worked her small coffee plot and through innovative means saved enough money to buy a small house which she rents for extra income.  She now works in a coffee cupping lab using her palate to discern the distinctive qualities of Rwandan coffee.
• Meet Fatima, a leader in the cooperative movement in Nicaragua, who led a coffee cooperative out of bankruptcy and now works with the farmers to encourage the evolution of cultural norms from 'machismo' to equality for women. Women now make up 30% of the cooperative leadership, and men's attitudes are evolving. 
• Meet Erna, the woman who in the early days of her career in the 1970s, was not allowed into the tasting room at a coffee-importing firm where she worked. Years later, she bought the firm, coined the term 'specialty coffee' and became a lynchpin for a newly burgeoning industry. 

Courage in a Cup challenges the established belief that men dominate the coffee industry, and delves into the power of women who have triumphed over the challenges brought on by global, economic, cultural and community pressures.

Courage in a Cup will take you to the fields in Guatemala, the marketplace in Tanzania, the boardrooms in Europe, the cupping room in U.S. and the roasting plants in Norway, honoring these unsung heroes of the coffee world. Through a series of profiles, the book will celebrate the power and perseverance of women who have helped bring about transformative results.

With your help, Courage in a Cup will bring stories of women in the coffee world to life. Each woman’s story will demonstrate the impact that one woman, empowered and connected, can have -- not only on herself, but her family, her community and ultimately the broader world.

Your support of Courage in a Cup, will help with first run print of 1,000 books, photography, travel, and whatever else may arise in the process of gathering profiles and bringing the book to print.

Budget Details: Research, photography and printing make up the bulk of the costs. This book will printed in full color to bring the alluring stories of coffee and the women to life.  High quality photos will capture the true essence of these amazing people and draw readers into the struggle and triumphs of the women. This book is global in its scope, so research must happen on several continents.  We will keep research costs low by combining research trips with scheduled other business, and conducting much of the research by phone and email. The book will be self-published, meaning that print costs fall to us, as well as the promotion of the book. All of this quickly adds up to over $30,000.  We plan to print 4,000 copies of the book for distribution through coffee shops, and online booksellers. The book will be priced between $23 - $30. We will be putting in our own 'sweat equity' and securing additional funding from other sources as necessary. 

• Research: $5000
• Photography (estimated 12 sites):  $8000
• Printing (4,000 copies, 180 pages, full color, plus digital version): $17,000+
• Promotion: $2000