Ten Years of Impact at Hacienda Alsacia

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<a href="https://www.starbuckscoffeefarm.com/en/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Hacienda Alsacia in Costa Rica</a> is Starbucks first and only company-operated coffee farm, with more than 800,000 coffee trees growing over 240 hectares on the slopes of Poas Volcano. Purchased in 2013, the farm is now headquarters to the Starbucks Costa Rica Farmer Support Center – originally opened in 2004 and now <a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/press/2018/starbucks-farmer-support-centers/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">one of 10 around the world</a> – and Starbucks Global Research and Development team.

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At the farm, the goal is to help solve the many challenges stressing coffee-farming communities around the world – issues like climate change, aging farmer populations and coffee rust. That’s done by creating new disease- and climate-resistant coffee varietals, modeling and developing best agronomy practices that are disseminated to the other Starbucks Farmer Support Centers, working with farmers to help them understand how to assess the taste and quality of their coffee, and acting as a convening place for coffee experts and Starbucks partners (employees). 

There’s state-of-the-art coffee-processing equipment that uses less water and energy compared to traditional coffee processing methods, housing facilities for farm workers, and a visitor center, where almost 100,000 people have taken in-person <a href="https://coffeeexperiences.starbucks.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">tours</a>. More than 1,700 partners have visited the farm for <a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2023/costa-rica-origin-experience-2023/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Starbucks Origin Experiences</a> to immerse in the story of coffee at its source. And more than 280,000 farmers around the world have received training around sustainability and ethical sourcing with information developed at Hacienda Alsacia.

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Following the Journey at Hacienda Alsacia

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Celebrate the 10-year anniversary of Hacienda Alsacia — Starbucks working farm and home to global research and development — and learn about the impact it's had on Starbucks partners (employees), farmers and the coffee industry around the world.

Starbucks Canada

https://stories.starbucks.ca/en-ca/stories/2023/ten-years-of-impact-at-hacienda-alsacia/

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The lab to offer hands-on and virtual learning for Starbucks partners, students, researchers and industry leaders to innovate and scale solutions for some of the world’s most challenging social and environmental issues &nbsp;

Starbucks and Arizona State University partner to create programming this fall; the lab is expected to physically open within the next three years&nbsp;&nbsp;

Seattle, WA — Starbucks announced plans today to develop a new sustainability learning and innovation lab at Hacienda Alsacia – the company’s global agronomy headquarters for research and development, located in Costa Rica. The lab will serve as a hub for hands-on and virtual learning opportunities for Starbucks partners (employees), students, researchers and industry leaders to innovate and scale sustainable solutions for some of the world’s most challenging environmental and social issues, including climate adaption and agricultural economics.&nbsp;&nbsp;

Starting this fall, the lab will offer the first wave of educational programming to select Arizona State University (ASU) students and Starbucks partners. The first wave will leverage ASU’s leading educational technology and world-class faculty to enrich the student experience, including study abroad opportunities tied to existing ASU degree programs, such as Sustainability, Sustainable Food Systems, Global Agribusiness, Environmental and Resource Management, among others. Starbucks lab is expected to physically open within the next three years.&nbsp;

<a href="https://stories.starbucks.ca/stories/2023/ten-years-of-impact-at-hacienda-alsacia/">For more than a decade</a>, Hacienda Alsacia, the company’s first and only company-owned and operated coffee farm, has focused on the sustainability of coffee. The farm is dedicated exclusively to research and development, where the Starbucks team is creating new coffee varieties, testing disease-resistant coffee trees and developing and sharing agricultural practices to produce a higher yield and ensure the future of coffee. While the research and development at Hacienda Alsacia will continue, the lab will expand the capabilities and collaboration needed to cultivate positive social and environmental change beyond coffee.

“This is an opportunity for us to advance Starbucks environmental promise to give more than we take and our farmer promise to ensure the future of coffee for all,” said Laxman Narasimhan, Starbucks chief executive officer. “We know we cannot do this important work alone, and the possibilities in front of us to scale solutions, partner with thought leaders and serve as a global hub for innovation are limitless." 

Starbucks <a href="https://stories.starbucks.ca/mission/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">mission</a> extends well beyond its customers, partners and cafes. As a company that buys 3% of the world’s highest quality and ethically sourced arabica coffee from more than 400,000 farmers in more than 30 countries, Starbucks understands its future is inextricably tied to social and environmental challenges. The company has a long-standing commitment to work alongside communities to become a resource positive company, including cutting its carbon, water and waste footprints in half by 2030. In partnership with others, Starbucks is committed to identifying new ways to give more than it takes with the belief that the company can build a great business that scales for good and has a positive impact on the future.

Starbucks and ASU have a long-standing partnership of working together to build educational and innovative programming. Most recently, Starbucks and ASU reached a milestone of graduating more 10,000 partners through the <a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2023/bridge-to-the-future-more-than-10000-have-graduated-through-starbucks-college-achievement-plan/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Starbucks College Achievement Program.</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

“This is an exciting new chapter in our nearly decade-long partnership with Starbucks,’’ said Arizona State University President Michael Crow. “The new sustainability learning and innovation lab will expand on our collaboration together, working closely to tackle critical challenges with a collective commitment to seek new and sustainable approaches that impact global communities.”&nbsp;

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About Starbucks&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

Since 1971, Starbucks Coffee Company has been committed to ethically sourcing and roasting high-quality arabica coffee. Today, with over 35,000 stores worldwide, the company is the premier roaster and retailer of specialty coffee in the world. Through our unwavering commitment to excellence and our guiding principles, we bring the unique Starbucks Experience to life for every customer through every cup. To share in the experience, please visit us in our stores or online at <a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">stories.starbucks.com</a> or <a href="http://starbucks.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">starbucks.com</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

About Arizona State University&nbsp;&nbsp;

Arizona State University has developed a new model for the American Research University, creating an institution that is committed to access, excellence and impact. ASU measures itself by those it includes, not by those it excludes. As the prototype for a New American University, ASU pursues research that contributes to the public good, and ASU assumes major responsibility for the economic, social and cultural vitality of the communities that surround it.&nbsp;

The lab to offer hands-on and virtual learning for Starbucks partners, students, researchers and industry leaders to innovate and scale solutions for some of the world’s most challenging social and environmental issues.

Starbucks to open sustainability learning and innovation lab in Costa Rica - Starbucks Canada

Starbucks to open sustainability learning and innovation lab in Costa Rica

https://stories.starbucks.ca/en-ca/press/2023/starbucks-to-open-sustainability-learning-and-innovation-lab-in-costa-rica/

Jeffrey Dugas lined up with dozens of other Starbucks partners early Wednesday morning, wearing iconic green aprons and carrying trays of cups of coffee, ready to pass them out to 2,000 district managers and other partners gathered in Seattle for a leadership conference.

The reason? The debut of a new coffee, Starbucks Green Apron Blend.

The coffee will be available in stores this summer, but Starbucks partners across stores in North America and at the conference got a first sip of it this week. The sneak peek seemed only fitting — after all, Starbucks partners were the ones who created and inspired it.

Nearly 24,000 Starbucks partners – almost all of them from stores across North America – collaborated on creating Starbucks Green Apron Blend. They shared their ideas for unique blend, including which coffee regions to include, the flavor and roast profiles and even the name of the coffee, said Michelle Burns, Starbucks executive vice president of global coffee, social impact and sustainability at the Seattle event.

Last spring, Starbucks kicked off a plan to reinvent the company, in collaboration with partners, with coffee at the core. The new coffee is a part of that and a symbol of what’s possible.

“Our challenge is to honour our heritage, while reimagining our future,” said Burns. “There’s no better way for us to do that than through coffee. So, we asked partners to help us develop our next blend – a coffee that represents our future, honors our past and shows us what’s possible when we work together.”

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Forty percent of partners said Blonde roasts are their favorite and that they love sweet, nutty and fruity flavors. Partners also said they especially enjoyed coffees grown in Africa and Latin America.

The result is a light and lively Blonde roast, with hints of Honeybell orange and graham crackers, that pays homage to the retail partners across the globe who are a bright moment in their day for so many customers.

Dugas, a manager on Starbucks inclusion and diversity team who lives in San Antonio, Texas, said that as he passed out cups of coffee, he heard partners take their first slurp, a sound that rippled across the room, but what struck him was what came next. “There was a sound of ‘Ahhhh’,” he said.&nbsp;

It’s not just about the taste but what the coffee means, he said. “It’s something that brings us together. It’s about the connection.”

Dugas said that the most meaningful thing to him about the coffee is that it’s created by partners, for partners — a portion of the proceeds will be donated to the <a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/stories/2014/partners-helping-partners-the-starbucks-cup-fund/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CUP Fund</a>, a partner-funded program that helps partners in need (CUP stands for “Caring Unites Partners”).

“This coffee showcases our commitment to one another and the possibilities we unlock when we connect and collaborate,” said Burns. “It also shows the deep passion and love our partners have for coffee.”&nbsp;&nbsp;

Partners inspire beverages around the world

While the Starbucks Green Apron Blend is new, Starbucks has a history of developing beverages for stores that were created by retail partners, inspired by flavors unique to their regions: Axolotls in Mexico. Brigadeiros in Brazil. Roasted chestnuts in Japan. Caramel nuts in Puerto Rico. Some of their creations have been sold in stores to mark a milestone in their market, or simply to provide an opportunity for Starbucks baristas to shine, showing off their passion for coffee with pride.

Read on to learn more about delicious, innovative beverages around the world created by Starbucks partners:

The pink-orange axolotl, a species of salamander that is part of Mexico’s Aztec culture, was the catalyst for Scarlet, a barista in Mexico City, to invent the Ajolito Acaí Frappuccino®.

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The strawberry-based recipe was created as part of a contest as <a href="https://historias.starbucks.com/en-es/press/2022/starbucks-mexico-launches-three-limited-edition-beverages-created-by-partners/">Starbucks celebrated its 20th anniversary in Mexico</a>. A portion of the proceeds of the three winning barista-invented Frappuccinos® were donated to environmental conservation organizations in Mexico.

In Brazil, a traditional chocolate truffle called the brigadeiro inspired several innovative Frappuccino® blended beverage recipes. <a href="https://historias.starbucks.com/br/press/2021/starbucks-lanca-5-sabores-ineditos-de-frappuccino-em-edicao-limitada-para-comemorar-seu-15o-aniversario-no-brasil/">Five barista-created Frappuccinos</a>® were offered for a limited time to celebrate Starbucks 15th anniversary in Brazil, with profits donated to a community-building organization offering services in education, economic development and citizenship for people in need.

In Japan, the esteemed Starbucks <a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/asia/stories/2020/japan-coffee-ambassadors-creations-connect-customers-to-baristas/">Coffee Ambassadors</a> whipped up an <a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/asia/stories/2022/new-fall-beverages-created-by-starbucks-japan-baristas/">tasty lineup for fall</a>, featuring the flavors of roasted chestnuts. The four partners earned their titles through a nation-wide competition, giving them the opportunity to share their passion for coffee craft across Japan.

Starbucks <a href="https://historias.starbucks.com/en-es/press/2022/starbucks-celebrates-20-years-in-puerto-rico/">celebrated its 20th anniversary in Puerto Rico</a> in September with a limited-edition beverage created by Starbucks Barista Champions. The <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CiSkx6yMb1W/?hl=en">Choco Nut Spice</a> beverage combined white mocha with caramel nut, oatmilk and cinnamon. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to a community non-profit organization.

Rachelle Askman and Kate Tanquary contributed to this article.

Smiling people in black and green aprons carrying trays of coffee cups

Proceeds from the new coffee, which will be available in stores this summer, will benefit Starbucks CUP Fund to help partners in need. It’s the latest in a tradition of drinks inspired by Starbucks baristas around the world.

Starbucks partners taste first sip of Starbucks Green Apron Blend, created by partners for partners - Starbucks Canada

Starbucks partners taste first sip of Starbucks Green Apron Blend, created by partners for partners

https://stories.starbucks.ca/en-ca/stories/2022/starbucks-partners-taste-first-sip-of-starbucks-green-apron-blend-a-new-coffee-created-by-partners-for-partners/

The coffee you order helps support our commitment to farmers and their communities. From donating disease-resistant coffee trees to investing in sustainable agricultural practices and conserving water in coffee processing, we’re working to empower communities and improve livelihoods.

Here’s how we’re making a difference

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The Starbucks approach to ethical sourcing 

<a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/press/2020/cafe-practices-starbucks-approach-to-ethically-sourcing-coffee/">Learn more</a>

Trace your coffee’s journey

<a href="https://traceability.starbucks.com/#/">Explore now</a>

Enhance your own coffee knowledge

<a href="https://ca.starbucksglobalacademy.com/coffee-academy/">Learn more</a>

The coffee you order helps support our commitment to farmers and their communities.

Uplifting communities with every cup - Starbucks Canada

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https://stories.starbucks.ca/en-ca/stories/2022/18958/

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Uplifting communities with every cup

Announcing return date of its beloved Pumpkin Spice Latte (PSL), Starbucks® has declared Tuesday, August 27, the first day of Fall.

Celebrating its sixteenth year, Pumpkin Spice Latte has become a cultural phenomenon, synonymous with Fall, and is Starbucks top-selling seasonal beverage of all time, having sold an estimated more than 424 million since 2003!

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Starbucks PSL is made with real pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg and clove, for a taste of the season with each sip. It’s handcrafted with espresso and steamed milk and topped off with whipped cream and a dash of pumpkin spice topping. 

Like all beverages at Starbucks, you can customize your PSL so it’s just how you want it!

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Pumpkin Spice Latte History

Stay tuned for more exciting Fall menu news!

*&nbsp; Pumpkin spice sauce contains dairy

Announcing return date of its beloved Pumpkin Spice Latte, Starbucks® has declared Tuesday, August 27, the first day of Fall.

Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte is returning to stores! - Starbucks Canada

Fall is here! Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Latte is returning to stores Tuesday, August 27th

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With summer coming, nothing hits the spot quite like a delicious iced coffee. Here’s a simple tip to get the most out of your brew — make your ice cubes out of coffee. When you pour hot coffee over regular ice cubes, they water it down and dilute the taste as they melt. But with coffee cubes you get full flavour down to the last drop.

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1. Brew 16 oz of coffee and let cool.

2.&nbsp;Pour coffee evenly into ice cube tray and place in freezer.

3. Fill glass with frozen coffee cubes.

4.&nbsp;Top it off with hot coffee.

5.&nbsp;Add cream and sweetener if desired.

Coffee Ice Cubes

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PRO TIP: Save time by filling your tray with a Grande drip coffee or a Grande Americano from your local <a href="https://www.starbucks.ca/store-locator?map=57.751076,-101.645508,4z" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" aria-label="Starbucks store (opens in a new tab)">Starbucks store</a>.

Tired of your iced coffee getting weak by the time you get to the second sip? Use coffee ice cubes instead, follow this recipe to learn how to make them.

Coffee Ice Cubes Recipe

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https://stories.starbucks.ca/en-ca/stories/2019/coffee-ice-cubes-recipe/

The May long weekend is the official Canadian summer kickoff, and Starbucks has a selection of great items to accompany any outdoor enthusiast on their weekend adventures.

Whether you’re looking forward to sipping espresso on the dock at the cottage, warming up by the fire while backcountry camping, or picnicking at a park in the city, Starbucks new line of merchandise has a variety of covetable items that are perfect additions to embracing the great outdoors.

20-ounce Magnetic Lid Water Bottle in Black Desert Floral $34.95 CAD

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When the rain keeps you indoors:

Playing Cards $9.95 CAD

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If you're craving that fresh-pressed coffee on the campsite:

Espro Ultralight Travel Press 16-ounce $54.95 CAD

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When your picnic has more than finger food:

Starbucks Utensils $14.95 CAD

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For quick, convenient and delicious coffee access:

Starbucks VIA® Instant Coffee $13.95 CAD

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When you can't get to a campfire to make your favourite summertime treat:

S'mores Frappuccino

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All products available in select stores while supplies last.

New Starbucks merch will make you one happy camper - Starbucks Canada

New Starbucks merch will make you one happy camper

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https://stories.starbucks.ca/en-ca/stories/2019/starbucks-merch-will-make-you-one-happy-camper/

Once upon a time, s’mores were a humble dessert. The original recipe was from a scouting magazine in the 1920s, calling for a toasted marshmallow sandwiched between pieces of chocolate and two graham crackers. 

But now s’mores aren’t just for campfires anymore. 

You can roast your own tableside in high-end restaurants, sidle up to a s’mores bar at a wedding reception, or order them to-go at a neighborhood food truck. They have inspired such culinary creations as s’mores grilled cheese sandwiches, muffins and pizza – even a s’mores burrito. There’s something nostalgic in that combination of melted chocolate, roasted marshmallow and crunchy graham crackers that makes it <a href="https://imbibeinc.com/food-and-beverage-industry-media/blog-postings-from-the-drink-tank/trendspotting-2019-trends">one of the top beverage trends for 2019</a>.

Now Starbucks S’mores Frappuccino® blended coffee <a href="https://stories.starbucks.ca/en/stories/2019/smores-frappuccino-blended-beverage-will-return-to-starbucks-next-week/">is back in Starbucks stores</a> in Canada and the U.S. starting today (April 30) for a limited time, while supplies last (along with Mocha Cookie Crumble Frappuccino and Caramel Ribbon Crunch Frappuccino).

It was those memories of summertime that first sparked the idea for the beverage, which was first introduced in 2015. Paloma Carrington-Bataller, manager of product development for Starbucks, wasn’t yet on the R&amp;D team, but knows its origin story well.

“When we start creating a new beverage, we always try to think about our customer. What they are doing? How do they want to be feeling? What is their mindset? All those things go into every beverage we make,” she said.

The R&amp;D partners started with the idea of summers in the outdoors and spending time with friends and family. That led to the concept of roasting s’mores around a campfire. They came up with a Frappuccino recipe that’s a deconstructed version of the fireside classic with milk chocolate sauce, a creamy blend of vanilla, coffee, milk and ice that’s finished off with marshmallowy whipped cream and a graham cracker crumble. 

“Customers loved it,” Carrington-Bataller said. “There’s something about that first sip of marshmallow whip and the rich texture of our amazing milk chocolate sauce. It takes you right back to memories of summer camp or gathering around a bonfire with friends.”

The Frappuccino was a customer-favourite for three summers before taking a hiatus in 2018 and had a passionate fan base like Pumpkin Spice Latte. Customers didn’t take it well.

“My friends know I work at Starbucks and I got phone calls from them, asking why it wasn’t in stores,” she said. “People were upset!” 

Now that S’mores Frappuccino is back on the menu at Starbucks this summer by popular demand, she gets to enjoy hearing from friends about their favourite drink again. 

“I think one of the reasons people love s’mores so much is that they aren’t something you make for only yourself,” she said. “It’s something that’s shared with others.”

Starbucks S’mores Frappuccino, in stores for a limited time this summer, rekindles feelings of nostalgia.

How a campfire treat sparked one of summer’s big trends - Starbucks Canada

How a campfire treat sparked one of summer’s big trends

https://stories.starbucks.ca/en-ca/stories/2019/how-a-campfire-treat-sparked-one-of-summers-big-trends/

A lot of people, love and science make your morning cup happen.

At a coffee farm on the side of volcano in Costa Rica, Starbucks is innovating and learning on behalf of the coffee farmers everywhere. All that research is open-source, in pursuit of making coffee the first sustainable agriculture product. It’s a huge undertaking, but one that everyone involved takes personally. 

At a coffee farm on the side of volcano in Costa Rica, Starbucks is innovating and learning on behalf of the coffee farmers everywhere.

From seed to cup: The journey to sustainable coffee - Starbucks Canada

From seed to cup: The journey to sustainable coffee

https://stories.starbucks.ca/en-ca/stories/2019/from-seed-to-cup-the-journey-to-sustainable-coffee/

A lot of people, love and science make your morning cup happen.

In honour of International Women’s Day, meet Cecilia Valderrama Gómez, Manjula Kahar and Nande Anggun, women who live in different countries but are united in their commitment to improving their communities with the support of The Starbucks Foundation. 

It was a mother’s sacrifice that was nearly unfathomable. In order to save her children, Cecilia Valderrama Gómez knew she would have to send them away. She and her husband and four children lived in El Escobal, a rural area in Colombia that was controlled for 50 years by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC).

“Because of the conflict, people were living in fear,” she said. “There was a lot of fear in doing just basic activities. We couldn’t dare try to leave the area.” 

The FARC was known to recruit young children and use them as runners. So, when Valderrama Gómez’s children were between 9 and 13, she sent three of them to stay with family in a safer area where they could go to school and wouldn’t be taken by the FARC.

“I didn’t want them to be at risk,” she said. Years passed, and it wasn’t until the conflict ended two years ago that she saw them again. Her son who wasn’t able to go with the others ended up being conscripted by the FARC and later went to jail.

It’s overwhelming recalling all that she went through living in the shadow of the FARC, she said. Instead, she chooses to focus on the present and work toward the future. Today, “I’m happy and hopeful,” she said. “I have always wanted to help others fight for a better life and to help others get ahead.”

Valderrama Gómez, 52, is doing exactly that as president of the Escobal Women’s Association, an organization comprised of 16 women, dedicated to improving conditions for the community after the conflict. About half of the families in her community don’t have basic sanitation services. Many don’t have bathrooms. 

That’s now starting to change due to help from a $500,000 grant to Lutheran World Relief from The Starbucks Foundation, which is targeted toward improving sanitation and access to clean water and also creating greater economic opportunity for women in coffee communities in Tolima, Colombia. 

In 2018, The Starbucks Foundation announced a goal of empowering 250,000 women and girls by 2025 in communities where coffee, tea, and cocoa is grown. Since then, the foundation has given nearly $4 million dollars to 11 programs focused on women’s leadership opportunities, economic development, access to water, sanitation, health, education and more. 

Starbucks currently partners with a number of non-profits around the world who lead the programs, including Barefoot College, CARE, Days for Girls International, Lutheran World Relief (in Colombia and Indonesia), Roger Federer Foundation, Send a Cow, UNICEF Ethical Tea Partnership, Instituto del Café’ de Costa Rica, Malala Fund and World Relief.

Fact Sheet: <a href="https://stories.starbucks.com/uploads/2019/03/Fact-Sheet-The-Starbucks-Foundation-Grants-to-Empowering-Women.pdf">The Starbucks Foundation Grants to Empowering Women</a>

“When you invest in women, you are investing in an entire ecosystem,” said Virginia Tenpenny, vice president of Global Social Impact at Starbucks and executive director of The Starbucks Foundation. “We’re focused on investments that lead to women being empowered, specifically in health, educational opportunities and income, so they can in turn empower their families and communities as well.”

The women of the Escobal Women’s Association may be small in number, but they know how to organize and get things done, a point of pride for Valderrama Gómez. They raise bees and sell the honey locally, providing an income for their families while working toward a goal of being able to sell their honey in the larger cities and grow their customer base. 

They are also about to use those same organizational skills to help facilitate the building of more toilets in her community. Women from her group will meet with families in the area to assess the need. And then they’ll coordinate getting the supplies there via a two-hour journey by donkey.

Valderrama Gómez knows that better sanitation means less sickness and disease. People get sick if the water is contaminated. The closest hospital is miles away. 

“If you have better sanitation, you have better health,” she said. “My hope is to see new projects continue and for the community to really grow, not just in prosperity but in peace.”

That’s the hope of The Starbucks Foundation too, said Tenpenny.

“Women have an instinct to pay it forward,” she said. In honor of International Women’s Day on March 8, meet some of the other women who are working to change the world, one community at a time.

At 3 p.m. each afternoon, about 120 children arrive at Majula Kahar’s home in Assam, India, for her after-school education program. For the next two hours, Kahar teaches them how to read and write. Though Kahar comes from modest means, she does it without pay, committed to helping the children have opportunities she didn’t growing up. 

Like them, Kahar, now 26, grew up on the Moran Tea Estate, the daughter of a tea picker. She attended the local government school when she was a girl, especially unusual for young girls in the region. Due to limited access to school and lack of resources, many children on tea estates who do attend school drop out before high school without being able to read, making aspirations and economic opportunities nearly impossible.

&nbsp;“The after-school program that these children are a part of is for lower-income groups,” she said. “I feel change will come when it is communicated that education is a largest priority. I want the community to be educated and to value education.”

In many tea communities, education is prioritized for boys, with girls being expected to focus on household chores, she said. But Kahar’s mother, a tea picker whom she calls the core of the family, always placed value on education. She encouraged all three of her children to continue school, even as Kahar saw many of her friends drop out and get married early. &nbsp;

Kahar went through a training program to learn how to teach children as part of <a href="https://www.starbucks.com/responsibility/sourcing/tea">Mercy Corps’ Community Health and Advancement Initiative (CHAI)</a>, supported since 2003 by &nbsp;The Starbucks Foundation. Today she is earning her Bachelor of Arts degree at Moran College to advance access to education for children in her community.&nbsp;

“I always had the desire to be a teacher,” she said. “Education was not a priority on tea estates growing up, and after getting training, I began teaching kids in the community. I quickly saw, after three or four months, an improvement in students. They could now recognize the alphabet and write short sentences. One student even began to sing stories in the classroom to friends.&nbsp; This is the inspiration I see in schools. I am happy that I can contribute to my community and society.”

The number of students who come to Kahar’s classes continues to grow. Many, who are eager for the chance to learn, are bringing their friends. She finds room for them all.

Education, she knows, is the key to unlocking a better life, particularly for girls.

“I want to see women and girls uplifted in parts of the world where they are deprived of education,” she said. “I hope one day the woman will rise and be given importance in the world.”

After she graduates from college, she wants to be a school teacher, which she sees as her path to changing the world. 

It’s early morning and Nande Anggun, 48, has not been to bed yet. As a midwife, she’s accustomed to being up at all hours at the side of women who need her. On this day last week, she’s just helped deliver a baby girl – part of the next generation of women in the Indonesian community that Anggun has devoted her life to helping empower.

In addition to being a midwife for the last 26 years, she also works with young children and the elderly, tends to her farm of 200 coffee trees and is also the treasurer of Pembianaan Kesejahteraan Keluarga (PKK), a family welfare organization led by women focused on helping develop women’s leadership, governance, management, strategic planning and more in their villages. It’s rare for her to get more than six hours of sleep a night, but it’s worth it, she says, because she knows that this is how change happens.

“I’m very proud to participate in community activities because I look for how the women in my community can have a better life,” she said, as she sat in the lobby of her local health clinic. 

In 2018 Lutheran World Relief, which works with PKK, was given a three-year grant from The Starbucks Foundation totaling $500,000 to support women-led community health and hygiene programs for 2,100 households in Indonesian coffee-producing villages. 

PKK is leading a series of workshops where women in the community can discuss various topics about health and family. The group is focused on helping women build, and then advocate, for their own agendas in their lives and communities. Often, she said, the weight of caring for the family and making sure bills are paid falls to women, even when they are working outside the home. 

“Women are considered the responsible person for running a family,” she said. 

She recently led a workshop focused on the roles of women and men in families – and how women can navigate conversations with their husbands about being more involved as fathers and seeing their wives as equals. It sparked a conversation with Anggun’s own husband, whom she said doesn’t always understand why she is so busy volunteering her time. 

She puts her hand to her heart as she talks about what matters – she wants to make things better for those who are coming behind her. Women coming together can be powerful, she said. “It’s not always just about gaining new knowledge, but other women might be thinking about the same things,” she said. That is how change begins.

Her face lights up as she talks about her own children, a 25-year-old daughter and her 21-year-old son. 

“As a mother, I always hope my daughter can hope she has a better life than me. I hope she and her husband can discuss everything about the family,” she said.

In addition to the community workshops, part of the grant is focused toward improving sanitation and access to clean water. Women who volunteer with PKK will be trained to help educate people about better sanitation. Grant dollars will help fund the construction of 18 communal water and sanitation facilities in five communities, featuring a shower, toilet, sink and water storage tank. 

While Anggun has running water at her house, many in her village don’t. When she goes to visit friends who only have latrines and no water, she worries for them, she said. 

Better health, better sanitation and women who are truly supported in their communities are the goals that drive her, she said. “When I grow old and look back, I hope that people will remember the work I’ve done and the love and hope I have for people,” she said.

Just then, someone approaches and Anggun excuses herself. A woman in labor needs her. Another baby, part of the next generation in her community, was about to be born. 

Luz Ruiz Salazar contributed to this story.

SBX030419 &#8211; IWD-Manjula Kahar India