The idea was formed in the depths of a Montana winter…
when thoughts of tropical venues are at their strongest. The question we asked ourselves was a simple one - what can we do, as coffee consumers and as operators of a coffee business, to ensure the success of our coffee growing partners in those far away tropical settings? We all owe much to coffee and there is much we can do to see our success reflected in the lives of those we depend on for coffee.
“There is much we can do to see our success reflected in the lives of those we depend on for coffee.”
Growing coffee is hard, challenging work with the risks and rewards that come with any agricultural crop. It grows in lush, mountainous landscapes that can provide not only income from the coffee but also food crops for the family, the market, and livestock. The satisfaction of working on the land is intangible yet has a draw that is timeless.
The risks are numerous - maybe more numerous than the rewards at times. Low prices, high costs of production and labor, changing environmental conditions, lack of technical training, too much rain, not enough rain, fungus, pests, frosts, lack of credit. These are just a few of the challenges facing coffee farmers. Yet, they persist - the intangible rewards, for most of the time, outweigh the risks.
By supporting organizations that are directly addressing many of the problems faced by farmers and coffee growing communities, the Coffeelands Foundation, through your support, can have a lasting impact.
The Coffeelands Foundation was founded in 2014 by Scott Brant, Mike Jopek and Dan Weinberg.
We are a fully recognized non-profit organization with a 501(c)(3) designation by the IRS. Your donations are tax-deductible to the full extent of the law.
We have a Board of Directors and an Advisory Panel. The function of the Board is to carry out the purposes of the Foundation: to actively oversee and distribute donated funds to organizations that are managing programs and projects that provide support in coffee-growing communities. The Advisory panel provides guidance to the Foundation in realizing its goals.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Scott Brant - Chairman, Executive Director and Founder of Coffeelands
Scott has worked for over three decades in coffee. He helped found a successful roasting company in the early 1980s, Montana Coffee Traders. As the primary coffee buyer and roaster for the company Scott developed an understanding of the challenges facing coffee businesses and the reality of fluctuating coffee prices affecting the world of coffee producers. In the course of his career Scott had the opportunity to establish coffee roasting businesses in Moscow, Russia, and in Passau, Germany. He has been involved in every aspect of the coffee roasting and retailing business from espresso machine repair to shipping to unloading thousands of pounds of green coffee. As a coffee buyer, Scott has traveled extensively through Latin America and Ethiopia. He had the privilege of serving as an international juror on numerous Cup of Excellence competitions. He has been a frequent volunteer at numerous Specialty Coffee training events. His travels in coffee-producing countries and his passion for socially/environmentally accountable coffee have motivated Scott to explore ways to contribute to the growing need for vital support in coffee-growing communities. The formation of the Coffeelands Foundation is a way to realize this goal.
Mike Jopek - Vice President, Secretary
Mike is a farmer and co-owner of Purple Frog Gardens in Whitefish, Montana. He is a political writer, community organizer and a retired Montana State Representative. Mike has several years experience being involved with managing a coffee business. He understands what it takes to not only manage a farm and a business but also, through his two terms as a State Representative, has the practical skills to work with groups of people with differing political viewpoints. His role on the Board is to assist in the review of project proposals and make recommendations for grants.
Dan Weinberg - Treasurer
Dan is the founder and president of the Innocence Project - Montana, a non-profit organization dedicated to exonerating the innocent and preventing wrongful convictions. Dan is a retired Montana State Senator. He has been instrumental in developing some major community development projects in Whitefish, Montana - most notably, the Wave, a community recreation facility that is a model for community development across the country. His role as Treasurer is to see that funds are properly handled and accounted for and will aid in the tracking and accountability of grants made by the Coffeelands Foundation.
Antonia Malchik
Antonia is a freelance writer and fifth-generation Montanan with a longstanding family connection to the coffee world. Her parents worked as entrepreneurs in 1992 to help open Montana Coffee Traders in Moscow, Russia, and her father, who is originally from Russia, still manages that business along with his extensive work with coffee farmer-supporting nonprofits like Cup of Excellence. Her sister and brother-in-law also work in the specialty coffee industry. Antonia's twenty years of experience as an editor in textbook publishing has made her an advocate for quality education at all ages, and for women's and girls' reproductive health, two areas that Coffeelands funds have supported since its inception. She works on helping bring the incredible stories of Coffeelands' partners to the coffee-drinking world.
ADVISORY PANEL
Susie Spindler - Founder and Executive Director 1999-2014 of ACE
The Cup of Excellence program and trademark are owned and managed by the Alliance for Coffee Excellence Inc. (ACE), a US-based non-profit organization. Susie was the driving force behind the Cup of Excellence coffee competitions for 15 years. Her vision for the Cup of Excellence has literally changed the face of exemplary coffee and has impacted the lives of thousands of coffee farmers and roasters worldwide. Susie's roots in coffee go back to the early 1980s when she developed the College Coffee Project, which was instrumental in introducing specialty coffee to college campuses across America. She was also instrumental in bringing to the North American market the Gourmet Project - a precursor to Cup of Excellence - which introduced exemplary coffees from under-recognized countries to the growing specialty coffee industry in the States. We are proud to be working with Susie on this new venture, the Coffeelands Foundation, and look forward to her insightful contribution in addressing the needs of coffee growing communities everywhere.
Connie Johnson - Senior career manager
With over 25 years of international experience in strategic planning, design, implementation, and evaluation of health programs spanning 5 world regions – the Middle East, Africa, Southeast Asia, the Indian Subcontinent, and Latin America – Connie has extensive experience with USAID and UNICEF through public, not-for-profit (NGO) and private sector programs. Her excellent team building and leadership, organizational, and communication skills will be a tremendous resource for the Coffeelands Foundation.
