The initiative for coffee & climate @ COP21 and beyond Concept Note Who we are and what drives us The initiative for coffee & climate (c&c) 1 is a pre-competitive initiative of leading companies active along the entire coffee value chain. We recognize that the direct and indirect impacts of climate change pose severe and further increasing threats to a commodity in global demand that is also vital for the livelihoods of up to 100 million people in more than 70 tropical developing countries. We also acknowledge that unsustainable land use practices and the conversion of forests for coffee production need to be stopped to avoid generating further anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions from the land use sector and to preserve natural resources in coffee producing regions. Last but not least, given the significance of coffee systems in many tropical landscapes, we are aware of their major potential to contribute to wealth and growth, help mitigate climate change and simultaneously increase the resilience of coffee producers, their families and their communities. Against this background, we believe that the coffee sector is predestined to take a leading role in the global efforts to effectively address climate change at the landscape level. The sector s existing work to promote sustainability through certification and substantial track records of farmer support demonstrates its long-standing sense of social and environmental responsibility. However, these instruments alone will not be sufficient to achieve our ambition to widely promote sustainability in our sector and to help create future perspectives for coffee producers and their families. Land use practices need to be further developed and the pressure on forest resources counteracted. Coffee can play an important role in shaping sustainable landscapes, contribute to tackling climate change and help to restore degraded land while generating local income and supporting livelihoods. In this spirit, we hope our initiative will become a blueprint for other land-based commodities and demonstrate how the private sector can help to counteract the trends and climate risks we all face. What c&c has achieved so far approach, pilot projects and first lessons learned The c&c initiative started in 2010 with a bottom-up project approach, focusing on the question of how coffee production can be improved while simultaneously increasing the climate resilience of growers in coffee-producing landscapes. The c&c initiative has established pilots in four key coffee regions 2 with different climatic conditions, thereby reaching more than 4,000 farmers. The main objectives of all our projects are: to assess current and likely future climate impacts on coffee yields and qualities, to explore opportunities and strategies for more sustainable coffee production systems, and to develop effective responses to the climatic impacts and resulting challenges for coffee production. 1 Founding members of the partnership: Gustav Paulig Ltd (Finland), Joh. Johannson Kaffe AS (Norway), Löfbergs Lila AB (Sweden), Neumann Gruppe GmbH (Germany), Tchibo GmbH (Germany), Fondazione Giuseppe e Pericle Lavazza Onlus (Italy) and the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). Partners that have joined the initiative more recently: Franck d.d. (Croatia), Ecom Coffee (Switzerland), the Swedish International Development Agency (Sida), Tim Hortons (Canada) and the Sustainable Coffee Program (SCP) composed of - next to Tchibo - Nestlé (Switzerland), Jacobs Douwe Egberts (Netherlands), the Sustainable Trade Initiative IDH (Netherlands), Starbucks and Conservation International (United States). http://www.coffeeandclimate.org/ 2 Minas Gerais (Brazil), Dak Lak (Vietnam), Trifinio (Central America) and Mbeya (Tanzania)
The results of these projects and the efficient approach established provide the information, concepts and tools to support the development of locally appropriate adaptation measures. With adaptation to local circumstances they can be transferred and applied in different social, economic, and environmental contexts and help address the extreme uncertainties inherent to climate change. Our pilots generally confirmed and helped to further enhance our concept which systematically links relevant information on climate change with scientific knowledge and proven farming methods. Detailed information on the case studies and developed training materials have been compiled and made publically available in our continuously growing c&c toolbox 3. It provides applied, hands-on practices for farmers, cooperatives, and extension service providers, and also for other stakeholders from industry, academia and decision makers who share the vision of making global coffee production and subsequent processing more sustainable. The c&c approach consists of five consecutive steps, which build upon one another and allow for a systematic implementation process. As there is no onesize-fits-all solution for climate change adaptation in the coffee sector c&c seeks to identify appropriate local solutions. It is crucial that farming households and other stakeholders provide input and play proactive roles in the respective process; this helps to achieve a high degree of ownership and provide a basis for upscaling. Climate Change Adaptation in Coffee Production - the c&c approach to supporting coffee farmers in adapting to climate change. Online: www.coffeeandclimate.org/training.html Recent examples of our work Guatemala: SmartButtons tool confirms value of cover crops Since November 2014, the c&c team has tested the effects of cover crops on soil temperature at various depths. The root hair of coffee plants dies at temperatures above 33.5 C. Many smallholder coffee farmers are not aware of solutions for responding to this challenge. The aim was to find out whether suitable cover crops can help reduce soil temperatures, and under what conditions. The team installed sensor buttons in different depths on a demonstration site with cover crops and on a neighboring control site. The results demonstrate impressively how the impacts of extreme soil temperatures on the roots (and thus on the growth and health of the coffee plant) can be mitigated when cover crops are introduced. We convey these lessons and corresponding practices in all c&c regions and beyond, always promoting the use of the most appropriate and locally adapted plant species. 3 www.toolbox.coffeeandclimate.org
Vietnam: Low-cost water saving irrigation technique The lack of water for irrigation will become one of the biggest challenges for coffee production in the Cu M gar district, one of the main coffee producing areas in the Central Highlands of Vietnam. A c&c case study introduced a water saving irrigation technique to smallholder coffee farmers and agronomists in the region. Typically, smallholder farmers focus on immediate benefits. The c&c water saving irrigation tool is therefore extremely attractive because it can be implemented at no additional cost. At the same time, yield levels of approximately 3 3.5 tons of coffee/ha can be maintained. Moreover, farmers can significantly reduce costs of labor and fuel by applying this irrigation technique. All of the participating farmers have reported a reduction of 30% of water used for irrigation. This is despite the fact that a severe drought occurred in the Cu M gar district at the time that the technique was introduced! As a consequence of the overwhelmingly high success rate, participants are happy to share their newly learned knowledge on the water saving irrigation technique with fellow smallholder farmers in the region. Tanzania: Shade management Extreme temperatures, droughts, intermittent heavy rains and storms are adversely affecting coffee production in Mbeya Rural, Tanzania. Planting shade trees can reduce the coffee plants exposure to these risks. However, many smallholder farmers are not familiar with the benefits of proper shade tree management which helps to protect the coffee plant from excessive heat and reduces its exposure to direct sunshine. Shade trees can also act as windbreaks and contribute to soil fertility by providing organic matter and nutrients from falling leaves and small branches. However, it is crucial to choose the right species and to plant with adequate spacing, so that shade trees do not compete with the coffee plants for water and nutrients. As of 2012, a c&c case study in Mbeya Rural has been helping about 1,300 smallholder coffee farmers adopt shade tree management as an adaptation practice. They were trained, conducted field assessments, established tree nurseries, disseminated seedlings and planted them. Since shade trees take a long time to grow and show visible results only after about five years, farmers and the c&c team have closely observed and documented the progress made. As an immediate effect of the initiative, farmers who have adopted this practice now use a more systematic approach in both implementation and evaluation. We expect to see even more tangible results soon! Brazil: Participation in platforms and networks As part of the c&c approach, partners and stakeholders in Brazil have been proactively involved in step 5 Learning Lessons and Understanding Progress where project experiences were systematically assessed. Discussions contributed to further developing and refining the approach. Moreover, progress and results from field operations became clear and their impacts could be observed closely. As a consequence, organizations that formed part of this learning network became motivated to replicate the c&c approach in their own operations and have participated with their staff in Training of Trainer workshops to familiarize themselves with the different practical steps and the methodologies and formats used. Recently, the c&c approach has been promoted within the Conselho das Entidades das Matas de Minas (Entities Council of Matas Region) which is a group of organizations that are concerned with the
development of coffee production in the Eastern part of Minas Gerais a region that belongs to the Mata Atlântica Ecosystem and is one of the country s biodiversity hotspots. Members of the council are in contact with more than 35,000 farmers, indicating that there is significant potential to expand the scope of c&c. However, further staff training together with coaching and backstopping will be required in order to progress comprehensively with field operations. Demonstration and validation plots will need to be established in order to field test location-specific adaptation options. What the c&c initiative wants to achieve in the future Proud of the visible achievements of our pilots we are also aware that the true challenge lies in their upscaling. For this purpose, we seek to broaden our activities within the regions where we are working already as well as by transferring our methods and appropriate models to other coffee production landscapes and further improving approaches related to production, processing and certification along the entire value chain. Much work remains to be done on the ground, and many potentials are waiting to be explored and tapped into in different national and local circumstances. This requires a high degree of flexibility. In order to reduce pressure on remaining forests, better coffee production models have to notably increase the income of individual farmers. This can be achieved by techniques that increase long-term productivity, reduce production costs, facilitate access to service providers, enhance diversification and economies of scale, and enter into higher value market levels. Having started from the bottom up, we remain committed to showing on the ground how it is feasible to improve coffee farming and land use practices in the face of changing climatic conditions and to safeguard natural resources. This commitment is expressed in our c&c statement presented at COP21 in Paris (December 2015). In addition to our described grass-roots implementation activities and our efforts to upscale our approach, in the future we aim to align much more strongly with private and public partners that realize the potential for achieving synergies between different environmental, economic and social objectives at and across different policy and implementation levels. This endeavor requires contributing systematically to policy processes that are usually governed from the top-down from the international to the national and to the local level. Furthermore, as a bridge between this work at the policy level and the hands-on field based activities, the c&c initiative will seek to coordinate more closely with relevant fora such as local leaning platforms that unite farmers, industry, research and government authorities, and the International Coffee Organization (ICO) the main forum for exchange between coffee producing and importing countries. Specific next steps First, starting in the pilot regions but also venturing into neighboring regions and countries, we envisage sharing our experiences and learnings at large and, by providing training on the c&c approach, enabling its implementation on a wider scale. Local service providers public and private in addition to our own farmer support schemes within supply chain operations and projects shall be qualified to assist farmers in the assessment of climate related risk and the development and implementation of adequate coping strategies. Second, we seek to institutionalize the initiative and make the wealth of generated knowledge and experiences available to all interested stakeholders worldwide within and beyond the coffee sector, as other crops will face similar challenges with climate change.
Third, we envisage further developing the c&c approach by incorporating mitigation and adaptation practices within landscapes. Production systems will be upgraded and contributions made to restore degraded landscapes, in line with the objectives of the Bonn Challenge and the UN Climate Summit of 2014. 1. Hands-on work on the ground In order to provide a basis for further upscaling within and outside c&c pilot regions and enabling millions of farmers in coffee producing countries to address climate change, we envisage taking c&c experiences to other important coffee producing countries (e.g. Colombia, Mexico, Peru, Indonesia, India, Ethiopia, Uganda, Cameroon and others). In order to do so, we intend to upgrade our farmer support schemes within projects and supply chain operations to adequately incorporate into farmer training, strategies and practices of mitigation and adaption on farm and within landscapes. Within the project setup of the second phase of the c&c initiative (until 2018), we have set the internal goal of providing up to 70,000 farmers with better access to knowledge and the capacity to enhance the resilience of their production systems and improve their livelihood situation. In this sense, we aim to contribute to rural development in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goals. If we are able to leverage our efforts with the skills and resources of donors and other relevant players it should be feasible to reach millions of coffee farmers in an effective and timely manner. 2. A strategy for dissemination and further up-scaling At a strategic level, we will engage with regional sector structures and platforms to keep them informed about the development of the initiative. With this we want to establish a structured exchange and joint learning with the objective of contributing to the development and refinement of regional plans to cope with climate change. In this context, we will explore options for aligning our activities with those of various international donor organizations, political and other partners with a view to encouraging investments and upscaling successful models. Last but not least, we will motivate further sector participants from the private and public sector to join our initiative and to make use of the c&c approach with the objective of strengthening the initiative and reaching larger numbers of farmers. 3. A pro-active role for the c&c initiative in relevant processes at different policy levels Since 2010, various international policy processes have recognized the important role of the land use sector the UNFCCC negotiations in the context of REDD+ and adaptation, the Convention on Biological Diversity through its Aichi Targets, the Bonn Challenge on Forest Landscape Restoration, the UN Climate Summit of 2014, and most recently the broader UN Sustainable Development Goals. All these political processes emphasize the importance of closely cooperating with the private sector in order to achieve the ambitious political targets. This requires corresponding platforms and dialogues. In this regard, we aim to represent our implementation-oriented work and share our knowledge at relevant international fora in particular in the context of UNFCCC meetings, the regional follow-up conferences of the Bonn Challenge and future Global Landscape Fora organized under the roof of the Collaborative Partnership on Forests. We particularly want to use the regional follow-up conferences of the Bonn Challenge and similar occasions to explore options for integrating our approach in planned restoration programs at the landscape level. The c&c initiative can help to bring together relevant actors from the coffee sector, assume a representative role in policy dialogues and, thereby, become a role model for similar sector initiatives that seek to contribute to the restoration of degraded landscapes and to achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Hamburg, December 2015