Contributors
Libia González, Ph.D.
Professor of Humanities,
University of Puerto Rico,
Rio Piedras Campus.
Carmen Alamo
Professor of Agricultural Economics,
University of Puerto Rico,
Mayagüez Campus,
Luis Pumarada O’Neill, Ph.D.
Archaeologist, Engineer.
Melin Rullán
Agro Entrepreneur & Coffee Farmer leader.
Pedro Bengochea
Coffee Farmer & Community leader.
“Buho”
Art Director
buhofreebird@gmail.com
Eduardo Aguiar &
Tere Marichal
Corte Directo
Production House,
cortedirectoaguiar@gmail.com
Rick & Nelly Asselta
Roots & Shoots Program of Dr. Jane Goodall
rasselta@janegoodall.org
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Celebrating Coffee and Biodiversity - beyond 2010
Lets keep celebrating our Biodiversity, even though the International Year of Biodiversity, as declared by the United Nations (www.cbd.int/2010), is over. Let’s become a promoter of conservation, let’s become a forest trooper, let’s become a dog rescuer, let’s get involved with the community (virtual and real), let’s volunteer for beach and river cleanup, let’s reuse. For those in the tourism industry, invite guests to come and experience our rich biodiversity in one of the most secure and safe tropical forests systems in the world - no life-threatening wildlife - and of course, invite them to enjoy our coffee.
It takes CONVINCING WORDS to propel change in BEHAVIOR. It takes passion, endurance, authenticity and knowledge to CONVINCE. Do you have the talent to CONVINCE? You probably have it!
As Dr. Jane Goodall said when she visited our island,” to save the forests you must engage the communities”. We must convince them of the hidden treasure the forests contain. In Puerto Rico we have an additional reason/responsibility to celebrate and convince: as part of the Caribbean we are one of the 25 biodiversity hotspots in the world. We have one of the highest endemic rates in the Caribbean (www.biodiversityhotspots.org) – yet we have one of the lowest land conservation rates.
Today in 2011, we also celebrate in Puerto Rico, 275 years of the arrival of coffee to our island. And we will celebrate it by publishing our first educational guide – “Caminos del Café” - a collection of our experiences, learnings, testimonials and encounters obtained in the educational tour. During this tour we named the Puerto Rico coffee zone as the future “Napa Valley” of the Caribbean. This statement represents the holistic potential of our mountains.
Roads of Coffee “Caminos del Café” educational tour is a good example of celebrating and convincing. We in Cafiesencia initiated it in 2009. We found ourselves filled with joy and satisfaction as we promoted a holistic approach to the coffee belt. We engaged students of all ages, coffee farmers, professors as well as the general public. We told them about the role of sustainable coffee farms as habitats for endangered and endemic species. We felt joy and brought joy and hope to their grand objectives making them more accessible and parallel to a simpler living.
click here to continue...
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Cafi was April's member of the month in the Specialty Coffee Association of America website. You can also watch our video at www.scaa.org.
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Get Involved!
Another objective of Cafiesencia is to document the ancient and modern history of the coffee zone for the educational benefit of the public. If you have any information, photos, documents, testimonials, machinery, articles, or videos that provide relevant data, please share them with us. If you are a coffee farmer, coffee zone resident or love coffee, history, nature, agriculture, or believe you can volunteer in any way to help advance Cafiesencia’s mission, please contact us at lisettefas@cafipr.org or www.cafiesencia.blogspot.com.
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The Tahona machine, the oldest coffee husking machine or “piladora” used during the 18th century. The one in the picture belongs to Hacienda Santa Clara.
Caribbean Map (XIX)
During the Spanish Rule, Puerto Rico’s location was strategic both for commercial and military purposes. But during the 18th century smuggling of Puerto Rican coffee also flourished in the hands of pirates and corsairs to the point where the Spanish Crown declared it tax free.
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