Nespresso Colombian coffee farm using agroforestry. Photo from Nespresso.
As I sip my morning coffee, I am grateful for trees. What do trees have to do with our coffee? In Colombia, everything. Trees are changing Colombian coffee, and the planet, for the better.
Arabica coffee grows at altitudes between 1,500 and 2,000 feet, on the sides of steep mountains. Colombian farmers have to consider ways to decrease soil erosion and increase biodiversity to pollinate their coffee crops. Collaborating with Nespresso, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, and PUR, they are rewilding their land and everyone is benefitting.
At Climate Week NYC, Andrew Nobrega at PUR, Julie Reneau at Nespresso, and Viviana Ruiz-Gutierrez at Cornell Lab of Ornithology reviewed their research, actions, and inspiring outcomes. Below, the picture on the left is a coffee monoculture in Colombia just south of Bogotá, meaning it only has coffee planted. The picture on the right shows agroforestry and regenerative agriculture— same amount of land, same amount of coffee planted, and filled in with other tree and plant species.
Nespresso presentation at 2024 Climate Week NYC. Photo by Christa Avampato.
In less than a decade, biodiversity above and below ground has increased between 10% and 20%. Farmers have diversified their income streams with additional crops, improved soil quality and water resources, decreased soil erosion, increased land resilience to storms and other climatic events, and sequestered carbon. Most importantly to the farmers, they have improved the quality of their coffee.
Coffee was never meant to be a monoculture. It’s a forest plant that thrives in shade, which is exactly the optimal environment that agroforestry and regenerative agriculture practices provide. For more information on these programs at Nespresso, visit https://www.sustainability.nespresso.com/regenerative-agriculture.
The short of it:
Writer. Health, education, and art advocate. Theater and film producer. Visual artist. Product geek. Proud alumnae of the University of Pennsylvania (BA) and the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia (MBA). Inspired by ancient wisdom & modern tech. Proliferator of goodness. Opener of doors. Friend to animals. Fan of creative work in all its wondrous forms. I use my business skills to create passion projects that build a better world. I’ve been called the happiest New Yorker, and I try hard to live up to that title every day.
The long of it:
My career has stretched across Capitol Hill, Broadway theatre, education, nonprofit fundraising, health and wellness, and Fortune 500 companies in retail, media, entertainment, technology, and financial services. I’ve been a product developer and product manager, theater manager, strategic consultant, marketer, voice over artist, , teacher, and fundraiser. I use my business and storytelling to support and sustain passion projects that build a better world. In every experience, I’ve used my sense of and respect for elegant design to develop meaningful products, services, programs, and events.
While building a business career, I also built a strong portfolio as a journalist, novelist, freelance writer, interviewer, presenter, and public speaker. My writing has appeared in The Washington Post, The Huffington Post, PBS.org, Boston.com, Royal Media Partners publications, and The Motley Fool on a wide range of topics including business, technology, science, health, education, culture, and lifestyle. I have also been an invited speaker at SXSW, Teach for America, Avon headquarters, Games for Change, NYU, Columbia University, Hunter College, and the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America. The first book in my young adult book series, Emerson Page and Where the Light Enters, was acquired by a publisher and launched in November 2017. I’m currently working on the second book in the series.
A recovering multi-tasker, I’m equally at home in front of my Mac, on my yoga mat, walking my rescue dog, Phineas, traveling with a purpose, or practicing the high-art of people watching. I also cut up small bits of paper and put them back together as a collage artist.
My company:
I’m bringing together all of my business and creative career paths as the Founder of Double or Nothing Media:
• I craft products, programs, and projects that make a difference;
• I build the business plans that make what I craft financially sustainable;
• I tell the stories that matter about the people, places, and products that inspire me.
Follow my adventures on Twitter at https://twitter.com/christanyc and Instagram at https://instagram.com/christarosenyc.
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Christa Avampato 