Specialty Rwandan coffee with a very human story to support communities in moving forward to a future of peace and prosperity.
Specialty Rwandan coffee with a very human story to support communities in moving forward to a future of peace and prosperity.
Good Human is a social enterprise focused on delivering more than just an economic trade benefit to farmers and those beautiful humans in the coffee supply chain. Our work will transform lives through a deeper understanding of the people within the supply chain, their challenges, what’s important to them and by supporting the wider community via the incredible peace building and reconciliation work the Aegis Trust delivers within communities affected by genocide and conflict.
This means bringing specialty Rwandan coffee to market, with a true purpose.
Apply to become a founding partner or investor in this important initiative.
Compelled by our love of speciality coffee and the people within our industry, we know as the industry does, there are things which need to change and importantly, there are people & roasters within the industry who are ready to make those changes.
This story is a very human one, a journey of true understanding, overcoming adversity and helping communities to forgive and reconcile, moving forward to a future of stability, peace and prosperity for all.
Our first project - the 'Shema' washing station in Muyumbu, Rwanda. Muyumbu is some 35 kilometres east of Kigali city, about an hour and a half drive from the capital. Nestled in Rwanda's beautiful green and fertile rolling hills, the Shema Washing Station is located at approximately 1800 metres above sea level, perfect for growing specialty coffee.
Our relationship with Mr and Mrs Charles Shema comes about through our partner Aegis Trust, who recognised Charles and the good work he was doing some 12 years ago. A community-focused leader, Charles from early on, supported the community with cows and pigs to produce manure for fertiliser and helped develop systems that allowed his farming partners in the area to farm more organically, he helped to drive quality and established markets for the farmers coffee.
Good Human brings world class specialty Rwandan coffee to international markets, supporting and investing in the farmers and communities who grow it to achieve the best possible quality and sale price for their product. Alongside our shared commitment to achieving these excellent standards in coffee production and harnessing the economic opportunities this brings for all, Good Human is also committed to social development initiatives to create a sustainable positive impact. Working with experts in the field of agriculture, nutrition and education, we ensure coffee production is optimised and coffee growing communities are empowered and cared for. Partnering with Aegis Trust, peace and values education workshops and programmes are delivered within the communities we work, to inspire champions of humanity.
Peace education and trauma healing are two pillars that support upstream prevention of violence. They provide a path to reconciliation and community resilience against dangers of division. However, economic crises and hunger can still leave people - especially the youth - vulnerable to radicalization, recruitment to armed militia, and to sexual exploitation.
This is where the Aegis 'Resilience Initiative' comes in, adding economic investment in sustainable livelihoods as a third pillar. The Good Human Coffee partnership with Aegis channels investment into previously neglected coffee growing areas, alongside delivery of peace education and trauma healing initiatives. The return on investment sustains and develops the programme while also providing targeted support to communities
Late Professor Elim Lokapel
Aegis works to build sustainable peace and support communities recovering from genocide which is now incorporated into the Good Human Programme. Find out more about how we also help support this.
Developed successfully in Rwanda, peace education develops critical thinking, empathy and personal responsibility. Now it is in the national curriculum in Rwanda, Aegis focusses on teacher and community training. The same educational approach is being applied in at-risk countries, including Central African Republic and northeast Nigeria and is even being considered by the Governor of Texas to reduce and discourage post-election division.
Many who have experienced conflict, forced migration and atrocities are psychologically traumatized. It is hard to rebuild their lives while trauma fuels fear and mistrust. Together with peace education, trauma healing has been shown to contribute to recovery and reconciliation.
There are two parts to Aegis sustainable livelihoods plans. The first is vocational training being incorporated into general programmes, the second is access to capital via a venture fund.
Among the opportunities Aegis has already identified is Good Human Rwandan specialty coffee - a true farm to cup business that tracks the impact on the farming community.
Over 200 farmers from the Muyumbu washing station and surrounding areas participated in their first workshop at the Kigali Genocide Memorial on Friday 10th June 2022. This was the first step in an ongoing programme to draw on the peace building and community cohesion work of the Aegis Trust to support the community along side initiatives to support coffee production.
Here is a short video from their visit.
