Indigenous Communities

Working with Indigenous communities is a delicate undertaking. We face complex challenges, including the protection of cultural heritage, the right to progress, the risk of “white saviorism,” and the romanticization of challenging living conditions.

Our central question is: How can Indigenous communities benefit from coffee production? The answer varies greatly depending on the context. For this sensitive work, we collaborate with local stakeholders, including government organizations, NGOs, industry partners, and research institutions.

Here is an overview of key Indigenous communities within our network:

Place, Community	Name
Peru, Satipo	Yanesha	The Yanesha live in the central rainforest of Peru and preserve traditional knowledge and customs, including in sustainable coffee cultivation. They are committed to preserving biodiversity and combine modern agricultural practices with their ancestral knowledge.
Peru, Lamas	Quichwa	The Quichwa of Lamas are known for their lively festivals and traditional crafts. They actively cultivate their linguistic and cultural heritage and integrate it into their agricultural practices, including the cultivation of organic coffee.
Vietnam, Gia Lai	Jarai	The Vietnamese Jarai are characterised by their matrilineal social structure. They are known for their elaborate burial rituals, traditional weaving and community-orientated life, which deeply influences their agricultural methods and cooperative farming systems.
Vietnam, Son La	Taidam	The Taidam from northern Vietnam are known for their complex textile skills and agricultural expertise. They grow various crops, including high-quality coffee, using ancient techniques that increase the fertility of the soil and preserve the ecological balance of the region.
Vietnam, Dak Lak Province	Ede	The Ede are an indigenous people in Vietnam’s central highlands who are heavily involved in local coffee cultivation. Their matrilineal culture transmits property and lineage through the female line, with women being socially central. The traditional longhouses (Nhà Dài) of the Ede extended families are characteristic. Nature spirits, ancestor worship and harvest rituals characterize their traditions to this day. The language and customs are still practised today despite increasing modernization.
Vietnam, Lang Biang	K’Ho	The K’Ho live around Lang Biang Mountain and are experts in combining agroforestry with traditional practices. They are custodians of the land and use organic farming methods for coffee cultivation, which helps to preserve the mountain’s unique flora and fauna. Their land is under threat from the flower industry, which is encroaching further and further into K’Ho Land.
D.R. Kongo, Kivu Region	Pygmies	The Pygmies of the Kivu region are among the oldest inhabitants of Africa and are known for their deep connection to the forest as hunter-gatherers. Their profound knowledge of the natural world informs sustainable practices that protect their cultural and ecological landscape. Since there is hardly any forest left on Idjwi, their pygmy lifestyle is hardly realisable anymore.
D.R. Kongo, Kivu Region	Kihavu	The Kihavu are known for their agricultural skills and cultural resilience in the Kivu region of the DR Congo. Despite ongoing conflicts, they continue to grow coffee, which plays a crucial role in the economic stability and social structure of their community.