COFFEE, GENDER AND SUSTAINABILITY IN RURAL HAITI: FINDING MEANINGS FOR "SUCCESS" IN SUSTAINABILITY THROUGH A GENDERED LENS By Cynthia Balthazar A DISSERTATION Submitted to Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Community Sustainability – Doctor of Philosophy 2019 ABSTRACT COFFEE, GENDER AND SUSTAINABILITY IN RURAL HAITI: FINDING MEANINGS FOR “SUCCESS” IN SUSTAINABILITY THROUGH A GENDERED LENS By Cynthia Balthazar Haiti has seen development aid pouring in over many decades, yet it remains the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere. Coffee played an important economic and cultural role in Haiti, with a peak of $90 million in exports in the 1980s, but then fell to only $3 million by the early 2000s, according to the World Bank. Today, much of Haiti’s land is in the hands of small growers, with women often carrying great burdens for production/marketing and for family roles, in spite of few women holding the title to their land. The purpose of my research is to investigate coffee growers’ and agronomists’ perceptions of sustainability of communities and environments, the status of gender equity within coffee growing communities, and lessons learned for application in other sustainable development projects. My research questions center around: how do male and female growers perceive “success” in sustainability, how do they perceive supports received from the association and cooperative, and has thinking about the sustainable coffee economy changed over time? My research includes growers in Haiti who are members of a Fair Trade association, those who belong to a cooperative of coffee growers, and growers who are independent of either organization. I conducted an in-depth, qualitative investigation using a grounded theory approach. Interview questions considered growers’ perceptions of sustainable community development “success,” regeneration of the environment, and gendered aspects of coffee production. I interviewed 43 individuals during September-October 2018. Interviewees included 37 growers as well as local agronomists, and association coordinators. I then translated and transcribed the recorded interviews and used MAXQDA for coding and analysis of the qualitative data. Findings suggest that Haitian agronomists and growers alike have a keen sense of climate change and its effects on their livelihoods in coffee, even as they struggle to feed and educate their families. Women, who hold unique positions as being both marginalized and key to the survival of the rural family and economy, are awakening to the possibilities for their own futures. Organizations, in place for the purposes of providing technical assistance to coffee growers and connecting them to international markets, are recognizing that they should offer training focused on women, but struggle to do so. My research identified issues regarding coffee and its perceived importance as a cash crop in the Haitian countryside, and its relevance for the survival and sustainability of rural communities. As a result of this research, I am able to tell the stories about coffee farmers’ journeys toward a more resilient and sustainable Haiti. The resulting theory that emerged from my research lifts up the voices of farmers’ striving for sustainability as they work with community developers. In addition, I provide insights from my research for coffee association and cooperative staff involved in community development. This dissertation is dedicated to my children: Anna, Alexander, Benjamin, Brita and Sullivan; to Thank you for inspiring me, for supporting me and for listening when I needed a sympathetic my husband, Pierre and to my Mom and Dad. ear. I love you all. iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank Michigan State University for the opportunity and support to complete my education here. I would like to thank my committee Chairperson, Dr. Murari Suvedi for his ongoing support, despite the unexpected struggles and frustrations that have lasted longer than anticipated. Dr. Suvedi, you have continued to believe in my ability to succeed and I am grateful for your confidence, the time invested in me and just as importantly, your financial support. I want also to thank the Gender, Justice and Environmental Change Program for their Dissertation Research Fellowship, without which my data could not be collected; the Department of CSUS, the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources and Council of Graduate Students for additional sources of funding throughout my time at MSU. This list is not complete without thanks to additional members of my committee: Dr. John Kerr, Dr. Mywish Maredia who have patiently waited and offered their wisdom and expertise as each phase of my degree has come to completion. A very special thank you to my Dissertation Advisor, Dr. Shari Dann, without whom I could not have survived the final sprint. Thank you to my husband and children who have kept me motivated to see this degree to its completion, without you, I would not have a reason to finish. And, finally, thank you to the coffee growers, agronomists and friends of Just Haiti, Inc and COOPCAB, your openness with your stories made it all possible. v TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES ....................................................................................................................... viii LIST OF FIGURES ....................................................................................................................... ix CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................1 Need for Research in Haiti .........................................................................................................2 Haiti as the Context for Research ........................................................................................3 Coffee and Women in Haiti ..................................................................................................6 Purpose of the Study and Research Questions ...........................................................................8 Overarching Paradigms for My Scholarship and Research .......................................................8 Organization of this Dissertation .............................................................................................11 CHAPTER 2: NAVIGATING METHODS FOR A STUDY OF GENDERED PERSPECTIVES OF SUCCESS AND SUSTAINABILITY IN COFFEE ASSOCIATIONS/COOPERATIVES IN RURAL HAITI ..............................................................................................................................14 Overview ..................................................................................................................................14 Introduction to Grounded Theory Method ...............................................................................15 Research Site Selection Based on Predissertation Site Visit .............................................18 Final Sites Selected for Dissertation Research ..................................................................22 Research Participants ...............................................................................................................27 Methods of Data Collection .....................................................................................................30 Semi-structured Interviews with Key Informants ...............................................................30 Observations and Semi-structured Interviews with Coffee Growers .................................30 Revising my Research Questions .......................................................................................31 Data Analysis ...........................................................................................................................32 Interviews and Observations..............................................................................................32 Early-stage Coding ............................................................................................................34 Late-stage Analysis ............................................................................................................36 Memoing ............................................................................................................................37 In Summary ..............................................................................................................................39 CHAPTER 3: ON THE GROUND IN HAITI’S COFFEE ECONOMY: ASSOCIATIONS, COOPERATIVES, AND “SUSTAINABILITY” .........................................................................42 Introduction ..............................................................................................................................42 The Coffee Economy in Haiti ..................................................................................................45 Framing Sustainability .............................................................................................................47 Methods....................................................................................................................................48 Results ......................................................................................................................................52 Economy/means .................................................................................................................52 Agroecology/climate change ..............................................................................................58 Community/survival ...........................................................................................................65 An Emergent Theory – Socio-Biospheric Sustainability .........................................................70 vi CHAPTER 4: COFFEE, GENDER, AND SUSTAINABILITY IN RURAL HAITI: PERCEPTIONS OF SUCCESS IN SUSTAINABILITY THROUGH A GENDERED LENS....77 Introduction ..............................................................................................................................77 Background ........................................................................................................................77 Study Purpose and Research Questions ............................................................................79 Methods....................................................................................................................................80 Results ......................................................................................................................................82 Nuances of Behavior ..........................................................................................................82 Apparent Beliefs and Norms ..............................................................................................87 Gendered Perceptions of Success (or Hopes and Fears) ..................................................90 Discussion and Implications ....................................................................................................93 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSIONS, DISCUSSIONS, RECOMMENDATIONS ..............................95 Overview of Research Methods and Paradigm ........................................................................95 Summary of Conclusions .........................................................................................................97 Limitations ...............................................................................................................................98 Discussion and Implications ..................................................................................................101 Implications and Summary for Just Haiti and COOPCAB ....................................................103 Appreciation and Gratitude .............................................................................................104 Concerns and Needs to be Addressed ..............................................................................105 APPENDICES .............................................................................................................................108 APPENDIX A: IRB Approval ..............................................................................................109 APPENDIX B: Preliminary Data Collection Documents ......................................................110 APPENDIX C: Data Collection Documents: Consent Forms ...............................................114 APPENDIX D: Data Collection Documents: Interview Guides ...........................................116 APPENCIX E: Notes from the Field .....................................................................................125 LITERATURE CITED ................................................................................................................134 vii LIST OF TABLES Table 2.1 Overview of data collected from two research sites in Haiti – research participants ..28 Table 2.2 Example: Open codes, concepts, and categories emerging during data analysis .........35 Table 2.3 Example of axial coding ................................................................................................36 Table 3.1 Data collected from two research sites in rural Haiti – research participants .............51 Table 3.2 Summary table of coded interview segments and concepts informing the category: Economy/means .............................................................................................................................57 Table 3.3 Summary table of coded interview segments and concepts informing the category: Agroecology/climate change ..........................................................................................................62 Table 3.4 Summary table of coded interview segments and concepts informing the category: Community/survival .......................................................................................................................68 Table 4.1 Data collected from two research sites in rural Haiti ...................................................83 Table 4.2 Summary table of coded segments and concepts informing the category: Nuances of behavior .........................................................................................................................................86 Table 4.3 Summary table of coded segments and concepts informing the category: Apparent beliefs and norms ...........................................................................................................................89 Table 4.4 Summary table of coded segments and concepts informing the category:Gendered perceptions of success (or hopes and fears) ..................................................................................92 viii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1.1: Women making charcoal in Bel Air ..............................................................................7 Figure 2.1: Grounded theory key components adapted from Oktay (2012, p. 16) ........................16 Figure 2.2: Map of Haiti showing initially planned research sites, , and additional sites, , (GOOGLEMAPS, 2019)................................................................................................................19 Figure 2.3: Coffee grower with recently planted seedlings, and ripe coffee cherries. ..................29 Figure 2.4: Abandoned coffee processing site, Bel Air .................................................................29 Figure 2.5: Early memos showing conceptual mapping of research stages and extraction of meanings from initial field coding. ................................................................................................38 Figure 2.6: Later stage memos developing theoretical ideas .........................................................39 Figure 2.7: Process of developing concepts and categories with Economy/means as an example ..........................................................................................................................................40 Figure 3.1: Map of Haiti, showing location of study sites: Anse d’Hainault, , and Thiotte, , (GOOGLEMAPS, 2019)................................................................................................................44 Figure 3.2: Fractal model of sustainability (Hardman, 2012, p. 30) ..............................................47 Figure 3.3: The problems of plastic waste, and old growth coffee ................................................65 Figure 3.4: The cacao grower and 4 of his 8 children ...................................................................69 Figure 3.5: Children too poor for school, and a coffee grower with failing eyesight and no help 70 Figure 3.6: Socio-Biospheric sustainability pyramid .....................................................................72 ix CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION As the concept of sustainable development has evolved over the past several decades (Adams, 2009), so too has the notion of Fair Trade as a conduit of sustainable development. Definitions of “sustainable development” and “sustainability” are context specific and dependent on the perspective of the individual or entity doing the defining. As R.W. Flint (2013) suggests, sustainability can be thought of as the long-term goal and sustainable development the process by which sustainability is sought. In a July, 2015 Fair Trade blog, Ed Moseley states that the core vision, long-term goals and the name Fair Trade “resound with the importance of sustainability” (Moseley, 2015); this author, as he describes Fair Trade, puts particular emphasis on the goals of fair and living wages and eradication of inequities that keep some from fully benefiting from the labor they contribute. Assessments of the “successes” of development programs and projects, whether considered sustainable development projects or not, have contextual and perspective biases. Time and again researchers have written about the “successes” or lack thereof, of development programs where the long-term measurable outcomes have not justified the investments of resources, in part because the perspectives and actualized needs of those on the receiving end of the development program have not been incorporated in the measured outcomes (Chambers, 1983, 1997; Ellerman, 2005, 2007, 2009; Ellerman, Denning, & Hanna, 2001; North, 1995, 2001; Rist, 2014). In my research, perspectives of Haitian coffee growers and the agronomists who work closely with them are central to drawing conclusions about the sustainable development successes of Fair Trade coffee associations and cooperatives. In particular, perspectives of both 1 female and male participants are analyzed to understand the gendered dimensions of sustainable coffee systems. Need for Research in Haiti After initial successes of reconstruction in post-WWII, the international history of development is rife with implementation of new technologies by a plethora of diverse organizations, and rife with countless failures to accomplish sustainability goals. Early development goals were often designed by outsiders with little, if any, knowledge of the forces within the societies they hoped to bring across the finish lines that mark where “developed” is. Haiti is one such nation where development aid has poured in over many decades and from many sources, yet it remains the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere. Economically, Haiti ranks 211th of 229 countries in terms of GDP per capita; environmentally, Haiti suffers from extensive deforestation, soil erosion and inadequate sources of potable water (CIA, 2016). Land holdings are, on average, less than 1 hectare; less than 8% of the rural population have access to safe water, and 38% of the population is food insecure ("Haiti / Food Security Portal," 2012). Despite the constitutional existence of a National Public School System in Haiti, over 90% of schools in the country are privately operated, and all require fees that worsen the hardship for families wishing to educate their children ("Haiti Partners," 2014-15). These statistics show that development efforts in Haiti have not been sufficient. What has happened in Haiti and the conditions that exist for the masses entrenched in a system of poverty are not exclusive to Haiti. Variations of this story have occurred and are occurring in countries across both the eastern and western hemispheres. Thus, Haiti is relevant as an impoverished context for my research. 2 When considering the sustainability of international development programs and consequently, their long-term impacts, effectiveness and success, I turn to the writings of Robert Chambers (1983, 1997), and others such as Douglass North (1995, 2001), Gilbert Rist (2014), and David Ellerman (2005, 2007; 2009). In these scholars’ work, questions about what goes wrong have complex roots in the contexts of systems that claim to provide aid and assist with objectives of lifting the poor up out of poverty. Haiti as the Context for Research My years of travel to Haiti and coming to know Haitian families have allowed me to become familiar with some of the stories of life in Haiti. The following story is just one such story: Elvius1 and his wife Madamn Elvius, coffee growers in Bel-Air, Haiti from the 1950s until emigration to the US in 1990, believed that the best thing they could do for their eight children would be to guarantee them a different future by sending them away from their small village for formal education. Elvius not only grew coffee on an estate of over 100 hectares, but was also a speculator, purchasing beans from local growers and selling to the international market in Jacmel, Haiti. Coinciding with Elvius’s unexpected and untimely death in 1979, came a collapse in the international coffee price and an increase in political unrest in Haiti. Madamn Elvius was left to manage the estate and provide for their eight children who were, at that time, all in various stages of completion of their education. Today, not one of the children work the coffee fields. My walks through the countryside give me opportunities to speak with people who still reside there. They tell me and show me, that most of the coffee in Bel-Air has been left untended or removed to make way for harvesting trees for charcoal production. The irony is that Elvius used his access to 1 The names in this document have been changed to protect the privacy of individuals presented. 3 international markets and his capacity to grow coffee to raise his children up and out of poverty, almost guaranteeing that there would be no one left to farm the coffee. Such actions of like- minded growers, combined with external factors in international markets, reductions in the size of landholdings, and environmental degradation are part and parcel of the conditions that have placed Haiti in a seemingly endless state of extreme poverty. Through unearthing the stories of present-day coffee growing families in Haiti, my research aims to explore a gendered story of sustainability and coffee, its perceived importance as a cash crop in the countryside, and its relevance for the survival of rural communities. I studied two organizations of small-holder growers, inclusive of female growers, and how these organizations impact the systems within their communities. My research includes growers who are members of a Fair Trade association, those who belong to a cooperative of coffee growers, and growers who are independent of either organization. Using an in-depth, qualitative investigation of growers’ practices and a grounded theory approach, gendered perceptions of development of community, regeneration of environment, empowerment of women and how the growers think about development, I am able to tell the stories about their journey toward a more resilient and sustainable Haiti. The nonprofit, Just Haiti, through the creation of localized Fair Trade Grower Associations (FTGAs), provides assistance for sustainable development for rural, coffee-growing communities across Haiti. My studies of sustainable development and interest in the coffee grower situations in Haiti led me to learn more about Just Haiti’s work. Prior to launching my research, I visited with members of the organization and wanted to learn more about their immersion within coffee growing communities and the model previously called “Fair Trade Plus,” but renamed a “fair and direct trade” model (Just Haiti, 2017). Fair Trade, in the context of coffee in rural Haiti and the organization Just Haiti, Inc., a member of The Fair Trade 4 Federation, means that coffee growers are guaranteed a minimum of the current fair trade price for their coffee. Just Haiti also adheres to social justice principles including fair labor practices, environmental justice and community development efforts. Working in collaboration with a US partner that typically has established relationships with a rural community in Haiti, Just Haiti employs Haitian agronomists and technicians to train and advise coffee growers. As a direct trade organization, Just Haiti purchases coffee directly from the coffee growers then sells the coffee, without going through a middle-man or speculator, which is the historic norm in Haiti. In addition to Fair Trade, there exist other cooperatives of coffee growers throughout Haiti seeking also to assist the growers toward sustainable futures. One such regional cooperative is Coopérative des Planteurs de Café de l’Arrondissement de Belle-Anse (Coffee Growers Cooperative of Belle Anse, or COOPCAB), which serves nine local coffee grower cooperatives and provides training and access to international markets (Root Capital, 2013). According to the interviews I held with the current administration of COOPCAB, they do not exist as a Fair Trade entity, but do strive toward development assistance that incorporates paying the coffee growers a portion of the profits after the coffee is sold to international buyers. They are also conscious of the needs for programs that focus on gender equity and environmental justice, which align with Fair Trade practices. COOPCAB operates in the mountains surrounding Thiotte, a community in the southeast arrondissement of Belle Anse, Haiti. There, in the mountain community, individual coffee growers may belong to one of the nine local cooperatives that are member cooperatives of COOPCAB. One of the beauties of the work of Just Haiti is in tailoring the association to the needs of the individual community and creating a potentially long-term relationship through provision of a good market committed to returning profits to the growers and their associations. According to 5 their website, Just Haiti pays the farmers, up front, an amount that is equal to or greater than the current Fair Trade premium and pays them again from the profits of the sales. Coffee growers receive 62% of the price Just Haiti receives for the coffee sold (Just Haiti, 2017). The organization reports that the current US dollar price to coffee growers after both payments is approximately $6.00 (personal communication, October 29, 2019). Another rural Haitian organization, Coopérative des Planteurs de Café de l’Arrondissement de Belle-Anse or COOPCAB, likewise, pays growers up-front payments of about one US dollar for a gallon of ripe coffee cherries and after selling on the international market, returns a portion of the profits to the growers. The exact amount received per pound is unknown. Coffee and Women in Haiti At one time, the mountainous areas of rural South East Haiti were home to profitable coffee plantations, and after the slaves overthrew their French oppressors, coffee continued to be a mainstay of the economy. In the early 1980s coffee peaked at $90 million USD in exports and fell to near $3 million USD by the early 2000s (World Bank, 2010). After coffee prices collapsed in the 1980s and 1990s, many of the producers abandoned the crop other than for local use, and many have uprooted their coffee trees to make charcoal to sell in Port-au-Prince (Figure 1.1). Today, much of the land is in the hands of small growers, with women often left to carry the burdens associated with family, economics, and education. According to a gender assessment report published in 2006, women in Haiti face a complex situation where they are relied upon for the economic success of the family, growing much of the food for consumption and for the local market, as well as selling food in the local markets (Gardella, 2006). Despite their responsibilities, women are marginalized with respect to receiving assistance or making decisions outside of the family unit (Gardella, 2006). From an 6 interview with Iderle Brénus, Beverly Bell reports that, in Haiti, women are the primary workers of the land, although they hold few titles to the land, (Brénus, 2016). Brénus recommends that the women need to organize and sit at the table with men, and states that women, who live with, support and collaborate with their husband’s family, are the primary persons responsible for the welfare of the children (Brénus, 2016). With the emergence and growth of Fair Trade and organic coffee markets in Europe and the United States, there is a possibility of resurrecting the coffee economy through grower associations, regenerating lost forests, restoring community life, and empowering women to have access to training and markets. Throughout my studies in sustainable development, I began looking for examples of what goes right, and in small ways, I could see things going right in some of the projects and with some of the organizations I discovered in Haiti. I began asking myself: what is it that these organizations are doing? Are they really having success? Does what they are doing qualify as sustainable? And, how is the inclusion of women being undertaken and perceived? These questions and a search for their answers became the reason for conducting my research in rural Haiti. Figure 1.1: Women making charcoal in Bel Air 7 Purpose of the Study and Research Questions The purpose of this research is to determine, from the perceptions of the coffee growers and agronomists in Fair Trade Grower Associations, and from other growers and agronomists, contributions to: a) the sustainability of their associated communities and environments, b) the status of gender equity in their communities, and c) lessons learned for application in other sustainable development projects. In my study, my initial research questions included these: 1. In what ways do the growers in Farmers’ Associations perceive training and services provided as contributing to changes in the coffee economy, the coffee fields (environment) and the rural communities for the participant coffee growers? 2. What are the perceptions around gendered participation in farmer’s associations in Haiti and to what are these perceptions attributed? 3. From the stories of participants across all levels in Fair-Trade Plus Farmers’ Associations, have individual and collective thinking about sustainable coffee economy in Haiti been transformed? Overarching Paradigms for My Scholarship and Research Our lives are the products of the beliefs we hold; these beliefs can be adjusted and will evolve through lived experiences, therefore I acknowledge that both my worldview and the knowledge I possess are created by the experiences I have in the contexts of my social and physical surroundings – a transformative and interpretivist paradigm. Several authors who write about development assistance, and the practices and leadership around this assistance as they relate to moving toward a sustainable future, converge on a theme of a need for new mindsets, a paradigm shift, among all levels of participants in development activities (Chambers, 1983, 8 1997; Ellerman, 2007; Hardman, 2013; North, 2001). My research, being concerned with the changes that occur from participation with grower association/cooperatives, is guided by a corresponding Interpretivist/Critical Theory Framework (Creswell, Shope, Plano Clark, & Green, 2006; Denzin, 2010). As the practice of sustainable international development assistance has evolved, it has become clear that top-down, expert-driven development assistance has not been successful. Many authors, including Robert Chambers (1983, 1997), William Easterly (2006), Douglass North (1995, 2001), Gilbert Rist (2014), and Amartya Sen (2014) have pointed out that we have been “doing” development assistance wrong and, in many cases, we are still “doing” development wrong and must find ways to “do” development differently. One of the major forces behind the ways development assistance has been carried out is that of how both those who are offering and those who are “receiving” the development assistance think about the purposes, processes and paraphernalia that make up projects and programs. Most importantly, the voices of the people who are on the receiving end of development assistance are voices that must be put first (Chambers, 1983, 1997). The second major evolution in the realm of development assistance has been an evolution toward sustainable development, sometimes called green development (Adams, 2009). It is not my intent to debate the meaning of sustainable development, but to agree with Adams that as a term, it gained prominence because of the relationship between global poverty and global environmental degradation, and that these two must be addressed in an integrated way (Adams, 2009, p. 20). Martinez-Torres’ (2003) synthesized definition of sustainable development is: goals, strategies and processes which together provide more socially just, economically viable and ecologically sound alternative tracks to conventional development pathways, 9 offering improved livelihoods to the poor in ways which promote both their empowerment and the conservation or improvement of key natural resources so that the basis of productive activities can be maintained into the future. (p. 34). Warren Flint speaks of “environmental degradation, economic decline and community disintegration” (Flint, 2013), three elements which are analogous to the generally accepted three pillars of sustainable development: environment, economy, and equity. When it comes to how to “do” development, Flint (2013) expresses the need for presence of mind, adaptability and flexibility in the following way: …all we ever have is this moment in which to act – here, now. That being the case, the quality of human life in the future is influenced by the choices we make in the present, albeit we are not in control of nature and always subject to unintended consequences of our actions. This is evidenced by biophysical and ecological research that have demonstrated the interdependent, always-changing functions in nature, as well as between nature and humans, and how recognition of these interconnections is important to preventing harm from our actions (Jacobs, 2000; Norton, 2005). If we are sincerely interested in the social-environmental responsibility of our communities toward enhanced sustainable development, our decisions and actions must be flexible, adaptable, creative, and reactive to the novelty of nature’s interdependent, ever-changing functional dynamics- thus the development of a simple, but integrated perspective regarding how to move forward to a more sustainable future. (p. 2). These ideas of sustainable development put forth by Flint are consistent with successfully empowering communities to become sustainable through self-organization and giving voice to 10 the poorest and most marginalized among us (Chambers, 1983, 1997; Howard, 2012), which in Haiti, as in most cases, includes women (Gardella, 2006). It is this combination of thought that leads me to an understanding that the paradigm necessary for successful and sustainable development – development that addresses the environmental degradation, the economic decline and the community disintegration (Flint, 2013) in a place like Haiti – is one that is at once inclusive and empowering of the peoples being served, “flexible, adaptable, creative, (responsive) and reactive” (Flint, 2013) to issues and situations that arise from nature, economy or society, and also responsive and engaged in action without fear of failing. Failure in the moment is to be embraced; failure fosters learning so that the process of development keeps moving forward. It is also important to recognize that many situations we, as a global society, are facing cannot be healed with simple measures, and as noted above, the response by natural systems to our actions cannot always be known. In the same way, the responses to our attempts at “developing” others cannot be predicted. This a paradigm of possibilities, in which we hold open the door for those in communities where we wish to work, we allow their voices to be the most important, we place their knowledge and expertise in the center, we build long-term relationships, we support as needed with technical knowledge, physical and financial resources where and when necessary, and, most importantly, we stand with them through shocks to their systems (i.e. drought, hurricane or political crisis). We stand with them when economies fail, we stand with them and help them creatively develop the next possible response. Organization of this Dissertation My dissertation consists of several segments. Chapter 2 gives a complete overview of methods, specifically the incorporation of grounded theory into my field work and analysis. 11 Grounded theory (GT) allows this research to remain culturally relevant. GT is also important as an approach to explore the perceptions of the coffee growers and agronomists, allowing for the research to follow iterative processes of data gathering ,, analysis and interpretation. During the coding, analysis and writing, grounded theory provides the necessary contextual basis from which insights emerge. Chapter 3 is a journal article that tells the story of the establishment, activities and current situations of a Fair Trade grower association and a coffee cooperative in Haiti, from the perceptions of the agronomists and the growers. This chapter digs deeply into what these organizations have done, are doing and hope to do in order to create a return of a resilient coffee economy in Haiti. Central to the success of both the organizations and of this research is relationship building and trust, which will be described in this chapter. Chapter 4, also in the format of a journal article, focuses on women in a Fair Trade association and a grower cooperative in Haiti, with implications for supporting sustainable coffee development. In this chapter, the perceptions of access given to female growers and the successes of women as participants in the coffee economy, from both the women and their male counterparts in rural Haiti are considered in order to arrive at a more complete, and gendered story of female participation in the coffee economy. Haiti, in general, is a patriarchal society where subtle indicators of the gendered nature of access to resources are prevalent (Gardella, 2006). Thus, in this chapter/article, I reflect on the incorporation of women growers into the grower organizations and the issues and barriers women face within the coffee economy. In Chapter 5, the Discussion chapter of my dissertation, I summarize the research outcomes and study limitations. This chapter will include potential implications for future 12 research and provide practical recommendations for development organizations like the Fair Trade grower association and the cooperative whose members participated in this study. 13 CHAPTER 2: NAVIGATING METHODS FOR A STUDY OF GENDERED PERSPECTIVES OF SUCCESS AND SUSTAINABILITY IN COFFEE ASSOCIATIONS/COOPERATIVES IN RURAL HAITI Overview The purpose of this chapter is to provide detailed descriptions of all aspects of study design, field data collection processes, data handling, coding, and analytical procedures. My research centers on sustainability of community-based coffee systems in rural Haiti. I spent time with growers to learn from them about the success (or failures) of their coffee plots, their family economics and their communities, and the access given to, barriers to, the benefits to and perceptions of gender issues in the grower associations. My overarching interest has been the paradigms under which community-based coffee systems operate. Thus, I chose a qualitative research design to understand grower perceptions as well as implementation of the practices and skills fostered by local agronomists/technicians. The analysis and interpretation of data thus tell the stories of sustainable coffee production and community/family well-being in rural Haiti. This research is not intended as a formal assessment of programs working with coffee growers in rural Haiti, but an inquiry into the perspectives of program participants and the value perceived given changing contexts over time. Expert-only aggregation, analysis, summarization and drawing of conclusions about international development projects, although useful in determining success toward achievement of predetermined objectives and goals, can do a disservice for the determination of whether the project should or can continue. The perceptions of success held by those on the ground and participating in a project can be of equal or greater value than the perceptions held by development program organizers. The tight summary and 14 conclusions from rigorous statistical analysis and categorization can lead to a tightly packed and statistically significant “single story,” yet the single story (Mkhwanazi, N. 2015) fails to allow for the individual experience and feelings/perceptions of research subjects. It fails to find out if the project should continue despite possibly having statistically significant failure to achieve goals, or for running out of money. For my research in Haiti, I have taken care to stay away from developing a “single story” while searching for the many individual stories that paint a broad picture of the coffee economy for men and women alike in Haiti. Introduction to the Grounded Theory Method For this study, I made use of grounded theory to explore perceptions and definitions of sustainability and success in coffee-producing communities in Haiti. According to Oktay (2012), “Grounded theory was designed to create (emphasis added) theories that were empirically derived from real-world situations” …not as “a traditional (deductive) model of science that is based on theory testing” (p. 4). One of the key components of grounded theory requires that the researcher be open to the emergence of substantive theory based on the data (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). The grounded theory method allows for the iterative consideration of main research questions (Willig, 2013); in fact, grounded theory encourages the researcher to continuously review earlier stages of the research and, if necessary, to change direction. Even the research question is no permanent fixture in grounded theory…the research question becomes progressively focused throughout the research process. (p. 72). The grounded theory approach can be described using the model in Figure 2.1, adapted from Oktay (2012). The developing theory is the central aim of grounded theory methods, and 15 Figure 2.1: Grounded theory key components, adapted from Oktay (2012, p. 16) the components that contribute to the developing theory can be thought of in the following ways: Theoretical sensitivity is what the researcher brings to the research in terms of their expertise, paradigms, and perceptions. It is the ability of the researcher to be analytical, seeing through a lens that blends their professional training with their professional as well as personal experiences. Theoretical sensitivity grows over time. (Glaser and Strauss in Oktay, p. 16). Theoretical sampling is where the researcher is going as they move through the processes of collecting and analyzing data. It is driven by the data that has already been collected, the early stages of coding has, and the relevant emerging theory. One purpose of theoretical sampling is to avoid the restrictions of a predetermined sample and in the case of my research, it made sense to visit another organization in a community where they were not affiliated with a church in the same way as the FTGA was. Constant comparative analysis can be thought of as the active engagement of the researcher with the data. It is comparing case-to-case in real-time, watching for similarities and differences, leading to simultaneous development of concepts and categories. Finally, theoretical 16 saturation is what the researcher is actively seeking, and what signals that data collection is complete. Saturation is achieved when there are no further concepts emerging and development of the categories or properties of categories is not being furthered. In an ideal situation, this endpoint is clear and enough time and resources are available for data collection to continue until theoretical saturation is attained, however, in the real world of research, some studies must find a stopping point because they cannot feasibly continue. Grounded theory allows for changes during the same time-space as data collection, and the sampling framework may evolve as the study progresses (Oktay, 2012). Although sampling in grounded theory often begins with convenience or purposive sampling, the emergence of theory is best supported when the sample has a broad set of characteristics and variation, which can only be determined as data are collected and analyzed. The sample is complete with the saturation of data, or when no new information is being found that can further enhance the analysis. Many stories of struggles and of survival are buried in the qualitative data; using a grounded theory method allows for search for meaning and patterns among these stories. The variety of voices, both female and male, and growers as well as agronomists, allows for the drawing out of definitions of sustainability and success in a Fair Trade Grower Association (FTGA) model and a non-Fair Trade coffee cooperative. A gendered lens keeps my research focus on the perceptions that relate to and tell about the experiences of women and girls in coffee production. Together, with grounded theory, this lens permits me, as researcher, to approach the data with an open and probing mind conducive to sifting for meanings (Bryant, 2009). In summary, this research, seeking the perceptions of coffee growers and agronomists about success and sustainability is best completed with a grounded theory approach. This 17 approach allows for the flexibility to seek out a varied and broad sampling framework, and this approach also permits investigating emerging themes in the qualitative data. Within this framework, the stories of both women and men are considered to obtain nuanced understanding of the culturally relevant and gender-related aspects of coffee in Haiti. Research Site Selection Based on Predissertation Site Visit My decision to work in Haiti was influenced by my past experiences of service work in the country. Haiti is home to my husband, and this affords me a cultural and personal connection. My choice to study Just Haiti FTGAs comes from attending a members’ meeting in the summer of 2015 and hearing passionate stories of “success” from the US partners at the meeting. This meeting led me to conduct predissertation research in Haiti in June 2017 to begin the process of semi-structured interviewing with key informants. During this time, I conducted interviews with US partners/sponsors working with these communities. I made informal visits to grower plots, made observations of grower meetings, and visited both the headquarters of the cooperative and a coffee processing site in the countryside. This, and all subsequent work, was IRB-approved (Appendix A). My choice of specific local research sites was guided by my predissertation interviews in 2017 with both the US partners of the Anse d’Hainault Fair Trade Grower Association and a Haiti-based agronomist/facilitator who has been involved with Just Haiti since its inception. Telephone conversations with the founder of Just Haiti also informed the site selection process. My expectations were to visit the sites in Anse d’Hainault, and Baraderes. Anse d’Hainault is located in the Grand Anse Department and Baraderes is located in the neighboring Nippes 18 Figure 2.2: Map of Haiti showing initially planned research sites, , and additional sites, , (GOOGLEMAPS, 2019). Department of Haiti (Figure 2.2). Both are situated in the same coffee sector as described in the Haiti Coffee Supply Chain Risk Assessment (Bank, 2010). Both communities have FTGAs. Baraderes (the first and oldest FTGA) and Anse d’Hainault (a young FTGA), according to my predissertation interviews, are defined as very “successful” by US partners and Haiti agronomists alike. Of additional importance are the sites of Thiotte, in eastern Haiti near the border with the Dominican Republic, and Bel-Air, a nearby village in the mountains north of Belle Anse. These communities are, as well, both historically important in the coffee economy in Haiti, and figure prominently and later, in the story of my research methods. 19 Study participants were to include both key informants affiliated with Just Haiti and members of the local Just Haiti grower associations. Key informants, intended for the full study, were the agronomists/facilitators who have worked with Just Haiti and the grower associations (GAs). I planned to attend grower association meetings in the two communities to become more familiar with the growers, to observe how meetings were conducted, and to observe interactions with and participation by the female grower members. Gaining entrée can be convoluted, and as John M. Johnson (1975) discusses in his chapter on the subject, entrée is often a progressive activity. Access to the necessary respondents/interviewees or sites often begins with obtaining some inside information, finding an initial entrée, and then moving toward requests such as accompanying/observing the interviewee while they work before the more intrusive activity of recording conversation can be achieved. I undertook the initial stage of these activities during my predissertation work. The assumption might be that once agreements have been made, the researcher is set to begin and no further negotiations regarding entrée will be necessary – that this is a normative and rational process. Reality dictates otherwise, and things can change; politics can get in the way (Johnson, 1975). Even when the “head guy” has given his approval, those on the ground, who will be interacting with the researcher, may have their suspicions about who the researcher is and what their real purpose is. And, sometimes more importantly, “subjects” may be wondering what is in it for them. Concern over entrée is especially important where grounded theory is used, because it is expected that the sample will grow as the research progresses, therefore moving forward requires new acts of gaining entrée. As stated earlier, my access began with attending a members’ meeting of US partners of FTGAs in Haiti looking for information to establish an association in the region of Haiti where 20 Just Haiti (as a non-profit organization) works. The meeting, instead, lead to conducting preliminary interviews for my research. These 2017 predissertation interviews were with some of the US partners involved in the FTGAs, whose major function is to support, financially, the operations of the grower associations for two years. I learned that US partners hold certain ideas about the success and sustainability of their sponsored FTGAs. I learned also that US partners believe that the implementation and follow-through of the program varies somewhat across these associations. The perspective from this level of participation (the “upper” level) in the FTGAs is that the “success” or “failure” of the different FTGAs has been, in part, dependent on the relationships between Just Haiti, the US partners, the Haitian agronomists and facilitators, and the Haitian coffee growers. The interviews provided a deep understanding of how one of the FTGAs in particular, became “successful” (as stated by its US partner and the leadership of Just Haiti) in its communities, increasing production, intentionally recruiting female growers, recovering quickly from Hurricane Matthew, a category 5 hurricane whose eye crossed Haiti in 2016, and being able to pay the fees for their children to attend schools. These US partners put me in touch with the agronomist who was linked with all of the associations that work with Just Haiti. I communicated by both telephone and email with him. He introduced me to a young female agronomist, who sounded happy to meet with me in Haiti during my predissertation interviews. Both agronomists had communicated with the US partners regarding my research purpose, and from them, too, I heard that the Haitians were expecting me. Upon arriving in the South of Haiti in June 2017, I met with the first resistance. After a series of failed attempts to connect with the young woman, she wanted only to talk if I paid her a daily stipend and transportation costs – this action in part, began my curiosity about the women in coffee. The young man, however, was willing to come to me at his own expense and talk. The 21 end result was that he invited me to visit with any of the Fair Trade associations whenever I was ready, and so, I thought, I would have my sites established prior to full development of my research plan. I would only have to consider which and how many growers and other community members would be necessary to complete my data collection. Final Sites Selected for Dissertation Research One of the tenets of grounded theory research is to document the emergent processes that affect data collection, and subsequent analysis and interpretation. I kept extensive field notes during my field research which spanned from September 10 to October 16, 2018. Here, I summarize from these notes. Let me begin by introducing my research team in Haiti. Initially, I had planned to hire a research assistant, a female, who would translate and accompany me as I travelled throughout the countryside. Although I understand the native Creole language when listening and can carry on a conversation, I felt it would be advantageous to work with a native speaker, both for better understanding of the nuances of the language, and as a help with entrée into the communities. A woman, I surmised would make my entrée easier with the female growers. However, as political tensions in the country increased during 2018, temporary physical roadblocks were set up throughout the countryside. Knowing from a separate context, stories of treatment of women traveling the country during similar times in Haiti, my plan changed. Alcéus, a naturalized American who is a Haitian native, stepped into the role of research assistant. He had travelled with me during the predissertation interview activities, had assisted in translation then and helped to build the trust I had with the agronomist. This, combined with his knowledge of both Haitian and American culture, made him a good fit for this position. The rest of my research team varied with the community visited. 22 In the first community we visited, I completed my team with two people: Gérard, who is highly respected in the community and well established with the coffee growers, and Wilfrid, a local shop owner and coffee grower introduced to us by Gérard. In the second community, my research colleagues were Mercidieu, a young agronomist with the cooperative and Dieuseul, a local drinking water supply expert who, as a result of his work, knew the countryside and people well and served as our daily guide. The agronomist, it became quickly apparent, was well respected by the growers, as was Dieuseul, who had been put in charge of the local water supply because of his technical knowledge. Mercidieu would introduce us to the growers, and Dieuseul would provide us transportation to each farm. There is an important story describing why Gérard was so committed to our welfare and success. Our journey to Anse d’Hainault commenced when we departed the US on September 7, 2018, arriving in Port-au-Prince that afternoon. We made arrangements for in-country travel and at 2 am on September 9 we departed a bus station in Crois des Bouquet, near Port-au-Prince … and I suppose you could say it ended at 2 am the following day on the steps of the police station in Anse d’Hainault – a trip that was supposed to have ended in Anse d’Hainault around 3 pm the same day, with Gérard welcoming us in person and showing us to our hotel. Instead, around 5:30 am, as the sun was brightening the sky, he hurried down the street toward us as we sat on the steps admiring the quiet beauty around us. After a short introduction and expression of shame at the idea that visitors from the US spent the night on the steps of the police station, he guided us to a hotel across the square from where we had slept. Arrangements were made for us to rest a while, refresh our clothing and meet him again mid-morning at a local café; we hadn’t eaten a meal in over 24 hours. At the café, after eating, we recapped the adventures of a broken-down bus, superstitions about a passenger’s cat which had to be ejected from the bus, protests blocking 23 roadways, and finally our decision, at midnight, to walk the final miles into town only to find the hotel closed. We had tried to contact Gérard, but we couldn’t make the connection. It was our determination and flexibility without frustration that may have led to his increased commitment to the research purpose of our visit. In the past, I had similar experiences, but never as profound as this - you don’t go to the country of Haiti, ride in the same buses with locals, eat from the same trees and cafés, sleep on the same floors and not be taken care of by the locals. I relay this story because it is the backdrop of what happened next and how contextual realities in rural Haiti changed the next phase of my research, as is expected with my grounded theory research paradigm, as this author notes (Willig, 2013): …grounded theory does not provide the researcher with a series of steps, which, if followed correctly, will take him or her from the formulation of the research question through data collection to analysis and finally, to the production of a research report. Instead, grounded theory encourages the researcher to continuously review earlier stages of the research and if necessary, to change direction (p.72). During the next 36 hours, we met with several Fair Trade Grower Association members, visited two coffee gardens and interviewed the growers. Then we were invited to visit a local religious leader. We were given a less-than-welcoming reception. He sat us in a dark office, the door cracked to allow in light from the brightly lit room across the hall. We sensed a power play, and his only question was why hadn’t he been informed of our coming and of our purpose for being in “his town?” By the following morning, our host Gérard came to us at the hotel with the message that, until the leader we sat with the night before received news from his connections in the US, we were not to talk to any of the farmers in the association in Anse d’Hainault. Gérard, however, told us that no matter what came next from the church, he would take us to farmers in 24 the area – only, without the blessing of the religious leader, they would not be the farmers in the association – this, probably for two reasons: first, Gérard had been a part of the original communications that laid the groundwork for our visit, and second, because he had developed a sense of respect for us from our patient and non-judgmental endurance through the events of our arrival. With this news, I immediately began writing emails and attempting phone calls to the US. For a short while, further confusion ensued, and while my finances and schedule couldn’t afford time wasted, I searched for alternatives should the religious leaders in either planned community exert their influence and halt data collection completely. This situation potentially would affect both the Anse d’Hainault and the Baraderes sites, because the farmers were under the same religious authority. There was a quick resolution in Anse d’Hainault when the head of Just Haiti made contact to give her approval. I received a message clarifying that, from her perspective, there had been no real need for her to give approval, however, we both understood the context and the influence religious leaders have in these communities. She said it best in a phone conversation we had on June 25, 2019 when she explained that religious leaders have an outsized role as community leaders where the government fails. The pastor, she explained, has always protected the relationship between Just Haiti and the association as well as supported the leadership of Gérard (personal conversation, June 25, 2019). In the meantime, however, the Baraderes visit was still uncertain. In light of things learned, we were considering the added dimension to my data that visiting an association removed from the influence of religious leaders could offer. I decided to expand my research sites beyond Just Haiti FTGAs. Therefore, Alcéus sought a contact in the Thiotte region where coffee was still a major part of the rural economy, and where a different type of association – a 25 cooperative - was in place. Ultimately, the Baraderes visit did not take place, given that the religious leaders’ hesitancy led to nervousness on the part of the local agronomist. We moved forward, then, to make decisions in order that the community of Thiotte could plan for our potential arrival. After making several queries, we made contact with a cooperative of coffee growers in Thiotte, in the SouthEast Department of Haiti. Part of grounded theory is theoretical sampling, meaning that the sample changes over time, as research context evolves, and theory emerges. With this approach, in fact, “sampling strategy should not be pre-determined because it may restrict the theory…” (Oktay, 2012, p. 17). Thus, the social entrée challenges eventually allowed for the opening up of a greater set of perspectives within the world of coffee in Haiti. My second research site, Thiotte in the SouthEast Department, is situated in a different microclimate than the first site. Growers here are in the highest mountains of the nation and further from the sea than either Anse d’Hainault or Baraderes, and in an area of Haiti deemed a “main coffee growing area” (Bank, 2010, p. 4). Many of the growers are members of a small- holder coffee growing cooperative which is under local management and not a Fair Trade organization. This led to modifications in my research questions, as allowed for with grounded theory, to include the perspectives of coffee growers belonging to the cooperative and not restricted to the Fair Trade model. As it became apparent the influence of religion on decisions made by the growers, including the decision to join an association, interview guides were altered to include a question of religious affiliation. So it was, as the progress of data collection continued, grounded theory allowed me to follow the openings into new realms of perspectives and to ask different questions in interviews to gain a broader base for understanding the perspectives and what might influence them. 26 Research Participants In the two coffee growing communities, between September 10 and October 16, 2018, I spoke with a total of 43 individuals associated with the Haitian coffee economy (Table 2.1). I spoke with coffee growers, agronomists, and the coordinator of one association; women and men, married couples and individuals; growers with additional income from non-coffee and non- farm sources, as well as those who depend solely on the land to support their families. I spoke with growers in groups and individually. I met with and interviewed growers who walked me through their coffee gardens and also met with those whose coffee plots we did not walk through because of impassable mountain trails in September and October, which are rainy season months. Specifically, I interviewed 26 coffee growers, 2 agronomists (one female) and a grower association coordinator in Anse d’Hainault. In Anse d’Hainault, 25 of the interviewees were associated with the Fair Trade Grower Association and 4 were not. In the community of Thiotte, where there exists a cooperative of coffee growers which does not foster or train specifically in Fair Trade practices, I interviewed 12 coffee growers and 2 agronomists. This set of interviews, complemented with photographs (Fig 2.3) and videos, offers a great depth of understanding of the coffee economy and gender dimensions and allows me to explore gendered aspects of participation in the non-Fair Trade cooperative, as well as in the Fair Trade Grower Association. 27 Table 2.1 Overview of data collected from two research sites in rural Haiti -- research participants Gender characteristics of participants interviewed Demographic information of participants Female/ Male Female Male Couples 2 couples (4 people) 15 10 HH1 ⚤ Age2 (years) M = 9 F = 11 S = 5 >50: 15 50 & under:14 M = 6 F = 1 S = 3 >50: 9 50 & under: 3 12 14 2 couples (4 people) 4 6 Site Name # of interview sessions Total # of participants 13 29 Anse d’Hainault (Fair Trade Grower Assoc) Thiotte (Coffee Grower Coop) Assoc/Co- opMembership Role of participant status Non- member Member 24 5 Grower only Grower Other3 & Other4 22 4 3 12 2 12 2 0 1Head of Household, ⚤M=Male Head of Household, F=Female Head of Household, S=Shared Head of Household, (indicated only for interviewees who were coffee growers) 2Indicated only for interviewees who were coffee growers 3Including: Agronomist, cacao grower, coordinator of organization, student of agronomy 4These individuals indicated that they not only grow coffee, but also hold a position with the organization such as agronomist, coordinator, advisor 28 Figure 2.3: Coffee grower with recently planted seedlings and ripe coffee cherries In addition, my travel to the Thiotte community meant that I was able to hike the mountains of the nearby village of Bel-Air (a third site for observational research) and to have casual conversations with landowners there. Bel-Air is a mountain village where coffee was once the backbone of the rural economy and the site of the introductory story in Chapter 1. While there, I witnessed that coffee is progressively being replaced by a charcoal economy. The village has neither a farmer association nor a cooperative, but the skeleton of a coffee processing plant stands silent on the mountainside (Fig 2.4). Figure 2.4: Abandoned coffee processing site, Bel Air 29 Methods of Data Collection Semi-structured Interviews with Key Informants Key informants for my research included the coordinator of the association and the lead agronomist of the cooperative along with agronomists trained to work with coffee growers who make site visits to the coffee growers. The perceptions of the key informants regarding recruitment, involvement in the organizations and success of growers in the activities associated with the Fair Trade model and the cooperative model was beneficial in my understanding of success and sustainability in rural Haiti and how to frame questions (Appendix C includes various iterations of interview guides). They were also helpful in gaining access to the growers and their gardens, linking me with transportation and guides. Observations and Semi-structured Interviews with Coffee Growers While visiting each community, I interviewed both male and female coffee growers and made informal observations of their coffee growing areas, which the growers call gardens. I also attended and observed a grower association (GA) meeting in Anse d’Hainault on September 20, 2018. The purpose of the meeting was for the introduction of me and my research team in order that I could thank all of the growers and agronomists in advance by providing lunch. It was during this meeting that I interviewed some of the growers whose gardens we were unable to travel to because of poor roads and wet conditions. The GA meeting observation included witnessing how the meeting was conducted, with attention to participation by, and interactions with, the female growers. Participation in this meeting afforded me the opportunity to become more familiar with the community of growers and to continue to develop a relationship of trust. While in Thiotte, there was no grower meeting to attend. 30 During site visits, I conducted semi-structured interviews with each grower family, sometimes with the husband, sometimes the wife, and at other times, with both. In two instances, a small group of growers was present for these meetings, and I included all in the interview process. Many of the growers were pleased that I wanted to walk through their coffee gardens and observe conditions of their farms. These visits provided opportunities to hear the growers’ perspectives about participation and success in the organizations as well as perceptions about female growers, and beliefs about experiences in the community and with their families. These semi-structured interviews were audio-recorded and walks through the coffee gardens were documented with photos and video recording (upon the grower’s consent.) Permission for making audio recordings of the proceedings of the interviews and photos and videos during site visits were granted by all growers. Revising my Research Questions These visits provided a rich set of data used to address then revise my research questions. Formerly, my first research question centered on describing the perspective of the growers and how they define success in the context of what they expect from their participation with the grower organizations. Being attentive to the key components described earlier, and shown in Figure 2.1, I transcribed interviews, reviewed photos, and began comparative analysis each evening. Briefly, this is what I have learned: First, my interviews helped me to understand how communities are affected by the participation of local growers in the organizations, and how growers perceive success and barriers to achieving success. Second, my participation in the association meeting, followed by visits in the coffee fields shed some light on how the growers have implemented what they have been taught and provided opportunity to observe the informal interactions between the genders in this setting. Third, interviews from both the perspectives of 31 the female and male growers clarify further for me the question and provide insight on how women benefit, are recruited, are represented and play their roles in the process of the coffee economy. As a result of the iterative processes I used in the field research and initial analysis phases of my grounded theory research, I was able to refine my research questions. These questions became more pointed as follows, with changes shown in bold italics: 1. In what ways do the growers in grower organizations perceive and implement training and services provided? How do they perceive changes in the coffee economy, the coffee fields (environment) and the rural communities? 2. How do coffee growers, both male and female, perceive success in the context of rural subsistence agriculture, and what are the perceptions of women’s roles in the coffee farmer associations? 3. From the stories of participants in coffee grower organizations, how do coffee growers in Haiti think about the sustainable coffee economy in Haiti? What are the ways individuals think about sustainability? Data Analysis Interviews and Observations Grounded theory requires a constant comparative method of data analysis (Figure 2.1); as the name implies, the qualitative data are constantly analyzed throughout the research process. Analysis consists of iterative comparison of the similarities and differences in emerging open data codes (Willig, 2013, p. 71). While afield and as I collected data, I spent each evening transcribing the audio recordings in the software analysis program MAXQDA (Version 18.2.0). I also debriefed with 32 my research assistant on the information gathered, and we consulted to ensure meanings and nuances were not lost in transcribing and translating. During this field-based transcription, I completed a first phase of rough open coding of the data, by hand, and I also hand-wrote reflective memos. This complete process, consistent with the process of constant comparative analysis and an integral part of the grounded theory method, was the basis upon which I amended interview questions or changed the order in which questions were asked during subsequent interviews. I also asked interviewees to identify anyone else to whom I should speak. This initial, in-the-field analysis allowed for the emergence of tentative codes and categories from the data, as well as for the on-going adjustment of data collection protocols. Theoretical saturation, as another component of grounded theory (see Figure 2.1), means that sufficient data have been collected so that no or very few additional categories within the data can be identified, and no new distinctions from the data are emerging (Willig, 2013). It is true that, in reality, a study could go on for quite some time before this saturation is accomplished. Therefore, it is not unusual in grounded theory for a modification of categories to take place in order for the study to reach an endpoint (Willig, 2013, p. 71). In my research, I heard most of the same types of answers to my questions as we neared the end of our list of potential interviewees at each site. We continued interviewing until I heard what the research team believed to be the near-complete array of individual stories with added dimensions of unique meaning of survival and sustainability from the perspectives of the growers. At times in the field I was without electrical power, lights and access to the internet, making it difficult to fully complete the transcription and open coding. So, when data collection was complete, I travelled to a small town in northern Haiti where reliable electricity made it 33 possible to complete initial transcription and open coding. After returning to the US, I uploaded all audio recordings into MAXQDA for data storage. I continued coding; I listened a second time to each of the recorded interviews and I annotated hard copies of the data with notes about the meanings of some Creole words and phrases within the transcriptions, then consulted with my research assistant to verify the translations and meanings within the data. In short, there were at least two iterations and sometimes more, in transcribing and translating the data. Early-stage Coding Grounded theory is characterized by concurrent processes of data collection and early analysis. Therefore, as alluded to earlier, my evenings while in the field were also occupied initial data analysis steps. The first step is open coding and involves coding segments of data in two ways: substantive and theoretical (Glasser and Strauss 1967 as cited in Oktay, 2012). Substantive codes, as the term implies, draw out the substance within the data, while theoretical codes reflect the analyst’s conceptual interpretation of interviewees’ statements or behaviors as emergent theoretical concepts (Oktay, 2012). In the open coding phase of data analysis, I coded the data transcriptions line-by-line. Coding “everything even if it seems insignificant” in the beginning, is acceptable, since it is impossible to know “where your theory will take you” (Oktay, p. 56). Once I had open-coded a substantial amount of the data, then I moved to the process of identifying theoretical codes (overarching concepts and categories observed within the data, see example in Table 2.2). As open coding progressed, it was followed by axial coding -- taking the tentative categories and properties and refining them. This is described in detail in subsequent chapters of my dissertation. 34 Category Agroecology Table 2.2 Example: Open codes, concepts and categories emerging during data analysis Open Codes Cleanup of coffee garden; Remove plastic and metal Scolyte and Disease Climate; Climate change; Soil Interview segments grouped according to initial open codes Concepts The plastic is not biodegradable Biodegradable bags are very expensive The main problem is with the plastic sac, people don’t remove it and the roots cannot reach the soil They have to remove all the plastics… that’s everywhere on the ground We used to tear the plastic and throw it on the ground, now the agronomist is saying that the plastic is not biodegradable. If you put it on the ground, it’s not going to break down. Making their own compost Using chickens Using compost for fertilizer They teach to not put the coffee on the ground We pick the affected cherries and place them in boiling water, to kill the insect (learned during a walk through a coffee garden) They go on the ground and pick up every single coffee bean; that is where the scolyte is;vectors for the scolyte They should clean on a regular basis to control the scolyte There is a cure for it, just pull the leaves that are problematic Whenever a tree is sick, we cut it hoping there will be a “pushback” [meaning that it will grow from the same rootstock] For the soil quality, all I do is apply compost to it Conservation of the environment … of the soil itself Where there is too much sun, they have to plant shade trees The problem is degradation of the soil There is a tree in the past…it used to be a protector, but it has a fungus now The soil itself is not good, there is no moisture We cannot control the climate; it - recur[s] all the time Now the hurricanes are almost every year Climate change is there to stay and there is nothing you can do about it Even the rice is getting bitter…it’s like we are under a perpetual embargo He has seen a big difference in the climate…the temperature is not cooler [on the mountain] Understanding the problems of plastics & trash Natural products/ solutions Making connections with climate change 35 Late-stage Analysis Late-stage analysis in grounded theory is when the researcher moves from the concepts and categories into the more abstract realm of theory building. Using so-called techniques of “microanalysis” of single words in the data, the researcher considers such questions as, “what other words might be used in the same context?” or “what conditions might contribute to this description?” (Oktay, 2012. p. 74). Axial coding is key to this stage of analysis; axial coding is the process of exploring more deeply the concepts and categories developed in the early stage of open coding. This level of coding is a deep dive into the conditions surrounding each category and analysis of how the categories are linked to each other, asking questions about the context, conditions and consequences that surround concepts and themes emerging from the data (Oktay, p. 75). Oktay quotes Marlene Matarese, saying that this phase of coding is asking the question “What’s going on here?” (Matarese in Oktay, 2012, p. 75). (See Table 2.3 for one example of axial coding for the concept of agroecology from my research.) Like other processes within grounded theory, the researcher does not have to wait for early-stage analysis to be complete before beginning axial coding. Table 2.3 Example of axial coding Conditions Causal conditions Contextual conditions Theoretical questions/what is going on here? Category: Agroecology – Theoretical concept from the research In order to grow coffee or any agricultural crop, the grower must be aware of the natural environment. Growers and agronomists are recognizing their roles in caring for the land to create more productive farms. Coffee growers are all by nature of their occupation connected to the land and the consequent ecology thereof. Growers expect that the agronomists and outsiders will bring technologies to help them create a better situation in their land for coffee. Some of the growers and agronomists possess the knowledge and skills to work toward more successful coffee economies, however, there is a continuing battle against the climate that some are worried they will lose. The disease, debris and growth of weeds and so forth compound the work of the already overwhelmed coffee growers. 36 Finally, my research included the selective coding phase to create core categories and propositions based on the data (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016). Selective coding comprises the identification of a core category and describing how other categories connect with or inform this core category (Oktay, 2012). I identified key passages that portray informants’ and participants’ descriptions of their experiences with the Fair Trade Growers Association or the cooperative, as well as their general experiences in the coffee economy in rural Haiti. In this phase of the analysis, a rich story of coffee and sustainability came together, based on growers’ perceptions of how their lives and situations, and farms and communities have been affected by and through participation in development in coffee. Memoing Memoing takes place throughout the research process. Early memoing was sometimes enhanced by notes from my research assistant which were taken throughout the interview processes. These memos helped inform changes in interview guide questions and decisions on who to interview next. In the field, and even subsequently, memos were hand-written (Figs 2.5 and 2.6). As my work and analysis progressed, my memos became more pointed and included diagrammatic representations of major theoretical concepts emerging from the interview and observational data, leading ultimately to contributions to theory development. The process of memoing (writing memos) assists in the development of axial coding. Memoing chronicles the analyst’s thoughts about the relationships between categories and the settings in which they sit. Early stage coding or open coding, for this research continued long after my return to the US, and long after transcribing was complete. I felt drawn into the data to look for things I might have missed on earlier coding sweeps. At the same time, while rereading the interviews or 37 viewing photos, questions, thoughts and ideas tumbled around in my mind. I recorded these thoughts as memos. Any particular memo may serve more than one function. These functions are conveniently expressed using the mnemonic “‘MEMO:” • “Mapping” research activities; • Extracting meaning from the data; • Maintaining momentum; • Opening communication (Birks, Chapman & Francis, 2008. p. 70). Figure 2.5: Early memos showing conceptual mapping of research stages and extraction of meanings from initial field coding. 38 Figure 2.6: Later stage memos developing theoretical ideas In Summary Grounded theory is a form of investigation that focuses attention on the interactions between the researcher and the processes of the research. Key components have been detailed with Figure 2.1 (page 19), and include theoretical sensitivity, theoretical sampling, constant comparative analysis and theoretical saturation. Data collection is like a moving target determined largely by the constant comparative analysis of the data. Figure 2.7 depicts the summary of how data analysis moves from initial codes (small tan circles) to concepts (middle sized yellow circles) and finally to categories (the central red circle). The initial codes, represented by the smaller tan circles, are sometimes taken from one interview (smaller in size) 39 or might show up repeatedly or from interviewees of a variety of backgrounds (medium circles) and sometimes inform more than one concept – shown as overlapping into more than one concept. Finally, the concepts together feed into the development of a core category. Lacking time/ money Economy/ means Investing money Market access Initial codes Concepts Categories Sources of income Figure 2.7: Process of developing concepts and categories with Economy/means as an example Grounded theory is a search for meanings; it is useful in areas of research where the researcher is likely to end up with more questions than answers. Grounded theory operates from an assumption that all theory is incomplete, and maintains that an underlying, but major purpose is to allow theory to emerge from the data, not to test empirically a theory. As discussed earlier, I prefer to think of the key components, theoretical sensitivity, theoretical sampling, theoretical saturation and constant comparative analysis in terms of “what the researcher brings to the field,” “what the researcher is looking for,” “where the research is moving/when the researcher can stop collecting data,” and “how the researcher is actively engaged in the process,” respectively. With 40 my research into the perceptions of the coffee growers and of those other individuals who work closely with them, searching for how the development assistance links with their perceived outcomes, grounded theory was well suited to my research context and the nature of the questions being pondered. 41 CHAPTER 3: ON THE GROUND IN HAITI’S COFFEE ECONOMY: ASSOCIATIONS, COOPERATIVES, AND “SUSTAINABILITY” Introduction It was the summer of 2014. I traveled with a small group of Americans and my husband, a native of Haiti and naturalized citizen of the US, into the Dominican Republic then by bus to the Haiti border town of Anse-a-Pitre. From there, we rode by SUV into the mountains and to a town where the coffee growers met us. We wanted to know about helping them, and a large number of curious growers showed up. They expressed deep interest in establishing an association or a cooperative, since the nearest cooperative was too distant to include them, and the coffee produced in their small-holder coffee gardens had no market other than selling locally in the street. Then in the fall of 2018, while traveling the countryside collecting research data, I returned to this village. On a morning hike into the mountains, my husband and I visited land where his father had once grown and harvested coffee. His family sold the coffee to the international market, and the income provided for him and his siblings to attend school and ultimately leave the land for good. Here, people recognized my husband and updated him on what was currently happening with the land. And they remembered me … when, they wanted to know, would I be back to get that association started and to help them with regenerating the coffee economy? If I did not help soon, all of the coffee would be gone, they told me. They showed me the empty and abandoned processing site. We passed smoldering piles of charcoal which, they said, is the only remaining reliable crop for peyizan (the Creole term for rural farmer – literally translated, it means peasant). They make charcoal with full knowledge that it is further 42 destroying the prospects for regeneration of coffee. Sometimes the charcoal is made from coffee trees, and sometimes it is made from the canopy trees that create the shade necessary for growing coffee. Always, the loss of trees means a loss of topsoil when the rains come during hurricane season. Some rural communities have coffee associations or cooperatives that bring technical training and knowledge about the effects of the charcoal economy on agricultural economies in rural Haiti. In the town of Anse d’Hainault, where I began my 2018 data collection, townspeople revealed that despite the local growers’ association and the mayor of the town limiting deforestation for both lumber and charcoal production, the struggle to sustain coffee production is difficult. There is a local legend that tells the story of a man who must decide between making charcoal of a tree in order to feed his family for a few more days or lying down in its shade and dying. The poverty is real, and the people voice their desire for alternatives to economies that result in continued deforestation, yet the destructive economies seem to be dominating. It is not news that for decades international development programs and projects, operated through both governmental organizations and non-governmental organizations, have pursued lofty goals aimed at raising the less fortunate out of poverty. Neither is it news that, despite wins here and there, most of the countries and residents of these countries where development aid has landed remain at the bottom of the list of prosperity. Certainly, something can and should be done. This article/chapter explores, through a grounded theory approach, a coffee growers association located in the very lush western tip of Haiti and a local cooperative of coffee growers in the mountainous eastern part of the country (Figure 3.1). Both organizations have offered 43 Figure 3.1: Map of Haiti, showing location of study sites: Anse d’Hainault, , and Thiotte, , (GOOGLEMAPS, 2019). training, an optional market with the promise of an up-front payment followed by an after-sale financial return to the grower, as well as an acknowledgement that inclusion of women into their ranks is a priority. And both organizations have received funding from international sources. The ultimate purpose of this article is to investigate the perceptions of the growers and agronomists working with them to tell their stories of working in the coffee economy in rural Haiti. Guided by the following questions, and the grounded theory approach, I will explore how, despite challenges, Haitian coffee growers continue to believe in coffee and its place in helping their families live better lives. Specifically, my research questions included: 44 1. In what ways do the growers in grower organizations perceive and implement training and services provided? How do they perceive changes in the coffee economy, the coffee fields (environment) and the rural communities? 2. How do coffee growers, both male and female, perceive success in the context of rural subsistence agriculture, and what are the perceptions of women’s roles in the coffee farmer associations? The Coffee Economy in Haiti Coffee in Haiti began as a source of income for French plantation owners who introduced coffee to the island colony and made their fortunes on the backs of slaves. After hard-fought freedom, former slaves continued to care for the coffee, and it continued to be a major export for the nation until the collapse of the international market price and embargos beginning in the 1980s. Today, charcoal and market crops are replacing coffee as means to survive in rural Haiti. Some of the more obvious problems with the transition to a charcoal economy are negative environmental impacts of desertification of the island, increased run-off especially during the rainy season, and consequent destruction of available topsoil for growth of other agricultural products; any short-term economic benefits of charcoal and market crops cannot surpass the benefits of restoring forests. Restoring the forests and the regeneration of topsoil are but two of the components necessary for the regeneration of the coffee economy in Haiti. International development efforts have stepped in to assist coffee growers in Haiti as well as in other nations around the world as the coffee culture has made a surge in the specialty coffee market across North America and Europe, in particular. One of the organizations which has stepped in to help is Just Haiti, which claims that it 45 ….works in partnership with associations of small scale coffee farmers in Haiti and faith-based organizations in the United States to market Haitian coffee to consumers in the United States. We provide technical assistance, training, and a revolving no-interest loan fund. Just Haiti's fair and direct trade model ensures that all profits from the sale of our coffee go directly to the growers. Just Haiti, Inc. is a faith-based, 501(c)3 nonprofit organization dedicated to an alternative way of doing business in which the wealth that is generated through Haitian resource development or the sale of Haitian products is retained by the producers in Haiti. Just Haiti, Inc. focuses on the poorest communities of Haiti, transforming both the consumer and producer through a just and dignified relationship. (Just Haiti, 2017) (accessed July 23, 2019). Whereas the Anse d’Hainault association (affiliated with Just Haiti) is set up to derive operational funding from a small fee out of the profits from the sale of the coffee and from international donations, in Thiotte, the network of local cooperatives of coffee growers (COOPCAB) receives a one-time membership fee from member growers in addition to grants and loans secured from government and international agencies. These two organizations are not different from most international development organizations in that there never seems to be an adequate supply of funding for them to provide the assistance that the growers are asking for, and in many cases, need. Although funding is not the only factor in the success of development assistance programs and projects, without continuous and adequate funding, the certainty of whether the organization can continue to provide training and access to markets will be questioned (Vos, in Hardman, 2012). 46 Ecology Equity/Ecology Ecology/Economics Area of Sustainability Equity Equity/Economics Economics Figure 3.2: Fractal model of sustainability (Hardman, 2012, p. 30) Framing Sustainability When I began my research, I had in mind a modified fractal model of sustainability (Figure 3.2), as derived from John Hardman (2012, p. 30). This model includes the traditional “pillars” of sustainability, (economy, environment and equity) as equally important; the interface between the pairs creates a central triangle as the most likely space for achieving sustainability. This model provides a theoretical representation of the idea that sustainability can be thought of in terms of a place where the three elements are in some point of balance, as well as the idea that there are places along multidimensional continua where an organization or community can exist on the journey toward sustainability. Framing sustainability in this way requires that the elements 47 are thought of as integrated parts dependent upon and supportive of each other. One way to describe it is as a holarchical system (a nested hierarchy of holons, which are defined as “simultaneously a whole and a part of a living or social system” (Arthur Koestler in Hardman, 2013, p. 32). Holons offer those who are involved points from which it is necessary to consider the effects of their efforts/activities on subsystems within larger systems, necessitates leaders who think about systems and are flexible, creative, and adaptable in response to systems change. Methods Using a grounded theory approach, theoretical sampling guided the selection of sites and interviewees for this research. Theoretical sampling involves building of the sample, collecting data from interviewees while constantly comparing the earliest data collected to new data. The researcher continues analysis to identify emerging concepts until saturation occurs, and no additional perspectives emerge from the data being collected (Oktay, 2012). So, for this research in Haiti, the interview sampling consisted of individual coffee growers and agronomists in two geographically disparate coffee growing communities in rural Haiti. Each of the communities has an organization that partners with the growers and provides assistance in training for practices in the coffee garden as well as in securing an international market for the sale of the coffee. Between September 10 and October 16, 2018, I spoke with a total of 43 individuals associated with the Haitian coffee economy (Table 3.1). I interviewed 26 coffee growers, 2 agronomists (one female) and a grower association coordinator in Anse d’Hainault. In the community of Thiotte, where there exists a cooperative of coffee growers which does not foster or train specifically in Fair Trade practices, I interviewed 12 coffee growers and 2 agronomists. I spoke with two families of growers who were not members of either the association or of the 48 cooperative; these two families were very much on the fringes of the coffee economy, with one who showed me his last two coffee trees. We had met him carrying a container of freshly harvested cacao beans, as we finished a tour of another coffee garden. He was interested in why we were in the area and invited us to his place. This chance meeting opened an opportunity to learn from the perspectives of a coffee grower who had found no future in coffee for his family (thus demonstrating the value of theoretical sampling). He agreed to talk with us about his experiences with coffee and cacao, so we interviewed him. All interviews were open ended; I utilized an interview guide to help ensure that similar questions were asked to the growers. However, as is common in grounded theory, this interview guide evolved throughout the field research process in order to be responsive to interviewees’ comments and contexts . Growers who lived near the villages guided me through a walk in their coffee gardens. All interviews were audio recorded and the walks through the coffee gardens were photo-documented, with the permission of the participants. Each evening I worked to translate and transcribe the interviews and began the open-coding process, using a line-by-line process to identify key concepts emerging from the data (Oktay, 2012). I then proceeded to axial coding and was open to observing both recurring themes and themes that stood out individually. During the transcription and open coding processes, concepts and categories began emerging that I eventually, in the late stages of analysis, grouped into three categories: economy/means; agroecology/climate change; and community/survival. Although the categories are presented in the Results section separately, they are interconnected in ways that are informed by common statements from growers. The economy, the climate and survival in rural communities are interconnected and entwined in ways that made it difficult to analyze each category in isolation. I arrived at main categories through the data analysis processes of open 49 coding, categorizing and axial coding followed by tables of coding concepts and categories. The tables are not exhaustive lists of the coded segments, in that repeated segments are minimized in an attempt to eliminate redundancy for the reader. The descriptive and explanatory sections include full quotes to provide more context around the data. 50 Table 3.1 Data collected from two research sites in rural Haiti – research participants Site Name # of interview sessions Total # of participants Gender characteristics of participants interviewed Demographic information of participants Female/ Male Female Male Couples Anse d’Hainault (Fair Trade Grower Assoc) Thiotte (Coffee Grower Co- op) 13 29 2 couples (4 people) 15 10 12 14 2 couples (4 people) 4 6 Assoc/Co-op Membership status Role of participant Grower only Other3 Grower & Other4 22 4 3 Member Non- member 24 5 12 2 12 2 0 HH1 Age2 (years) M = 9 F = 11 S = 5 >50: 15 50 & under:14 M = 6 F = 1 S = 3 >50: 9 50 & under: 3 1Head of Household, M=Male Head of Household, F=Female Head of Household, S=Shared Head of Household, (indicated only for interviewees who were coffee growers) 2Indicated only for interviewees who were coffee growers 3Including: agronomist, cacao grower, coordinator of organization, student of agronomy 4These individuals indicated that they not only grow coffee, but also hold a position with the organization such as agronomist, coordinator, advisor 51 Results The stories heard from the voices of those whose lives have been steeped in activities surrounding agricultural and economic systems related to coffee in Haiti tell about more than annual economic tales and production from the land. Theirs are stories stemming from a national history of socio-economic inequalities, lack of education, and environmental degradation, made worse by recent climate events. The following is an account of the three major categories that emerged from this research informing my contribution to theory around sustainability. These categories are: economy/means, agroecology/climate change, and community/survival. Economy/means In Hardman’s fractal model of sustainability, he asks the economic question, “can I make my product or provide my service at a profit?” And, in the opening chapter of W. M. Adams’ Green Development, he quotes the World Bank in this way (Adams, 2009): Poverty is hunger. Poverty is lack of shelter. Poverty is being sick and not being able to see a doctor. Poverty is not being able to go to school and not knowing how to read. Poverty is not having a job, is fear for the future, living one day at a time. Poverty is losing a child to illness brought about by unclean water. Poverty is powerlessness, lack of representation and freedom. (pp. 11-12). Economics is one of the three pillars of sustainability which are commonly known as the triple bottom line; economic benefits often serve as markers for measuring the sustainability of a development project. There are, as indicated in the World Bank quote above, many facets to poverty and subsequently to a measure of economic sustainability. In my research findings, the stories of the situations for coffee farmers and agronomists shed a broader light on this aspect of sustainability. 52 For coffee growers in Haiti, the financial arm of the economy has three basic sources: the coffee, their other agricultural products, and outside-of-agriculture income. The coffee holds a place of hope, other agricultural products fill the gaps when the coffee is not abundant and having an outside source of income requires either to get an education or to purchase resources. One interviewee expresses this dynamic well: The Haitian pig was gone, the coffee was gone, the cacao was gone. Those three main factors, or backbone of the Haitian economy were gone. People were asking themselves how can they bring those things back? The coffee is the one they start, the cacao they start first, but the coffee started bringing back as well and people who have coffee on their land kept asking how do they get more? (Interview 2, Anse d’Hainault). Most growers have grown up in coffee and have memories or know family stories of days when coffee was profitable enough to send all of a family’s children to the city for education or work, “there was a time when coffee was the backbone of the Haiti economy” (Interview 10, Anse d’Hainault). They also remember days when coffee was abundant, but prices were so low it was not worth the work of the harvest, “they used to have a good time. The good time was when the coffee was plentiful, but it wasn’t really a good time because there was no price, the most people could pay for the coffee was three [Haitian] dollars a pound. That’s 15 gourdes a pound, and then they raised it up to 25 gourdes a pound. And that was the good time” (Interview 4, Thiotte). [At the time of data collection, September and October 2018, the exchange rate was about 65 Haitian gourdes (HTG) for 1 USD. At the time of this writing, July 2019, the exchange rate is almost 95 HTG for 1 USD. In just 8 months, a pound of coffee at the old prices reported by growers (25 gourdes), has dropped from $0.38 US to $0.26 US.] The creation of the association in Anse d’Hainault, in 2014, and the cooperative in 53 Thiotte, in 1998, brought hope to the coffee growers. The association especially supported hope, because it was a grassroots organization emerging from the conversations and concerns local growers were having and an assessment they undertook on their own. In addition, this association is connected with the fortune of the church community, through Just Haiti, Inc. Interviewees discussed the formation of the association: So, by talking and talking and talking about it, the assessment that they did. It happened that the priest was around and he talked about Just Haiti. They were gathering people, then the Americans came in and the church got involved and because they are members of the church they would get in. (Interview 2, Anse d’Hainault). Many of the growers recognize their conundrum of having little or no means to invest in improvements such as “cleaning” (removing the overgrown, dead and diseased vegetation) of the coffee gardens, planting more coffee and shade trees, or applying compost and removing diseased cherries. A cacao farmer who has let his coffee go notes this: I used to have coffee but with the price and the weather, especially hurricanes, the coffee got destroyed… with no money to do the kind of cleaning that is necessary to produce coffee, it become destroyed over time. There’s no more coffee over time…” (Interview 4, Anse d’Hainault). A participant in a group interview stated the conundrum this way: The big obstacle is how to maintain the coffee, to maintain the coffee, we have to have a good price for it, not just at the local market, but as well at the international market. And that wasn’t the case until many of those NGOs start[ed] coming into the community. Then they started offering some kind of an opening in the international market. But the problem is to maintain the coffee; it’s a lot of money and takes a lot of time and when 54 you don’t maintain it because you don’t have the time or the money, then you have a problem with disease. Sometimes people don’t even know we have diseases in the plants, it takes the agronomists and the experts to come down and tell you that you have a problem you have to fix, and what kind of intervention is necessary for the problem to be fixed. And find the right intervention to make that work, and get the cycle to be moving in the right direction. But the problem is financially, we don’t have a way of keeping up with it. (Interview 7, Anse d’Hainault). The conundrum of coffee sustainability in Thiotte, the location of the cooperative, was expressed in this way: “This is what is the most frustrating, doing coffee farming, you need money. The coffee needs nurture and there is basically no money to do that.” (Interview 10, Thiotte). Even to get to the market to sell produce is a challenge for some of the growers. This was the story we were told by a grower who cannot afford the fare for a moto-taxi for his wife to get to the market: “her role should have been a vendor and going to the market during market day to sell produce. But there is no money to do so” (Interview 5, Thiotte). So often I heard that the dream is to regenerate the coffee economy. The growers expressed the goal of investing in coffee to improve yield as well as quality; growers hope this will bring more financial returns and hence the ability to care for their children properly and for their ability to retire to a quiet life of caring for the coffee. One grower put it this way, The problem with this is when the price is unknown, there is no way we can foresee the future and make plans, because you don’t know how much is coming in. Now, if you look at the past, everything goes up. If fertilizer used to cost 25 gourdes, now it costs 1,600 gourdes for a bag of fertilizer. The compost used to cost 1 Haitian dollar, now it 55 costs 25. (Interview 10, Thiotte). Another grower expressed their decision making in this way: When the money comes, there is always that competition between what to do, where to allocate the money? Whether to allocate the money to fixing the house? Or allocate the money to fixing the land? Well the land always wins, because this is where the livelihood comes. (Interview 4, Thiotte). One of the more prosperous growers had this to say: “If I need more money, I just plant more coffee and then the money becomes handy because you have to pay school fees, you have to pay books, you have to pay supplies. That’s the reason, really.” (Interview 11, Thiotte) There are those who rely solely on the coffee and have had extreme difficulties recovering from Hurricane Matthew whose eye passed over Anse d’Hainault in the fall of 2016. Economically, they had just gotten through two years of planting and caring for their coffee when it was all destroyed, requiring them to start over. In particular, women who are on their own, and heads of household, told me that they can no longer afford to keep their children in school, much less pay for help to clean and plant and harvest in the coffee garden. There was a time when my mother before school opening would go and harvest enough coffee to pay tuition, to buy books, to buy uniforms, and for all of us but now this time is gone, we don’t have that anymore. (Interview 6, Anse d’Hainault). Some of the growers recognize that, in addition to holding outside jobs as agronomists, technicians or teachers, another potential source of income would be available if there were a way to process the other agricultural products such as grapefruit, or oranges during the time of abundance. These products have busy harvest seasons that do not conflict with the coffee, and the growers would find great economic benefit if they could take full advantage of off-season 56 produce. [Table 3.2, below, offers examples of codes and the concepts they informed for the category economy/means.] Concepts Cycles – economic related Table 3.2 Summary table for coded interview segments and concepts informing the category: Economy/means Coded Segments Fear that the speculator will come back if the co-op cannot find an international market, the whole co-op thing is not working anymore. [Uncertainty cycle] No matter what money you spent, the good weather is a problem as well. Her role [speaking of wife] should have been to a vendor…but there is no money to do so Coffee…creates jobs in the Haitian economy…a chain of jobs…that cycle where the money is coming back to help the family It takes too much time to get the seedlings [reference to growing seedlings in a nursery], to get them in the ground and prepare it, time for it to grow and to harvest it. They don’t have the time to wait for that time I don’t have money to put into it, the land will be abandoned and there is nothing to get out of it Facing the harvest season totally broke Selling coffee on credit, waiting for money [a story heard in Thiotte, not in Anse d’Hainault] People who have coffee on their land kept asking how do they get more? With no money [told my growers in reference to both getting work done in their coffee and regarding school and care for families] People ask for a lot of money to clean up the coffee For now, the only way is to sell locally [non-member markets are limited] All the coffee sold to the co-op is in storage…looking for a market The middleman has been cut, [the coop] looks for the international market I sell all of it to the co-op They [the coop] give the bad back and we sell it to the local market We have a better price and we get technical assistance There is not any transformation plant for the other produce – other produce is being wasted …it would create an economy There is no money to take produce to market Lacking time and/or money Market access 57 Table 3.2 (cont’d) Coded Segments Those three main factors, or backbone of the Haitian economy were gone The good time was when the coffee was plentiful, but it wasn’t really a good time because there was no price Vending other produce in the street and local markets Traveling to the cities to vend other produce Teaching in the local school Headmaster of school In the cooperative, there is money we can borrow I do not have another source of income [told by women who are not married] The co-op pays 100 gourdes, but they get a return also This is the golden time for coffee…because the co-op is looking for the best price [Coffee] is my bank account for everyday living Other ways of income…beans and plaintain… The farm animals, the pig, you see the chicken The more you spend money on the coffee itself, the more you can expect from it. [from both communities] They hire hands or they use their own hands to start cleanup … those are the ones who have coffee to be harvested. …Educate my children and …the children can probably take care of me in my old age Invest in other things and make more money from trade Concepts Sources of income Investing money Agroecology/climate change A key component of sustainability is the health of the environment. Those in the agricultural sectors who depend on a healthy system for their economic livelihood and interact with the system on a regular basis, it seems, would have a keen understanding of the health of their farms and gardens. This section investigates the perceptions around climate and how it is affecting the agroecology for coffee growers in Haiti. This quote from a grower in Thiotte best starts this section: I have seen a big difference in the climate. First off, there is not enough rain compared to the past and even when the rain comes, you can see the temperature is not cooler - it’s as hot as - it stays hot. So that is a big difference. What we have seen as a result of the climate change is the arabica coffee which is the original coffee here, is diseased. The 58 disease started in 2015, after a long drought, and I was aware of the existence of the rouii disease, but it wasn’t in Haiti. They were talking about it as something that was outside in other coffees around the world. But since 2015 after a big drought, it has been coming in Haiti as well. Part of the reason why I believe we have the climate change and things are not what they used to be is because of deforestation. (Interview 10, Thiotte). And from a grower in Anse d’Hainault: My biggest fear is a hurricane like the last one I experienced. Where I live, it was close to the shoreline, the sea water went on land. What saved my life was a boat. I get into a boat, and then other people were drowning, and I pick them up and put them into the boat. And we pushed it on land and that saved my life. My biggest fear is to have a hurricane at all. Because I’ve seen hurricanes before in my life, I’ve never seen anything like that. That gave me trauma, I cannot see another one like that (Interview 6, Anse d’Hainault). Whether educated or not, the rural peasant farmer is aware of the effects of changing climate on the local agroecology and their way of life. Those who have means are best equipped to take care of the coffee by hiring help; these are also the growers who are finding a significant harvest just two years after the complete destruction caused by Hurricane Matthew. One of the agronomists describes it this way: there are other people who start cleanup and whether they hire hands or they use their own hands, they start cleanup from day one… for the purpose of keeping the coffee alive. Those are the ones, and he’s one of them who have coffee that is going to be harvested that can be brought into the market. (Interview 8, Anse d’Hainault). 59 Climate change is seen by some as the reason for disease and insect problems, and there is disagreement about whether cleaning up the debris in the coffee gardens is effective in solving the problems of scolyte (an insect that attacks the coffee cherry) or rouii (coffee rust) and other diseases that were best translated as forms of a fungus. Some find that the efforts to reduce scolyte are temporary: “when you clean and pick up and do that kind of thing, we have a reduction of it but then the next season, it’s double. It comes back with vengeance.” (Interview 7, Thiotte). Others, often the agronomists and those with some technical training in coffee, indicated that continued efforts to remove affected cherries and trees may reduce the future occurrence of infestations: During the January season what they do is they go on the ground and pick up every single coffee bean that is on the ground and pull them out - that’s where the scolyte is. They are vectors for the scolyte. [Follow-up Question]: If the farmers could clean their coffee gardens on a more regular basis, if they had the capacity to clean them, would that be beneficial to help to get rid of that? [Response]: Definitely, that would help to destroy the problem. (Interview 13, Anse d’Hainault) An agronomist in Thiotte, observed that “it used to be out of 5 buckets of coffee, 4 have been affected by scolyte. Almost 20% of coffee can be salvaged, now it is much more that can be salvaged when people follow the rules.” (Interview 8, Thiotte). We talked about the soil after one of the agronomists indicated that the plastic waste that litters the land is affecting the quality of the soil. This person noted that it is difficult to get the growers to understand that cleaning the coffee gardens should include getting the plastic out and 60 to recognize that they, as farmers, are ultimately responsible for taking action to make the coffee climate better: they have to remove all the plastics, all the little pieces of metal that’s everywhere on the ground and third they have to do it themselves and not wait for an NGO from outside to provide the seedlings, to provide the fertilizer or the compost for them. (Interview 8, Thiotte). Some growers admitted that they did not know about the quality of the soil, others claimed they had good soil in some areas and poor soil in other places. Most had an understanding that with application of compost or fertilizers, the land could be more productive. Often such statements were followed by comments that these things, too, require finances. What you can see here for the soil, he doesn’t know too much about chemicals or what the soil is lacking, but he does know that in some places there is a hard part that keeps the roots from going down. It’s like a cement. As a result of it, the plant itself is very fragile. And then there are places where the soil itself, the good part is not one foot deep, so there are chances that the roots are not going to absorb all the nutrients that the roots need. (Interview 10, Thiotte). When I took the land from my parents, it was just a rocky gully with nothing in there and I built it up to where it is. I have worked it. I did it because in my mind, if I do it, I do it for my children, because I’m going to leave it for them and that’s what it is. (Interview 4, Thiotte). As for the help offered through either the association in Anse d’Hainault or the cooperative in Thiotte, they both offer technical assistance and training so that the growers know better the importance of cleaning to reduce disease and applying compost to increase yield. 61 Training is also offered in how to establish nurseries and plant both coffee and shade trees. There are instances of technology transfer failing, and that, an agronomist explains, is part of the job in the field. Here is what he said referring to the plastic sacks used in the nurseries for growing individual seedlings: The main problem that they face are the people with the little plastic, the plastic bags, well the people don’t remove it. If they remove it, they don’t remove it all along, they just pull the bottom out. However, when the coffee starts growing, well, the roots cannot reach the soil, so during the rainy seasons, the coffee looks good, but during the dry seasons the coffee’s bad. then you have to go back and go to the field and dig out every single one of them for them to survive. (Interview 7, Anse d’Hainault). When disasters like Hurricane Matthew struck, the presence of the association was critical for the survival of the growers in Anse d’Hainault. The members helped each other with cleanup in the coffee gardens, and the association was also a channel for international donations to get directly to the members. Table 3.3 shows some of the key data supporting and leading to the creation of the category “agroecology/climate change,” Figure 3.2 highlights the problems that many interviewees indicated with plastic waste and old coffee plants. Table 3.3 Summary table for coded segments and concepts informing the category: Agroecology/climate change Coded Segments The plastic is not biodegradable Biodegradable bags are very expensive The main problem is with the plastic sack, people don’t remove it …and the roots cannot reach the soil They have to remove all the plastics, all the little pieces of metal that’s everywhere on the ground We used to tear the plastic and throw it on the ground, now the agronomist is saying that the plastic is not biodegradable. If you put it on the ground, it’s not going to break down. Understanding the problems of plastics & trash Concepts 62 Table 3.3 (cont’d) Coded Segments Making their own compost Using chickens Using compost for fertilizer They teach to not put the coffee on the ground We pick the affected cherries and place them in boiling water, to kill the insect (learned during a walk through a coffee garden) They go on the ground and pick up every single coffee bean … that is where the scolyte is…vectors for the scolyte They should clean on a regular basis to control the scolyte There is a cure for it, just pull the leaves that are problematic Whenever a tree is sick, we cut it hoping there will be a “pushback” [meaning that it will grow from the same rootstock] For the soil quality, all I do is apply compost to it There is a fungus…it falls on all the trees around…it is destroying all of it Conservation of the environment - Conservation of the soil itself Where there is too much sun, they have to plant shade trees The problem is degradation of the soil There is a tree in the past…it used to be a protector, but it has a fungus now The soil itself is not good, there is no moisture We cannot control the climate…it tends to recur all the time Now the hurricanes are almost every year Climate change is there to stay…and there is nothing you can do about it Even the rice is getting bitter…it’s like we are under a perpetual embargo He has seen a big difference in the climate…the temperature is not cooler [on the mountain] The Arabica coffee is diseased After the big drought, rouii disease has come to Haiti Why I believe we have climate change…is because of deforestation Climate change is what brought those things in Climate change, it’s a big threat not just for the coffee, but for the world After Matthew [the hurricane of 2016] there was complete destruction [this sentiment was expressed over and over] I am still under a tent Biggest fear is a hurricane…the wind is blowing everything away We have to start from scratch Not just the hurricane, but the dry season…has taken everything away The phenomenon of hail – this year we have had five of them. Now the hurricanes are almost every year After Matthew … I have to clear the whole thing and plant new trees Concepts Natural products/ solutions Making connections with climate change Threats of climate change 63 Table 3.3 (cont’d) Coded Segments Now they are just starting over because of Matthew It’s a matter of getting seedlings in the ground…hopefully get a better harvest Matthew itself did the work of taking the branches down. It’s like cleaning Make sure that there is a healthy balance between sunlight and shade The beans that we put into the ground….we can tell already it’s a waste of time You’re going to start over, clean up and hope for the best The big obstacle is how to maintain the coffee It’s a lot of money, a lot of time Preferring to use natural methods of pest control (chickens) and soil amendments (compost) There is a chance for the coffee to revive because of an organization like Just Haiti When the tree is sick, we cut it and hope there is a pushback [new tree growth] It takes too much time to get the seedlings [reference to growing seedlings in a nursery], to get them in the ground and prepare it, time for it to grow and to harvest it. They don’t have the time to wait for that time I don’t have money to put into it, the land will be abandoned and there is nothing to get out of it Facing the harvest season totally broke No matter what effort you put in…the good weather is a problem as well Start from scratch, the whole thing, the whole operation, we are just starting over You have to be a slave to the coffee, because you are cleaning all of the time When a plant is discarded, you replace it by another, the same way I am doing and I hope they will do it when I die [father making analogy of cycle of planting to cycle of farming families] Need to apply compost, clean and plant to have good harvest the next year Concepts Regeneration of agriculture sector Lacking time and/or money for caring for gardens Cycles – ecology related 64 Figure 3.3: The problems of plastic waste, and old growth coffee Community/survival I chose the term “community/survival” for this category of research findings, because so many of the stories I heard involved families depending on agriculture alone to survive, while the communities within which they live are complex structures that can be without basic resources such as health clinics, water and schools. Their stories left me hopeless at times, feeling that there is no way for communities to address the problems of abject poverty. As I asked key questions during the interviews, and based on what I learned from interviewees, I had to replace the word “success” with a word that resonated better for growers. I turned to using the word “rivé,” which is creole for “to arrive” or “espwa,” creole for “hope” in order to help the growers understand what I was asking. Even then, many had never entertained the idea of “rive,” since survival thinking occupies their days. I then back-translated and report the results using the 65 American word “success” During a group interview, comments from the participants regarding “success” were these: The only success that I can talk to is probably what the success is going to be in the coffee production, and success in the coffee production will be in relationship to people like you coming from outside and looking at it and see what is missing and help to make that, to bring that link…success for me at home, is not just money, success for me is to have enough means to educate the children, success for me is for me to have enough money to feed them every single day, and if they have needs, financial needs or money to spend, it’s available for them to do so… Success is a very difficult word to define in the Haitian economy, only a minority of the people living in Haiti can call themselves successful… In terms of success economic wise, it doesn’t exist in Haiti for people at the bottom…In Haiti there is no success, what I see in Haiti is a perpetual misery…So therefore I don’t know what “success” is (Interview 7, Anse d’Hainault). This sentiment continues with the following quote, “Success” means for me to be able to provide for my kids in school, success means I have to be able to feed myself and feed them, feed my parents - my elderly parents, that is what success means for me. But as far as I am concerned, I am not there yet (Interview 5, Anse d’Hainault). Many of the growers obtained the land they care for from an inheritance; theirs is a community of kinship -- they are surrounded by their own family members. Some work the land together, others are left in the country while family members have fled to the city or to another country, and by default they are responsible for the care of the whole family land area themselves. Yet others maintain only their individual portion of the land, resulting in the 66 average size of landholding in rural Haiti shrinking over recent decades. Still, the coffee growers explicitly state that the coffee was once a “piggy bank” for the family and are counting on the return of coffee to its glory days. There was a time when my mother before school opening would go and harvest enough coffee to pay tuition, to buy books, to buy uniforms, and for all of us but now this time is gone, we don’t have that anymore… Prior, you had the coffee, but life wasn’t expensive… The coffee has been around for a while, even my grandmother was doing coffee, and then pass it to us. (Interview 6, Anse d’Hainault). With the problems originating in the decline in the international market, and continuing with the climate, scolyte and disease, the current generation has only memories of good times for coffee growers in Haiti. Many of those who grew up in coffee were encouraged to get away from the land, and this sentiment is prevalent still. About their children, this is some of what was said: • “Maybe the agronomist might be coming back, but I’m not sure about the rest of them.” (Interview 7, Thiotte). • “I really don’t know what they have in mind, so the coffee has been helpful for me to get the children out of the land and to school. What they do is up to them. (Interview 3, Thiotte). • “…there is the perception that if it is rural, it is devalued. It is not good.” (Interview 1 Thiotte). • “what I have been doing is to get them out of the land and get them to have an education” (Interview 6, Anse d'Hainault). • “ ‘Success’ for me is for the kids to be able to go to school and never be like me.” (Interview 4, Anse d'Hainault). 67 This final quote came from the cacao grower who has not pursued coffee and has found no help from either a local association or from the government. He has eight children and not one can he send to school. Table 3.4 shows a subsection of the codes from data gathered and the concepts derived from them that inform the category of community/survival. The photos that follow, Figures 3.3 and 3.4 give an idea of the living conditions of some of the growers. Association/ co-op as part of community Table 3.4 Summary table for coded segments and concepts informing the category: Community/survival Coded Segments Concepts We have been helping with the scolyte…without the effort, the coffee would be nonexistent [we] share what we have without any discrimination The peasant brings the coffee here and the co-op takes the coffee and prepares it for them APCDAH [Just Haiti local association] helps by: …bringing seedlings …gets a better price for coffee …receive help with food …encourage us all the time Just Haiti was essential…to give some strength…and some incentive We are adding 3 nurseries a year With the help of the cooperative, they have put in nurseries My children and I we [are] pulling together to build it and conserve it I do it for my children…I’m going to leave it for them Integrate the youth…the youth is the future Me and my children, we don’t plan on giving up Just like a school, you have a secondary school and the value of it depends on your primary school Land is inherited We don’t split the land, we share the crops The land has not been split – they are in Port au Prince, I am working it myself Everybody lives on part of the land My children work with me, The nursery is a family project There are always those who stay This week they are not here, but all of them [children] live with me Everybody lives together, 9 people Family as community 68 Table 3.4 (Cont’d) Coded Segments [coffee] is the only thing the community has left They look at what is going on…if coffee is there…there is a possibility for more Create the services … roads, services, schools, and hospitals I have to be able to feed myself and feed them, feed my parents Now, it is just trying to survive I still live in a tent since Matthew It has always been a place of survival…produce food for the subsistence She is a survivor…[cannot think about disease of the coffee] The situation is that there is no way you can keep up with life Catholic [we asked about church affiliation] Protestant This week, I will become a protestant Bondieu bon [a creole phrase for the resignation to determinism] It’s probably an act of God and they thank God for that. There is nothing you can do about it [referring to climate change] Concepts Coffee integral to community Taking care of family - surviving Faith and superstition Figure 3.4: The cacao grower and 4 of his 8 children. 69 Figure 3.5: Children too poor for school, and a coffee grower with failing eyesight, and no help. An Emergent Theory – Socio-Biospheric Sustainability The fractal model of sustainability (Hardman, 2013) as explained earlier, considers a theory of sustainability in which, rather than the 3 elements of economy, equity and environment, there are 3 holons as the corners of a fractal model. Hardman recognizes that the use of these elements guides thinking toward components independent, even isolated from each other, whereas holons are systems that behave simultaneously as independent while serving as critical parts of a whole. In my research, the interactions of the three holons are evident. The economy/means holon is interlaced with both the community/survival and agroecology/climate change holons in the following example. The organizations to which coffee growers belong struggle to support the growers in producing international quality coffee, without creating ongoing dependence on 70 continued aid. In Anse d’Hainault, the Just Haiti association, carefully crafted to provide wide- ranging support for 2 years, could not have predicted that coinciding with the completion of growers’ 2-year commitment, Hurricane Matthew would devastate the entire peninsula setting all of the coffee growers back to a point of starting over. With the ecological destruction, survival of individuals and community was, and continues to be at risk while the economy of the growers struggles to be restored. How the growers reacted and/or responded to the setback varied depending on the beliefs and resources of the grower. Some have been able to apply the technologies learned before Matthew and restore the coffee gardens within 2 years – the harvest I witnessed during data collection. Others, mainly those without a spouse, or an outside income, are still struggling, no matter what training they had received. And with very reduced production in the first year after Matthew, the association was not in the hoped-for financial position to assist all of the growers. In John Hardman’s model, the corners of the fractal model are labeled: ecology, equity and economics. Based upon my research findings, I replace economy with economy/means, ecology with agroecology/climate change, and equity with community/survival. Each of these holons are representative of an anthropocentric conceptualization of sustainability. As a result of my research, I suggest an added space – the three-dimensional space of a trigonal pyramid. The points of the base of the pyramid are these constructs: agroecological systems (including climate change), economic systems (including means) and equitable systems (represented by community/survival in my analysis); and the central triangle within the base of the pyramid remains the 2-dimensional space where sustainability, as a human construct, exists. Along the sides of the base are the interfaces as understood from my data analysis: the agroecology- economic interface; the agroecology-equity interface; and the economy-equity interface. The 71 base for purposes of this research, is representative of these integrated concepts as seen through the eyes of the Haitian coffee growers and agronomists. Figure 3.2 below, represents this model, the triangular base with human constructs and perceptions of the constructs as the base, the spaces above represent a realm outside of the plane of humanity where we interface with the biosphere while striving for sustainability (the pinnacle of the pyramid). The central bipyramidal solid is then, the space where Socio-Biospheric Sustainability exists. The idea is akin to the concept of bio-centric sustainability, where intrinsic value is assigned to non-human nature (Adams, 2009), as well as to the references Adams makes to Roszak and Bookchin who argue that the system of urban-industrialism will not work as a solution to poverty nor for the “harmonisation of people and nature…” (Bookchin in Adams, p. 187). I think of this structure as behaving as a sort of three-dimensional continuum, and sustainability throughout the biosphere depends on a foundation that is solid. Area of Socio-Biospheric Sustainability Economy/means Agroecology/climate change Community/survival Figure 3.6: Socio-Biospheric sustainability pyramid Let me take each of the corner points and place them in a context that begins with the Haitian coffee grower as situated within these systems. Then I will expand my description upward and into the biosphere as I describe this emergent theory. 72 My research shows that agroecology/climate change is a realm in which the peysan (Haitian term used for the farmers) interact with their environment by using resources for the purpose of consuming them for survival. As one of the agronomists lamented, the ground is littered with plastic; and plastic, from his understanding and perception, is reducing the quality of the soil. The peysan also cut trees for the making of charcoal and to clear land for vegetables. Growers have seen the storms destroy their entire crops, washing away topsoil as they do. These interactions between the environment and the land, or weather events, growers believe, are out of their control – acts of God. This use of agroecological resources for survival places them somewhere on the continuum between agroecology/climate change and community /survival, but not in the center of the base where they begin to believe that they are no longer in need of outside help. As the agronomist touched on, however, the soil has a life that is affected by the practices of the peysan. Learning to respect the life of the soil and aiming to behave in ways that foster its healthy existence, even if for the benefit of the economy of the grower’s family, is moving out of the 2-dimensional base into the 3-dimensional space above. When they feel that survival is assured, they can move out, into the center of the base where the human construct of sustainability exists and then, as interactions with the ecology begin for the purposes of healing the environment, they will move up off of the base toward the realm that is sustainability. Likewise, the coffee grower can be consumed with survival while unconcerned about the use of agroecological resources, existing near the base point of economy/means. The growers expressed need for more financial resources in order to survive and develop their coffee gardens to make them economically viable. When capturing available economic means such as those made available through aid agencies, the grower finds himself somewhere on the continuum 73 between community/survival and economy/means. Without available economic resources, the peysan depend on family and community as “hands” to get the work done. Using the available means to invest in activities that will create microbusiness for themselves and their family will move them up and off of the baseline toward the realm of sustainability. Finally, the coffee growers tell me they are trapped on the continuum between agroecology/climate change and economy/means – needing financial resources to invest in their coffee, and to feed, clothe and educate their families while watching the climate ravage their coffee gardens with cycles of hurricanes and drought. To move up and off of this baseline, the grower seems to know, will require assistance from outsiders such as Just Haiti or COOPCAB. As I conducted this research, I endeavored to understand, from the perspectives of the Haitian coffee growers, how organizations such as the association and the cooperative can invest their time and other resources to make a difference for the families of coffee growers and the physical environment in which they operate. Through my research, I found that the coffee growers and those who work in coffee in Haiti hold respect for the agroecology there. They also respect the agronomists and the leaders in their coffee community and hope that the organizations will continue to bring the resources needed to care for the coffee, to feed their families and to keep their children in school. Above all, they spoke of having enough money to take care of their children and to invest in their business of coffee growing. The economic construct and the economy in general, are human creations/systems. It is possible to extrapolate economic theories and laws into the natural world, and conversely, to learn from the efficiency of biosphere cycles. This line of thinking is what Gregory Unruh references when it comes to economic policy and measures of success in the economy. From a sustainability perspective, it makes sense to consider the value cycles of the biosphere (Unruh, 74 2010), and work to expand ideas such as consumerism to include an understanding that what goes into the creation of a thing consumed, necessitates the creation of by-products that we call waste, but which could, if thought of differently, feed another positive loop of creation. The individual trying to survive each day will also make use of his waste in another cycle. Again, the lessons learned from both of the agronomists, on plastic are important here. In Anse d’Hainault, seedlings were planted with plastic sacks remaining on the roots; in Thiotte, the ground was littered with plastic. Thinking in these terms integrates the economic pillar of sustainability with that of the environment. The solutions to such problems could be found with continued education and relationship building between agronomists, international aid agencies and the growers, and by default, with the pillar of society becomes more sustainable. It is the hope expressed by Bookchin “in the final analysis, it is impossible to achieve a harmonization of people and nature without creating a human community that lives in a lasting balance with its natural environment.” (Bookchin in Adams, 2009, p. 187). Finally, the corner point of equity requires a recognition that there is value in every thing and every one. Failure to see such permeable value has created the structures that drive an economy which dismisses the consideration of impacts on ecological systems. In order to move into the dimensional space of socio-biospheric sustainability, we have to think beyond the plane of humanity and turn to the biosphere for understanding of how value cycles can be created in such ways that by-products are not toxic wastes but rather resources for other cycles. Offered resources, education and training, Haitian coffee growers who suffer from poverty inequities can find value in the work they do and regenerate their agroecological systems, their economic systems and create equitable social systems. With each corner point at the base of the Socio- Biospheric Pyramid solid, and interdependent systems in place, the difficulties of starting over 75 after, for example, a hurricane should be reduced This is not to say that there will not be rough patches, but that enough people will have the knowledge, empathy and ability to do the hard work to bring regeneration where ecology, economy and equity are concerned and ultimately find a path to sustainability. Hardman, in Leadership for Regeneration, reminds us that sustainability comes from within with a quote from Jaap Vos(Vos in Hardman, 2012): And sustainable development should not come from the top, should not come from the bottom, it should come from within: From within the individual, the organization, the company (p. 30). 76 CHAPTER 4: COFFEE, GENDER, AND SUSTAINABILITY IN RURAL HAITI: PERCEPTIONS OF SUCCESS IN SUSTAINABILITY THROUGH A GENDERED LENS Introduction As we work to move toward a place of sustainability and renewed thinking, consideration must be afforded to gender and how a global society can be socially just for every member. Gender issues in Haiti are many; Haiti, in general, is a patriarchal society where subtle indicators of prescribed gender roles are prevalent (Gardella, 2006). In the arena of Fair Trade sustainable agriculture, gender equity is often stated as a key objective. Gender equity is interactive – involving the male as well as the female - and therefore any growth toward equity or any solution to the issues must, of course, involve inner growth from both genders. It is my intent to apply a gendered lens as I explore the leadership thinking and perceptions of success and sustainability present among both the men and women who participate in sustainable coffee production in rural in rural Haiti. Background This inquiry focuses on the gendered perceptions of coffee growers on women’s roles and participation in the sustainable coffee economy in Haiti. Coffee has, since the French colonial days, been a central part of the international economy for Haiti, and coffee continued to be a major export for the country until the collapse of the International Coffee Agreement in 1989 (Thurston, R. W. Morris, J. & Steiman, S., 2013, p. 112). In Haiti, the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere, women are disenfranchised, despite being relied upon as the primary care-giver and income earner (Augustin, 2017). One set 77 of scholars note that Haitian women are “poto mitan” or the central pillar, yet they are the most marginalized, of the marginalized class (Bell & Danticat, 2001). Many other statistics bear out that women of Haiti suffer inequities. The United Nations Development Programme 2018 statistical update gives Haiti a gender inequality index2 of 0.601 in the poorest country in the western hemisphere (UNDP, @2018). USAID, in a 2006 gender assessment on Haiti, points out that there exists a marginalization of women despite that fact that they have a significant amount of autonomy and independence with respect to both household resources and national/domestic economy (Gardella, 2006). Women, Gardella says, are the backbone of the informal economy, which represents 85% of the total economy, yet women do not have equal representation with respect to the law and State, and only 30.0% of women have an account at a financial institution or mobile money service provider (UNDP, @2018). It seems ironic that, given these statistics and the personal stories of women in Haiti, that the UNDP update found that 52% of women versus 44% of men reported being satisfied with their freedom of choice, while women represent only 2.7% of the voices in parliament (UNDP, @2018). Why the seeming discrepancy, that women are unfairly treated and their voices unheard, yet many report satisfaction in freedom of choice? An answer to this question can be found in the history of women in Haiti. During the slave economy of the French colonial period, women labored primarily in households as domestic slaves. After the Haitian revolution of 1804, women worked the land, and also carried out the household tasks. Haitian women became the backbone of the economy, engaging in local trade and keeping the family together, earning the title “Madanm Sara,” a Creole term for “the birds that chatter in the trees”. In the 1980s, with the collapse of the 2A composite measure reflecting inequality in achievements between women and men in three dimensions: reproductive health, empowerment and the labor market (UNDP, 2018). 78 Duvalier dictatorship, it is mostly the older women who were left to work in the fields and to live in abject poverty. In today’s male-dominated society, the work of the women continues to be undervalued and there remains little opportunity for girls to go to school. Beverly Bell and Edwidge Danticat write (Bell & Danticat, 2001): Women carry on their heads the family, household economy, and culture. While women assert that they are the poto mitan, central pillar, of society, they are also quick to point out that they are the most defavorize, marginalized class within the klas defavorize, marginalized class. Women’s current socioeconomic status is the by-product of Haiti’s history – especially how power has been apportioned and applied throughout. (p. 18). Study Purpose and Research Questions What is missing in the literature, particularly in the link between FT and sustainable development, is an in-depth study involving the various actors, including women, and their perceptions of FT. This includes insights by participants as to whether FT or other development programs contribute to a holistic understanding of success in sustainable development. Thus, the purpose of my research is to move away from reductionist thinking in its examination of the various levels of participation and consider the perceptions individuals (especially female growers) have with respect to success and sustainability. One focus of this study is to conduct an in-depth investigation into the perceptions of success and gender roles among those participating in local coffee association and a cooperative in rural Haiti. My main purposes in this study were to listen for, and observe actions, that could reveal how women’s roles and responsibilities are perceived, as well as to gain insights into how women, in particular, feel about the coffee economy, “sustainability,” and their “success” within the coffee economy. 79 I set out to address the following research question: 1. How do coffee growers, both male and female, perceive success in the context of rural subsistence agriculture, and what are the perceptions of women’s roles in the coffee farmer associations? Methods My research began with preliminary interviews with US partners of a Fair Trade coffee growers association and with a Haitian agronomist who works on the ground in Haiti. These interviews took place in the summer of 2017 and helped structure my regular research in two ways. First, they informed decisions about site selection, and second, they clarified my approach to . During fall 2018, I carried out semi-structured interviews with coffee growers, agronomists, and organizational leaders in two communities in two different regions of Haiti. Some of the participants also granted me permission to photograph or video their coffee gardens during my visit. In addition to the observational and informational tours through the gardens. In addition, I participated in and observed an association meeting in Anse d’Hainault during which I met separately with a group of ten women who work in coffee. The first site visited was on the western tip of the island of Haiti, where the eye of Hurricane Matthew, a category 5 storm, passed in October 2016. The seaside community is backed by mountains to the east where coffee growers have their gardens. Most of the coffee growers interviewed in Anse d’Hainault were members of a Fair Trade association, Just Haiti. Just Haiti is a non-profit organization that works through US partners who provide two years of financial support for the training and initial expenses necessary to launch a growers’ association. The second site was in the mountains surrounding Thiotte, an historically significant community situated in the highest altitudes of the island. Thiotte has been known for its cooler mountain 80 climate and coffee gardens are dispersed throughout the area. In Thiotte, many of the small scale coffee growers belong to a cooperative under the name of Coopérative des Planteurs de Café de l’Arrondissement de Belle-Anse (COOPCAB). COOPCAB is a cooperative that has as its members other smaller, local cooperatives. COOPCAB provides organizational services to the smaller cooperatives, offers cleaning and processing services, and connects the international coffee market to the cooperative members. My approach to this research employed grounded theory, which is flexible in the areas of philosophical perspective and construction of the most appropriate sample for data collection. Within grounded theory, sampling of people willing to be interviewees continues based on the emergence of and theoretical saturation of the core concepts that the research is revealing (Holton & Walsh, 2017). Data analysis begins with data collection in order to keep apace with the emerging concepts; the first steps of analysis are open coding and substantive coding while watching for saturation of data, which indicates that the sampling is complete. One concern in ensuring saturation of data was to seek to interview enough women to ensure that I had the diversity of women’s situations represented in the Haitian countryside (married, single, widowed, older and younger, etc.). This full complement of circumstances allowed me a full array of perspectives for a more thorough understanding. While in Haiti, I kept field notes of observations, occupied myself with daily sessions for transcribing interviews, and began open coding for constant comparative analysis. This initial coding strategy was a combination of in vivo coding and use of key words to summarize the ideas emerging from the data (Oktay, 2012). My research assistant served as a sounding board as I worked to clarify the translation was correct, in order that coding could be as consistent as possible. I communicated, as frequently as services in rural Haiti would allow, with my 81 dissertation advisor about the direction that interviews were taking my research. This communication included requests for advice on theoretical sampling, copies of field notes and short summaries of findings. As I moved through the interviews and observations in this way, I also debriefed with my research assistant, discussing what new information emerged from the day’s interviews and preliminary data analysis, so that we could both inform our local guides who we would like to visit with the following day, and we could make adjustments to interview questions where necessary. All of these are the usual steps in research based on grounded theory approaches. Daily, I transcribed interviews into MAXQDA software (MAXQDA, 2018) creating text files on which I began the process of open coding. As data accumulated, I recognized the occurrence of similar codes across interviews, and my field notes began to reflect recurring themes; this is how I determined that there had been sufficient interviews to reach saturation. The process of selective coding began after my return from the field, and I combined the codes into collections of data identifying, at first, four categories of observations around gender that emerged. The initial core categories were condensed into three: Nuances of Behavior, Apparent Beliefs and Norms, and Gendered Perceptions of Successes (or “Hopes and Fears”). In Anse d’Hainault, the site of a growers’ association affiliated with Just Haiti, I interviewed 11 female heads of household (Table 4.1). In Thiotte, the site of a coffee growers cooperative, only one woman claimed head of household status. Shared households numbered 5 in Anse d’Hainault and 3 in Thiotte. Women interviewed were of 4 general groups: educated and married; educated and unmarried; lacking education and married; and lacking both education and a spouse. In total, I interviewed 23 women, including one female agronomist, and I interviewed 20 men. 82 Table 4.1 Data collected from two research sites in rural Haiti Site Name # of interview sessions Total # of participants Anse d’Hainault Thiotte 13 12 29 14 Gender characteristics of participants interviewed Demographic information of participants Female/ Male Couples 2 couples (4 people) 2 couples (4 people) Female Male HH1 15 10 4 6 M = 9 F = 11 S = 5 M = 6 F = 1 S = 3 Age2 (years) >50: 15 50 & under:14 >50: 9 50 & under: 3 Member-ship status Member Non- member 24 12 5 2 1Head of Household, M=Male Head of Household, F=Female Head of Household, S=Shared Head of Household, (indicated only for interviewees who were coffee growers) 2Indicated only for interviewees who were coffee growers 83 Results Nuances of Behavior The stories from women or about women varied depending on the status of the women. Whether a woman was educated or not; whether she was married or in a stable relationship with the father of her children; whether she shared the head of household title with her husband or not; and whether she was the head of the household (single/widowed) seemed to align with many of the perceptions she held or were held about her. From watching both the interactions and the activities of the men and women who participated in this study and listening to both conversations and responses to questions, I observed behavioral nuances that tell part of the story that pertains to the gendered dimensions in the culture. I also noted specific quotes from the coding of interview data that point to the gendered nature of nuanced elements of coffee culture in rural Haiti (Table 4.2). During data collection, five of the interviews were at sites where both men and women were present; these interviews involved combinations of husbands and wives (three of these five interviews) and a group where both were present (two of these five interviews). These situations provided for valuable observations of the interactions between and body language of men and women. I witnessed women yielding to men even when directly asked questions. One of the first interviews I conducted was with an elderly woman; she did not reveal her age, but her children were all grown with children. She sells her coffee at the roadside in front of her house and is not a member of either a coffee growers association or cooperative. We were having a lively conversation when her husband arrived. After the very next question I asked, she gestured to him to answer, an offer which he appeared pleased to accept. The remainder of the interview was largely with him, with the exception of questions that were specifically directed to her. In the 84 end, she encouraged us, and almost insisted that we add his name to the consent form. With the exception of two women who were part of a group interview representing themselves and their husbands, women seemed too busy to spend focused time with the interview – getting up for a variety of purposes – sometimes to answer the call of a child, to go to market with her produce, or for purposes unknown. I noted such an occurrence in my field notes: It was around this time that [the woman] got up and put her chair away. She went into the house and came out again. She then went to the side of the house where a basket of bananas was sitting, to pick it up, place it on her head and say her goodbyes - she had to get to the market with her bananas. (Interview 7, Anse d’Hainault) The men, however, stayed throughout and even walked me through their coffee gardens, never seeming in a hurry to get back to whatever activities that my presence interrupted. It was this discrepancy in apparent responsibilities that led me to code several observations and interview quotes with the label of “subservience.” Interviewees discussed the roles of those who work on coffee production, and there were diverse perspectives. There were men and women alike who said that women are responsible for making food, transporting seedlings and water to the “hands” and to the gardens, doing some of the processing tasks, and usually taking produce, including coffee to the markets for vending. Yet, there were nuanced statements about the cultural roles that women (and men) must accept. “My wife is the one who takes the produce to go and sell them” (Interview 10, Thiotte). Men, on the other hand take on the roles of cleaning the gardens (often with machete in hand, cutting away overgrowth), planting, overseeing hired hands and caring for the nursery if there is one. This view of women’s work and the division of labor was not shared equally among all interviewees, however. Two of the men and a young, female agronomist proudly stated that the 85 women are capable of and do every form of work doing that a man does. A male grower trained as an agronomist stated: Women are as capable as men and some of them even do more, but it is all going to depend on their upbringing and what women are used to do. There are women right now who accompany their husbands in the field and do as much as the husband and do more than the husband. (Interview 11, Anse d’Hainault) Although she recognized that “usually there is a role distinction in the coffee chain,” overall, the young female student agronomist I interviewed also claimed that: Women can do anything men can do. But in Haiti, like you see in the culture, there is a role difference traditionally. Women are assigned certain roles and the role they are assigned is being in the household, being the caregiver for the children and of the house. So even in the profession, agronomy wasn’t for women. Now women are getting it little by little. It is possible to have that happen, but you have to start by integrating women from the beginning. From a young age all the way to the end. And then integrate them into the work in the field. And that’s how that thing can happen. (Interview 10, Anse d’Hainault) Concepts Table 4.2 Summary table for coded segments and concepts informing the category: Nuances of behavior3 Coded Segments When interviewing with an older female coffee grower, her husband arrived in the yard, she began referring to him with every question After a male grower showed as his coffee garden, and he left us to interview his wife, he came back, watching and listening. It wasn’t long before he overtook the interview. Before we could ask one wife any questions, she was called away by one of the children and never returned. During a group interview with women only, men kept hovering around the circle, occasionally trying to insert an answer to our questions, women would become quiet at these times 3 Evidence for this category includes observations of women’s actions and body language. Subservience 86 Table 4.2 (cont’d) Coded Segments When we accompanied the agronomist to a field to observe the process of removing the plastic sacs that were left on when coffee was planted, the young female agronomist student was also using the pickaxe to help in removing sacs We still have to supervise the people who are [harvesting] for the bending and the breaking [a female coffee grower] It is an inheritance, my grandmother passed it on to my mother, my mother passed it on to us [female grower] I bought my land [3 women in Anse d’Hainault and 1 in Thiotte] I have brothers and sisters, but the land is not divided, I am the one in charge of it [female grower] I am in charge, it belongs to me. The whole operation belongs to me. [female grower] Midway through the interview, the wife got up, went inside and came out having changed her clothes. She picked up a basket of banane, placed it on her head and left for the market My wife is the one who takes the produce to go and sell it Women…cook the food…go and get water, feed the food and carry the seedlings Women are assigned certain roles…being in the household, caregiver for children I survive as a street vendor [the coffee is not enough] [3 women in Anse d’Hainault] Even after I have sent them to school and they have an education. If I don’t provide them with the means, with the money, with the food, they don’t have it. Apparent Beliefs and Norms Concepts Appearances of empowerment Accepted roles When I first arrived in Thiotte, I had the opportunity to hold an introductory interview with the leaders of the COOPCAB in Thiotte. Interviewees revealed two interesting projects of COOPCAB that they felt are of significance to the future of coffee in Haiti: a program to incorporate the youth into the coffee economy, and another project to work specifically with women in coffee. When discussing the plan to create a women’s coffee grower program in Thiotte, one of the COOPCAB coordinators explained that a reason for this program is “because of human rights.” Additionally, he explained: 87 One of the reasons they’re doing it is because of human rights and gender equity. The women make up 40% of the workforce and men make up 60% of the workforce. [R: in coffee? T: yes] but they don’t have enough freedom and freedom means different things. But maybe financial freedom, economical freedom. So that’s why we started that. (Interview #1, Thiotte). In Anse d’Hainault, the local Just Haiti grower association also recognizes that there exists a need to help the women in particular; but the help that is currently offered, it was explained, is equally available to all members, regardless of gender. I was told that the future may hold a different scenario for assistance for women; now, however, they do not have a special way to assist women in particular (Interview 13 Anse d’Hainault). Among the coffee growers, I sought to understand the perceptions that men have regarding women who work in coffee. Although I did not witness any of the women holding positions in the association, one of the male growers with an education who works outside the farm as a teacher spoke of women with high regard: “The women are really very well treated, there is no disrespect to the women. they play a very important role, they are always there.” (Interview 2, Anse d’Hainault). Many of the women and men, unlike the agronomy student quoted in the previous section, hold to the belief that women are not equipped to do the physical labor that men do, and therefore, women are at a disadvantage in that for them to care for their coffee, they need financial means. Said one interviewee: “As a woman, I don’t have the physical labor of a man.” (Interview #9, Thiotte). In a group of female growers only, most of whom were the head of household on their farms, female interviewees generally agreed that women do not have the physical strength to do most of the heavy work of coffee growing. In this group, they all, without 88 fail, held to a belief that a key use for income from coffee is “money is for school, to be able to get the kids in school” (Interview 9, Anse d’Hainault). There was much talk about the lack of means and the importance for a woman, especially one with no husband, to have means to survive in the coffee economy: “The way I see it are that those are the women who have goodwill but however with no husbands and no financial means, there is no way they can obtain whatever goals or dreams they have.” (Interview 11, Anse d’Hainault). Although I often heard from and witnessed a Haitian culture that holds fast to historically accepted gender roles, there is evidence in the coded segments of data that supports a changing paradigm for women (Table 4.3). Concepts Table 4.3 Summary table for coded segments and concepts informing the category: Apparent beliefs and norms Coded Segments There are distinct roles. She …takes produce to Port-au-Produce and sells them; the husband is in charge of the house and running the farm Unfortunately, there are no female agronomists, but at least one technician who is a female In a sense, you are right, there are three kinds of women [women who are married and have outside jobs and still work with the coffee, you see women who are married and their family is just on the farm and you see women who don’t have a spouse and they are the primary head of household]. You have to understand that there is a role distinction between men and women. What the women do is to take the produce to the market. But that itself requires money. Because we don’t have the money, they are forced to stay home and help and be a support to the husband. Usually there is a role distinction in the coffee chain It’s a hard labor there are things as a woman I don’t know how to do or I can’t do, I don’t have physical strength to do. there are things I do, but things I cannot do, I hire people to do it for me. She is not integrated into the association, she is not aware of the destructive power of the disease, she is a survivor [coordinator of association about a female grower] I have seen [my grandmother] use the pestle and the mortar I am by myself as a woman to clean Women are as capable as men and some of them even do more [male grower] Culturally assigned roles Female strength vs male strength 89 Table 4.3 (cont’d) Coded Segments I know of women who are treasurer…women who can cosign when you have to retrieve money Her role should have been a vendor and going to the market…but there is no money to do so I have seen a lot of women in agronomy, they probably do it because they like it Eight of the households interviewed stated that husband and wife shared Head of Household status Women can do anything men can do…it is possible … but you have to start by integrating women from the beginning, from a young age all the way to the end. [female student agronomist] What you see me doing, I am doing by choice [young wife who harvests coffee but does not sell it] I am the one who receives all the seminars…then I tell my husband what to do Gendered Perceptions of Success (or Hopes and Fears) Concepts Changes for women My preliminary interviews in Washington DC revealed that the US partners of the Anse d’Hainault association as well as the agronomist on the ground in Haiti perceived that, despite the devastation of Hurricane Matthew two years after the launch of the association, this grower association was a success story (preliminary interviews, Washington DC and Les Cayes, Haiti, 2017). This perception was based, in part, on the increase in the quantity of saleable coffee for distribution in the US market, the inclusion of more women in the association, and the very supportive network in the community. The US partners with Anse d’Hainault had made a two year commitment to provide financial support while training the growers in Fair Trade practices. The goal was that after just two years, the financial commitment would end and be replaced with the promise of continuing to provide an international market. The US partners believed that the growers had the skills and tools to survive and thrive as coffee growers. Yet, when international development programs are deemed a success by either the funding organization or other outsiders, once the activities of the program cease and the receivers of the program are left to 90 continue on, practices are abandoned for a variety of reasons. This begs the question, do the participants in this association perceive the same success? As I conducted interviews in both Anse d’Hainault and Thiotte, my question about “success” was often in need of clarification. Usually, the question had to be stated in some form of “have you arrived?” or “what is your greatest hope?” To these questions, women often responded in a way that included the care of her children, whether she can afford school for them or even feed them each day (Table 4.4). Sometimes, there was a pained and somewhat confused expression upon receiving the question and it was clear that the freedom to think about possibilities of a better day were mostly foreign to them, and thoughts of well-being for them, were limited to figuring out how to survive the day and feed their families. I have six children and they all depend on me. Even after I have sent them to school and they have an education. If I don’t provide them with the means, with the money, with the food, they don’t have it. So therefore I don’t know what success is. (Interview 7, Anse d’Hainault). In Thiotte, an elderly widow welcomed me into her yard for our interview. Without a second thought, I perched on the edge of the concrete “gallerie” or porch – an area with no rail but high enough off of the ground that I found it a very comfortable place to rest. She was old and told me of her health problems, yet she excitedly led me around the house to show me one of her coffee trees full with cherries. When our interview was officially over and we had already talked about her success, her hopes, and the audio-recording had ended, she became sad and told me how she wished that she had the means to fix her living room and place chairs there so that I, a foreigner, would not have to sit upon her floor. This clearly disturbed her and was and painted a picture of failure, not success. 91 One young, educated woman who harvested coffee from her land simply because she enjoyed the activity, answered in this way when asked whether she believed women could be successful in coffee, in their own right: I don’t see too much of women being successful in coffee here, I have seen women buying the coffee and process the coffee and make it into powder coffee and then sell cups of coffee. That end of it. But in terms of young women finding a future in coffee, I doubt it. (Interview 12, Thiotte). Finally, there was the young female agronomist who told me that women could be more successful in coffee if they were integrated into the activities of coffee growing from the beginning. Women and men, young and older, seem to hold a varying set of perceptions about the women who work in coffee, and it is encouraging to know that some of the perceptions are that women can choose for themselves. Table 4.4 Summary table for coded segments and concepts informing the category: Gendered perceptions of success (or hopes and fears) Coded Segments I don’t see too much of women being successful in coffee here…in terms of finding a future in coffee, I doubt it. [female grower] I have three boys and four girls…they all are involved into it [male grower] One reason they’re doing it [trying to establish a women’s coffee program] is because of human rights and gender equity In the future, we may have a way to help the women in particular We don’t have a methodology to deal with particular problems that pertain to women [our work] is not to discriminate between men and women, it’s to teach all of them you have to start by integrating women from the beginning, from a young age all the way to the end. [female student agronomist] Young women and their future in coffee Concepts 92 Table 4.4 (cont’d) Coded Segments The money I will use it to put her kids through school I will use it practically to get the kids to school Use that to get the kids to school Use it to get the kids to school Money is for school My biggest hope is to educate the children…and at some point, the children can take care of me Even after I have sent them to school and they have an education. If I don’t provide them with the means, with the money, with the food, they don’t have it. What I would say about girls in Haiti is, I would like to see more opportunity for them to go to school and to finish school. But after that to go to university and have a job. That is what I would like to see for them. The following are all from female interviewees about experiences with the organization they are part of: Before I belonged to [the association] I was doing quite a bit of coffee, but then the price wasn’t the same. With [the association] and selling it to the international, I’m making a lot more I got it from the church [invitation to join the association] I am the one who receives all the seminars and the knowledge, so therefore, I am the one who tells my husband how to do it. The price is higher so when the money comes it’s a lot more so there’s a lot more that can be done with it. Every single training they have…I have been to it. What is helping is … not to put the coffee on the ground…to be able to test the quality of the coffee. Concepts Educating our children Success from joining the organization Discussion and Implications Efforts by the government to pass laws that address gender inequities are important, however, they make little impact without education and practice at the local level. In Haiti, it is part of the constitution that women are protected from workplace discrimination, physical and sexual abuse, yet practice shows these things are just simply not upheld (USAID, 2017). Societal norms are hard to change, as is evident where the interviewees reminded me of the gender roles inherent in rural Haitian coffee culture. Where forms of international development encourage the inclusion of women while practicing the same, different ideas are planted, and girls become young women who believe that 93 they “can do whatever men can.” Myrto Célestin Saurel, a Haitian woman and, in 1991, director of the Ministry of Education under Aristide, describes a shift in thinking among women this way, “From our experience as women, from the education we receive as women, from our readings, our self-criticism, from reality itself, not only must we avoid reproducing things as they currently are, we must also eradicate from ourselves what was indoctrinated within us that isn’t correct.” (Saurel in Bell & Danticat, 2001, p. 226). My research showed that women have culturally assigned roles in coffee and in the community. But these roles are being transformed insofar as younger women with an education and men who occupy positions that are informed by international development organizations that support women’s inclusion recognize the advantages of creating systems that provide greater equality for women. Knowing that the system is unfair, however, is not enough to get to a place of equity. The women themselves admit that they simply do not have the physical strength necessary to take care of coffee fields, yet I have observed women and girls of the same socio-economic status lifting buckets filled to the brim with water to their heads and hiking up into the mountains out of view. From the outsider’s perspective, I wonder about the reality of women not having the physical strength and women resigning or contenting themselves to the roles assigned by their culture. 94 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSIONS, DISCUSSIONS, RECOMMENDATIONS This study sought, through qualitative, grounded theory methodologies to gain insight into the perspectives of coffee growers and agronomists in rural Haiti as they pertain to success in areas of sustainability related to survival in Haiti. The purpose of this chapter is to address study limitations, implications, and possibilities for future research. As with any study, this qualitative analysis has limitations and cannot be generalized to all rural Haitian coffee growers or to all development programs. Implications for both researchers interested in conducting similarly situated studies and for organizations involved in creation of or working with cooperatives and associations of subsistence farmers will be considered, and areas for further research will be suggested. Overview of Research Methods and Paradigm I used the grounded theory (GT) method to guide this inquiry. Even so, my research did not fit neatly into a pure grounded theory description. I began with questions in mind and allowed them to evolve, rather than letting the research questions derive wholly from the data. I also had pre-selected sites (though not interviewees); my sites did evolve, however, as I realized that a broader sampling of interviewees would provide a more comprehensive set of data. In her pocket guide, Julianne S. Oktay (2012) reminds us that “Trying to make grounded theory “fit” a single model risks losing the unique character of this method…I support an “agnostic” position that blends the most useful features of the different models depending on the needs of each study” (p. 23). Overall, my approach might best be described as a modified grounded theory method. 95 Some of the advantages of GT include the potential for results that are applicable to situations where people are living. Again, here is Oktay, (2012): “Because grounded theory creates theories that are derived directly from real-world settings, it has the potential to produce theories that can be used by social workers to guide practice” (p. 4). In the context of rural Haiti, where my research was situated, use of GT allowed me to sit with the people, walk with the people and travel as if I were a local across their country. With my research method, I cannot claim that my data collection resulted in a most thorough sampling of ideas, perceptions, understandings and situations. In an ideal situation, this endpoint is clear and enough time and resources are available for data collection to continue until theoretical saturation is attained, however, in the real world of research, some studies must find a stopping point because they cannot feasibly continue. In Haiti, for example, taking people away from their activities can be a burden to family economics, and travel between communities is time-consuming and can be expensive. At times I wished that I could have gone back to growers already visited, I wished I could have recorded individuals who had casual conversations with me during bus rides and lay-overs in the stations, and I wished I could have taken as much as a year to live among the growers to work alongside them throughout a full cycle to know more deeply the situations about which they were speaking to me. The desire to have taken a longer time with data collection, stems from my understanding of how knowledge is created and how development assistance can help or hinder in the creation of sustainable communities. My understanding is that the paradigm necessary for successful and sustainable development, such that the environmental degradation, the economic decline and the community disintegration are addressed (Flint, 2013) in a place like Haiti, is at once inclusive and empowering of the peoples being served, “flexible, adaptable, creative, (responsive) and 96 reactive” (Flint, 2013) to issues and situations that arise from nature, economy or society, and also responsive and engaged in action without fear of failing. Failure in the moment is to be embraced; failure fosters learning so that the process of development keeps moving forward. It is also important to recognize that many situations we, as a global society, are facing cannot be healed with simple measures, and as noted above, the response by natural systems to our actions cannot always be known. In the same way, the responses to our attempts at “developing” others cannot be predicted. This a paradigm of possibilities, in which we hold open the door for those in communities where we wish to work, we allow their voices to be the most important, we place their knowledge and expertise in the center, we build long-term relationships, we support as needed with technical knowledge, physical and financial resources where and when necessary, and, most importantly, we stand with them through shocks to their systems (i.e. drought, hurricane or political crisis). We stand with them when economies fail, we stand with them and help them creatively develop the next possible response. Summary of Conclusions Conversations with coffee growers and the agronomists who work with them in rural Haiti lead me to understanding more fully the writings of Robert Chambers (1983, 1997), David Ellerman (2005, 2007, 2009), Gilbert Rist (2014) and others who suggest that development assistance should be more inclusive of the perspectives of those receiving the assistance. What I learned from the perceptions of coffee growers around their situations and around sustainability in rural Haiti indicates that, on many levels, they have valuable contributions, thoughts and understandings of their situations. They know that their climate is changing even if they are not using the same words that populate the current conversation about climate change. At the same time, there is a deep, underlying need for living in a way that focuses on physical survival and 97 therefore stands in the way of an ability to even think about sustainability or success in their personal coffee economy. My findings informed the modification of a model of sustainability into a three- dimensional model I termed the “Socio-Biospheric Sustainability Pyramid.” In this model, the base includes the human constructs of “Economy/means,” “Community/survival,” and “Agrocecology/climate change.” The three-dimensional space above this base contains the biosphere, and represents the interactions between these human elements and the rest of the biosphere. In Haiti, some of the growers and agronomists have an understanding that plastics and trash have negative effects on the soil where they grow agricultural products. The inescapable need to center efforts on survival hinders many rural Haitians from being able to think about actions they can take to move toward sustainability for the region in which they live. For women in Haiti, who have long suffered from inequities and being treated as second class citizens (Bell & Danicat, 2001; Gardella, 2006), there seems to be an acceptance that the culture is what it is and that roles are cultural. Meanwhile, some of the young women are emboldened to enter into fields that are traditionally male. These young women also profess a changing belief that women are as capable as men to pursue whatever goals they choose and that they do not need to conform to the traditional roles dictated by culture. Limitations Limitations to this study include the questions of reliability and of validity, barriers to entrée in Haiti and the issue of one-coder analysis. As I first proposed this study, some of the questions I was asked to consider were those of validity and reliability, and how to assure objectivity in this qualitative study. Validity asks whether the study measures what it set out to measure, while reliability questions the study consistency over time and the replicability of the 98 study. These, of course are defined from the perspective of quantitative studies (Golafshani, 2003). On the other hand, qualitative studies like mine do not seek to measure variables or necessarily compare a study group to a control group. The grounded theory nature of my study means that the study seeks to capture a “story” for the time in which the study is made, searching for emerging theory which makes the question of consistency over time moot. The objective of my study was not to compare one group of coffee growers to another, nor was it to draw generalizable conclusions about success or impact based on goals and objectives predetermined by an outside agency. This qualitative study was designed as such, deliberately, to gain insights into the subjective aspects of success and impacts on the lives of the growers – from their own points of view and the points of view of others within the culture who work directly with the growers. Questions of reliability and validity, then, are non-issues in relation to this realm of this qualitative research (Patton, 2015). In qualitative research, key questions are related to the dependability or trustworthiness of the data. The trustworthiness of the data depends, in part, on the relationship between the researcher and the interviewees. In Haiti, this relationship was built over time and was evidenced by the willingness of parties to sacrifice for each other (me and my research team, Haitian hosts and guides and interviewees). My research assistant, a member of the Haitian diaspora, and I have built a relationship with Haiti and her people over more than a decade. We did preliminary data collection in Haiti in part, to develop those relationships. During this preliminary research phase and the resulting full research, we made sacrifices each day as we traveled on local transportation, and as we suffered through the “manifestations” (political demonstrations that block roads and slow travel throughout the countryside and in the cities). Our immersion into the 99 culture seemed meaningful to the Haitians with whom we interviewed and resulted in a trust that was given back to us. This research faced both actual in-country barriers of access to and potential barriers of access to the coffee growers and agronomists who could provide needed information for my research. Barriers included the unexpected event of local religious leaders questioning my purpose for selecting “their community,” difficulty in getting physical access to remote areas where the coffee growers reside, and some women being shielded from freely speaking by the presence of men during interviews. The physical access barriers were handled in one of two ways – the first being persistence on my, and my research assistant’s part to walk when necessary to get to places where vehicles could not make it, the second was adjusting our plans to have coffee growers come to us. The latter meant that I would not be able to visit the coffee gardens, however, grounded theory allows for handling the unforeseen and adjusting the theoretical sampling process. These visits aided in understanding of the difficulties these growers face in such activities as gaining access to markets for their produce and added complications of getting their children enrolled in school. The trust that we had built with the growers allowed us to request and be granted opportunities to speak freely with female growers. Finally, the grounded theory approach allowed me to navigate the local leadership pressures and modify my site choice and expand my sample to include growers in a second, different type of grower organization. Finally, the coding portion of my data analysis was accomplished by only one coder. The data needed to be translated from the creole language and during this process, open coding did include verification of meaning from my research assistant. The data are very context-specific, 100 and it was not possible to secure additional coder(s) who could understand the nuances of what was observed or recorded in the qualitative data set. Discussion and Implications This study offered insights into the coffee economy from the perspectives of coffee growers in two different types of grower organizations, as well as from some growers who are not members such organizations. The value of the organizations to the growers was, in most cases evident. Yet, some growers voiced concern about the ability of the organization to continue to provide the same level of assistance over time. Overall, the interviewees who are part of the organizations, either as agronomists or growers, believe in the services, training and market offered by their organization. Concerns expressed by interviewees were consistent in that they wondered how the growers organizations will be able, financially, to continue to offer services, especially “newer” services such as a women’s or a youth coffee program. My inquiry into the perspectives of/about rural women in coffee in Haiti, confirmed some of the characterizations prevalent in written works (Bell & Danticat, 2001; Brénus, 2016), that women are assigned roles as a part of the culture, they behave as if they are more marginalized than the poor male Haitians, and the women who have no male counterpart in their homes live in greater need as they struggle simply to feed and protect their children. The grounded theory approach, however allowed me to seek out the voices of other women who made bold statements and to observe their actions. These bold individuals challenging gender norms included young Haitian women in the countryside traveling and studying, learning by what we might call an internship, following a male agronomist through the coffee fields doing what he is doing, and professing “women can do whatever men can do” (Interview 10, Anse d’Hainault). There was also the young woman who harvested coffee as a hobby, not for the financial gain it could offer 101 her – she didn’t need it, though her house was modest even by Haitian standards. A quantitative analysis would have found these cases to be outliers, but with the grounded theory methodology, this research more fully represents the story of coffee, women and Haiti. My research left me wondering about a deeper inquiry into the women growing coffee in rural Haiti, and whether a women’s coffee program modeled after the Rwandan Ejo Heza group (Artisan Coffee Imports, 2019) might be of value in the future for the development organizations (such as COOPCAB) in Haiti. Further recommendations for development organizations are that fostering long-term trusting relationships is suggested before inserting a program into a community. Just as importantly, development organizations should expect a long-term commitment that will be comprised of not only training, but also the physical and financial resources to assist until a level of sustainability/regeneration is attained. Finally, it is increasingly essential that organizations prepare for climate, economic or political events/crises that could set the assistance program back in achieving locally meaningful goals, as desired by participants (growers and their communities). Any program should be resilient to such major events, and should include contingency plans for the unforeseen. Haiti, like other impoverished countries, suffers from the phenomenon referred to as “brain drain,” characterized by the educated among the communities leaving for countries where they can earn more for their services as a doctor, educator or other professional. Those who are left behind often receive remittances from family members who have left, and these funds are critical to survival, but equally as often, the money is not enough to help everyone. My personal experience reflects some of the difficulties that arise when someone from the outside tries to do a good thing and help: I have helped a young woman by supporting her to get training after high school only to have her reach out to me to support her in another endeavor for a degree in 102 nursing. It is easy to adopt an attitude of not caring after someone seemingly takes advantage of you, but in Haiti, the financial problems go much deeper than that. It could be, and likely is, that there is a learned behavior to secure outside help and share what you get with family, especially where there are small children to be fed. This young woman, for example, has a sister with small children. My interviews for this research included teenage daughters of coffee growers who were attending school, but after Hurricane Matthew and the devastation of the family coffee garden, and, even with the support of US partners, their mothers cannot afford to send them back to school. Someone like me can be seen as a resource to get something from while I am in town, “They love that the international organizations that come along give some help and encouragement towards that end. To me, that’s success.” (Interview 7, Anse d’Hainault). However, the faith and respect that each community had in the people chosen to introduce us to each grower cushioned me from most of the requests for private help. “When they see an agronomist coming to help that calls for a lot of respect, so therefore that is - They become more believable, more credible and by and by the work is being done.” (Interview 8, Thiotte). Implications and Summary for Just Haiti and COOPCAB The overall response of growers is positive toward the organizations through which assistance is given. This is evidenced by the willingness to speak with me after being introduced by trusted community members as an American who knows the leadership of the organization. There is also a deep appreciation for and recognition of the value of agronomists and technicians who work with the growers on behalf of the organizations. I was told that, when the agronom4 comes, “it is a good thing.” During my visit, I met and interviewed an agronomist and a student 4 Creole for “agronomist” 103 of agronomy who were not affiliated with either organization, but who were assisting the growers in the Anse d’Hainault area. For the most part, they were working together with the association leadership, and the relationship seemed positive. However, methods that were being taught did reveal differences in practice as I perceived and understood them. For example, the major goal expressed to me by the outside agronomist was to visit coffee gardens to assess the practice of planting seedlings and remove the plastic sacks that were sometimes left around the root ball of the seedlings. In further conversation with association leadership, I was told that: The agronomist is using a new technique, I myself have been in the business since 1988- 1989, so we have taught the peasants to cut the bottom of the sac and we have had a good harvest whether it’s cacao, whether its coffee. But it appears that they have a new method and the new method is teaching the peasant to get the sack completely off. Although I admire the agronomist for doing it, but my experience has been that if you cut the bottom, it happens as well for the roots to be able to reach the ground (Interview 13, Anse d’Hainault). Appreciation and Gratitude Many of the growers expressed appreciation and even gratitude for the assistance that has been delivered by both organizations. In both communities, not only do growers receive payment for their harvest of coffee cherries at the time of delivery to the organization, but they also receive a “ristoune” or return payment after the sale to the international market. The knowledge that a second payment will be received for the coffee that meets the standards for the organization to sell internationally, motivates the growers to implement practices that are suggested and taught by the agronomists. When asked how they would respond should the association cease to exist, one grower in Anse d’Hainault answered in the following way: “If the 104 association didn’t exist, they would replace it. Because for the good it has done, it is worth keeping. No matter who’s in charge - the face might go, but the system is going to stay in place.” (Interview 2, Anse d’Hainault). Concerns and Needs to be Addressed Given the environmental, economic and ecological conditions in Haiti, there is still much progress that can be made for the coffee growers. Both the association and the cooperative have been in place for several years and have provided training and access to the international market, yet there remains much work to do. The major concerns spoken of by the growers are the following: • Diseases, insects (note: there was no talk of beneficial insects) • Continued access to markets • Inability to afford clean-up, • Access to credit to invest in improvements in their coffee gardens I offer these questions to consider in planning for future training and support: • Individualization with respect to assistance – how is it done? Is it possible to assess who has greatest need? • How can the organization offer assistance to those most likely to have best harvests (in order that sufficient coffee is available for the needs of the market) and be balanced with assistance to the growers with the greatest needs? • Considerations for follow-up to training and workshops: o Is a budget for more follow-up built in to cost of program? o Is additional training for agronomists that addresses the most pertinent concerns facing the growers made available? 105 (cid:1) Do technologies for addressing these concerns get shared and discussed with the growers in a timely manner? o How much do the organizations rely on “outside” agronomists for bringing new technologies and training? How can internally situated agronomists (with associations) work collaboratively with “outside” agronomists? • Developing System Resiliency in the Face of Challenges: o Climate events/natural disasters (cid:1) Should there be requirements for building of a rainy day fund by both the association and by the individual growers so that when disasters occur, they can help themselves and each other? (cid:1) Should there be options to extend support from international/US partners built in to the budget for funding an association or cooperative program? o Dependence on continued strength of international market (cid:1) What is the contingency plan should the international market falter? (cid:1) Growers in both Anse d’Hainault and Thiotte suggested that they would like to see processing of other produce (cacao, citrus, other produce that spoils before it can be sold). • Seeking ways forward o Investigate programs that contribute to possibilities for extending support 106 o Investigate and possibly duplicate programs focused on assistance targeting women and youth in coffee (Rwandan Ejo Heza group). o Discuss, through a meeting style such as open space technology, how to respond to climate change. The work that must be done is daunting and there are no easy answers, as the road toward sustainability is both global and context specific. To address one aspect in isolation of the rest is both naïve and insufficient. This is why I suggest the idea of socio-biospheric sustainability, where the major elements exist as holons, not silos, and the human constructs are integrated with biospheric elements. The current state for so many in Haiti is summarized in these words that I leave you with: In Haiti there is no success, what I see in Haiti is a perpetual misery, I have six children and they all depend on me. Even after I have sent them to school, and they have an education, if I don’t provide them with the means, with the money, with the food, they don’t have it. So, therefore I don’t know what success is (Interview 7, Anse d’Hainault). 107 APPENDICES 108 Office of Regulatory Affairs Human Research Protection Programs Biomedical & Health Institutional Review Board (BIRB) Community Research Institutional Review Board (CRIRB) Social Science Behavioral/Education Institutional Review Board (SIRB) Olds Hall 408 West Circle Drive, #207 East Lansing, MI 48824 (517) 355-2180 Fax: (517) 432-4503 Email: irb@msu.edu www.hrpp.msu.edu MSU is an affirmative-action, equal-opportunity employer. APPENDIX A IRB Approval May 1, 2017 To: Re: Murari Suvedi 135 Natural Resources MSU IRB# x17-569e Category: Exempt 2 Approval Date: May 1, 2017 Title: Fair Trade Coffee in Haiti Initial IRB Application Determination *Exempt* The Institutional Review Board has completed their review of your project. I am pleased to advise you that your project has been deemed as exempt in accordance with federal regulations. The IRB has found that your research project meets the criteria for exempt status and the criteria for the protection of human subjects in exempt research. Under our exempt policy the Principal Investigator assumes the responsibilities for the protection of human subjects in this project as outlined in the assurance letter and exempt educational material. The IRB office has received your signed assurance for exempt research. A copy of this signed agreement is appended for your information and records. Renewals: Exempt protocols do not need to be renewed. If the project is completed, please submit an Application for Permanent Closure . Revisions: Exempt protocols do not require revisions. However, if changes are made to a protocol that may no longer meet the exempt criteria, a new initial application will be required. Problems: If issues should arise during the conduct of the research, such as unanticipated problems, adverse events, or any problem that may increase the risk to the human subjects and change the category of review, notify the IRB office promptly. Any complaints from participants regarding the risk and benefits of the project must be reported to the IRB. Follow-up: If your exempt project is not completed and closed after three years, the IRB office will contact you regarding the status of the project and to verify that no changes have occurred that may affect exempt status. Please use the IRB number listed above on any forms submitted which relate to this project, or on any correspondence with the IRB office. If we can be of further assistance, please contact us at 517-355-2180 or via email at IRB@msu.edu. Thank you for your cooperation. c: Cynthia Balthazar 109 APPENDIX B Preliminary Data Collection Documents Fair Trade Coffee in Haiti Key Informant Consent Form Dear Key Informant: We are conducting a study on Fair Trade Coffee in Haiti and you have been identified as a key informant in this study. Your responses and opinions will contribute to the design of data collection instruments to be used with membership of coffee grower associations in Haiti. You will be asked to respond to questions about the Fair Trade practices coffee grower offered by your organization, and questions about the memberships and production of the coffee growers associations in Haiti. The interview may be audio-recorded to assist in the accuracy of your responses. The notes and/or audio- recordings will be kept in a secure, locked cabinet in a locked office at Michigan State University. Any information that can identify you will be removed so that your responses remain anonymous. YOUR RIGHTS TO PARTICIPATE, SAY NO, OR WITHDRAW: Participation in this research project is completely voluntary. You have the right to say no. You may change your mind at any time and withdraw. You may choose not to answer specific questions or to stop participating at any time. CONTACT INFORMATION FOR QUESTIONS AND CONCERNS: If you have concerns or questions about this study, such as scientific issues, how to do any part of it, or to report an injury, please contact the researcher Dr. Murari Suvedi: Natural Resources Building, 480 Wilson Rd. Room 135; East Lansing, MI 48824 USA; suvedi@msu.edu. 517-432-0265 If you have questions or concerns about your role and rights as a research participant, would like to obtain information or offer input, or would like to register a complaint about this study, you may contact, anonymously if you wish, the Michigan State University’s Human Research Protection Program at 517- 355-2180, Fax 517-432-4503, or e-mail irb@msu.edu or regular mail at Olds Hall, 408 West Circle Dr Rm 207, East Lansing, MI 48824 USA. DOCUMENTATION OF INFORMED CONSENT. Your signature below means that you voluntarily agree to participate in this research study. I agree to be interviewed: (cid:127) Yes I agree to the audio-recording of this interview (cid:127) Yes ________________________________________ Print Name ________________________________________ Signature _____________________________ (cid:127) No (cid:127) No Date 110 Fair Trade Coffee in Haiti Key Informant Questionnaire (Questionnaire For Us Partners) Purpose: The purpose of this interview is to solicit information regarding Fair Trade Coffee Farmer Associations in Haiti. The information is necessary for overall understanding of Fair Trade coffee activities in the communities where Farmer Associations are established. Your participation in this interview is voluntary. You may elect not to answer any questions or to discontinue the interview at any time. Your answers will remain anonymous in any reports resulting from this study and will be treated with complete confidentiality. Are you willing to participate in this interview? (verbal response of Yes/No will be recorded) Introductory Statement: I would like to thank you for your willingness to participate in this interview aspect of my study. My study seeks to understand the Fair Trade coffee practices provided by your organization and ultimately the effects that participation in the Coffee Growers’ Associations is having on the growers, their families and their communities with respect to economic, environmental and social sustainability. The aims of this interview are to document the history of your organization’s participation with a Fair Trade Farmer Association, to gather member lists and coffee production information of the various coffee growers and their associations, and to understand, from the organizational perspective, the success and sustainability of Fair Trade practices on the economic, environment and community in which your organization work(s/ed). The information will contribute to the completion of my PhD Dissertation on Fair Trade Coffee and its Contributions to Sustainability in Rural Haiti. I will ask a series of questions, some of which are open-ended, I appreciate your candidness in answering. Questions: 1. Tell me about your organization: a. What is the name of your organization? _____________________________. b. Please tell me about your personal affiliation with this organization and how long you have been affiliated with it? c. Please tell me about “who” are you, as an organization. d. Where is the community in Haiti where the coffee farmers grow their beans? e. When did (name of organization) first begin a relationship with (name of community)? f. When did you begin working with the coffee farmers? g. When did the Farmers’ Association begin? (date: month and year) h. How many grower-members are there in (name of association)? i. How many men (who are members separate from their wife)? ii. How many women (who are members separate from their husband)? iii. Have women been members from the start of the association? iv. Has your organization conducted any special recruitment activities to increase the number of women members? If yes, describe the activities, please. If no, why haven’t you done so? i. How did (name of organization) become interested in becoming a partner with Just Haiti’s Farmer Association “program”? j. Are you aware of other Fair Trade training or organizing happening in (name of community)? If yes, can you tell me what you know about these activities? 111 (prompt: do the farmers in (your association) participate in this other training/organization?) k. Are you aware of other Non-Fair Trade training or organizing happening for coffee farmers in (name of community)? If yes, can you tell me what you know about these activities? (prompt: do the farmers in (your association) participate in this other training/organization?) 2. Prior to starting the farmers’ association? a. How would you describe the economic situation for the coffee growers in (name of community)? (prompts: access to market to sell beans? Primary sources of income?) b. How would you describe the environment/ecology for the coffee growers in (name of community)? (prompts: erosion? Water? Soil? Tree cover? Variety of trees? Number of coffee trees?) c. How would you describe the state of the community in (name of community)? (prompts: schools? Access to health care? Access to resources such as water & land? Access to food (quality of food)? d. How would you describe the differences between men and women as primary coffee growers (wrt economy, environment, and community)? 3. After starting the farmers’ association? (Current situation) a. How would you describe the economic situation for the coffee growers in (name of community)? (prompts: access to market to sell beans? Primary sources of income?) b. How would you describe the environment/ecology for the coffee growers in (name of community)? (prompts: erosion? Water? Soil? Tree cover? Variety of trees? Number of coffee trees?) c. How would you describe the state of the community in (name of community)? (prompts: schools? Access to health care? Access to resources such as water & land? Access to food (quality of food)? d. How would you describe the differences between men and women as primary coffee growers (wrt economy, environment, and community)? 4. When you think of the term “sustainability,” how would you define it with respect to: a. The environment? b. The economy? c. The community? d. Do you have a different definition for the US than Haiti? If yes, what makes you say that? If no, what makes you say that? 5. Thinking about (your coffee community) before the FA, how would you describe the: a. Economic sustainability? (what makes you say that?) b. Environmental sustainability? (what makes you say that?) c. Community sustainability? (what makes you say that?) 6. Thinking about (your coffee community) today, how would you describe the: a. Economic sustainability? (what makes you say that?) b. Environmental sustainability? (what makes you say that?) c. Community sustainability? (what makes you say that?) 7. What would you consider the success(es) of this FA program in (your coffee community)? 112 a. Have you observed differences between the “success(es)” of women (or the families of the women) and those of the men (or the families of the men) who are members of (your association)? If yes, please describe these differences. If no, why do you think there are no observable differences for these participants? 8. Are you familiar with any of the other (Just Haiti) FAs? If yes, how would you describe their success(es) or lack of success(es) in comparison to (your community)? (What makes you say that?) 113 APPENDIX C Data Collection Documents: Consent Forms Consent Form - English Purpose: The purpose of this interview is to solicit information regarding participation in Coffee Farmer Associations in Haiti. The information is necessary for overall understanding of coffee growing activities in the communities where Farmer Associations are established. Your participation in this interview is voluntary. You may elect not to answer any questions or to discontinue the interview at any time. Your answers will remain anonymous in any reports resulting from this study and will be treated with complete confidentiality. Do you wish to continue with this interview? For our conversation today, I would like to find out about your experience as a coffee grower. The length of our conversation will depend on how much information you would like to share. I want to make sure that your thoughts and ideas are accurately reflected, therefore, with your permission, this interview will be recorded. Are you willing to be audio-recorded? Yes No Yes No With your permission, I may photograph or video-record parts of this interview and your coffee fields. Are you willing to be photographed and/or video-recorded? Yes No Do you give permission for these photos/recordings to be used in publications? Yes No Name (print) ____________________________________________________________ Signature ______________________________________________________________ Date __________________________ 114 French Version of Consent Form Guide d'entrevue pour les producteurs de café But: Le but de cette interview est de solliciter des informations concernant la participation des associations de producteurs de café en Haïti à ce projet. L'information est nécessaire à la compréhension globale des activités de culture du café dans les communautés où les associations d'agriculteurs sont établies. Votre participation à cette interview est volontaire. Vous pouvez choisir de ne répondre à aucune des questions ou d'interrompre l'entretien à tout moment. Vos réponses resteront anonymes dans tous les rapports résultant de cette étude et seront traitées en toute confidentialité. Voulez-vous continuer avec cette interview? Pour notre conversation d'aujourd'hui, j'aimerais connaître votre expérience en tant que producteur de café. La durée de notre conversation dépendra de la quantité d'informations que vous souhaitez partager. Je veux m'assurer que vos pensées et vos idées sont transmises avec précision et sans ambiguïté. Par conséquent, avec votre permission, cette interview sera enregistrée. Êtes-vous prêt à être enregistré sur audio? Non Oui Oui Non Avec votre permission, je peux photographier ou enregistrer par vidéo des parties de cette interview et vos champs de café. Êtes-vous prêt à être photographié et / ou enregistré en vidéo? Oui Non Donnez-vous la permission d'utiliser ces photos / enregistrements dans des publications? Oui Non Nom (en lettres moulées) ____________________________________________________________ Signature ______________________________________________________________ Date __________________________ 115 APPENDIX D Data Collection Documents: Interview Guides Coffee Grower Interview Guide – first iteration Introductory Statement: I would like to thank you for your willingness to participate in this interview for my study. My study seeks to understand the coffee practices in Haiti and the effects that participation in the Coffee Growers’ Associations is having on the growers, their families and their communities with respect to economic, environmental and social sustainability. The aims of this interview are to understand the perspectives of coffee growers with respect to the success of their practices on the economic, environment and communities. I will ask a series of questions, some of which are open-ended, I appreciate your candidness in answering. Preliminary Questions: Gender of interviewee: M / F Record Geographic location of grower’s farm with GPS 9. What is your name? 10. How old are you? 11. Are you a coffee grower? What is your role in the farm? (if not head of household/farm manager, what is your relationship to the head of household/farm/manager?) 12. When did you start growing coffee? a. Why do you grow coffee? b. What is the size of the land where you grow coffee? How many coffee trees do you care for? Now, tell me about what it takes to grow coffee on your farm now, let us walk so that you can show me some of your coffee trees (this will be an opportunity for photography): 1. What are the things involved in running your farm? [inputs, skills required, etc.] a. Do you grow other crops? Are they intermixed with your coffee? (what are the reasons that you do/do not intercrop with your coffee?) b. Do you do all of this work yourself? (If no, who helps you and what things are done by each person?) 2. What are some of the challenges you face on your farm? 3. How would you describe the economic situation for you as a coffee grower? (prompts: access to market to sell beans? Primary sources of income?) 4. How would you describe the environment/ecology of your coffee farm? (prompts: erosion? Water? Soil? Tree cover? Variety of trees? Number of coffee trees?) 5. How would you describe your community? (prompts: schools? Access to health care? Access to resources such as water & land? Access to food (quality of food)? Now, let’s talk about your farm when you first started growing crops: 116 6. What did you grow on your farm when you first started? What things were involved in running your farm at that time? [inputs, skills required, etc.] 7. Thinking back, what are some of the challenges you faced when you first began farming this property? 8. How would you describe the economic situation for you as a coffee grower? (prompts: access to market to sell beans? Primary sources of income?) 9. How would you describe the environment/ecology of your coffee farm? (prompts: erosion? Water? Soil? Tree cover? Variety of trees? Number of coffee trees?) 10. How would you describe your community? (prompts: schools? Access to health care? Access to resources such as water & land? Access to food (quality of food)? 11. What are the main differences between when you first started and now? Based on what you are saying, things are different now from when you first started farming. 12. What led to the changes you mentioned (insert the specific things that are different based on question 11) 13. Do you keep written records of your expenses, inputs, production and sales of coffee? (If yes, May I see these records? – get copies of available records before leaving farm) I would like to ask you some questions about farmer associations in your community: 14. Are you aware of farmer training or organizing happening in your community? If yes, can you tell me what you know about these activities? (probe: either Fair-Trade or Non- Fair-Trade; do you participate in this training/organization?) 15. Before today, have you heard of the Just Haiti Fair-Trade Farmers’ Association? Are you a member of this farmers’ association? Are you a member of any other farmers’ associations? a. What made you decide to join/not join the farmers’ association(s)? b. Tell me how you learned about the farmer association 16. Do you have any role besides growing coffee with the Fair-Trade Farmers’ Association? If yes, tell me about your other role? 17. According to your personal knowledge, what is necessary to become a member (land ownership, coffee plants, etc?) Next, I would like to ask you about the roles of people who help grow coffee in your community. 18. On your coffee farm, who is responsible for each activity? a. Planting? b. Caring for the coffee while it is growing? c. Harvesting? d. Washing? e. Bringing the beans to (local/international) market? 19. How would you describe the differences between men and women as primary coffee growers? (wrt responsibilities such as: participation in coffee economy, care for environment, and community)? 117 20. Do you how many women are members of the Farmers’ Association? (If yes, how many?) a. Do women in your community want to be members of the Associations? (Prompt: can you tell me more?) b. Have there always been women members of the FA? i. Are women encouraged to join the FA? ii. What are the requirements for a woman to become a member (land ownership, coffee plants, single parent, etc?) iii. What roles do women have in the Farmers’ Association? iv. Do any women hold offices? Finally, I want to ask you questions about the Fair-Trade coffee association: 21. Consider what you have learned about growing, processing and selling your coffee as a result of the Fair-Trade Farmers’ Association, are these practices that you will continue to use as you continue to grow coffee here? Tell me about your answer. 22. Will you (or in the case of a non-coffee growing community member, “do you think the coffee farmers in your community will”) continue to grow or work with the coffee economy in Haiti? What could happen that would make you (them) do something different? a. What are the greatest hopes/fears for the future (for yourself, your parents, brothers, sisters and children, your coffee farms) 118 Coffee Grower Interview Guide – second iteration5 Introductory Statement: I would like to thank you for your willingness to participate in this interview for my study. My study seeks to understand the coffee practices in Haiti and the effects that participation in the Coffee Growers’ Associations is having on the growers, their families and their communities with respect to economic, environmental and social sustainability. The aims of this interview are to understand the perspectives of coffee growers with respect to the success of their practices on the economic, environment and communities. I will ask a series of questions, some of which are open-ended, I appreciate your candidness in answering. Preliminary Questions: Gender of interviewee: M / F 1. What is your name? Are you the head of household? (if not head of household/farm manager, what is your relationship to the head of household/farm/manager?) 2. Are you under 50? Over 50? 3. What is your church affiliation? 4. Family size? Do all live here with you? 5. How would you describe your role in the farm? What are your main crops? Are you a coffee grower? a. Why do you grow coffee? 6. How do you have access to the land? Rent? Inherit? Purchase? a. If land was inherited, do you have other siblings who split the land with you? b. What is the size of the land where you grow coffee? How many coffee trees do you care for? Now, tell me about what it takes to grow coffee on your farm now (some of this is answered during a walk through the property): 7. What are the things involved in running your farm? [inputs, skills required, etc.] a. Do you grow other crops? Are they intermixed with your coffee? (what are the reasons that you do/do not intercrop with your coffee?) b. Do you do all of this work yourself? (If no, who helps you and what things are done by each person?) 8. What are some of the challenges you face on your farm?( Disease, hurricane, money to hire outside help) 9. How would you describe the economic situation for you as a coffee grower? a. How much coffee do you harvest? Tell about times when your harvest increased. b. Tell about times when your harvest decreased. c. Access to markets 5This and the previous iteration serve only as guides for the semi-structured interviews in this grounded theory research. Further iterations were not put into document form as such re-writing was impractical in the field where questioning and conversation during interviews flowed in a more natural process, following the responses as given in the moment. In addition, printing of updated iterations became impossible in the rural countryside of Haiti. 119 d. Price changes e. Besides coffee, what other sources of income do you have? 10. How would you describe the environment/ecology of your coffee farm? (prompts: erosion? Water? Soil? Tree cover? Variety of trees? Number of coffee trees?) 11. How would you describe your community? a. Are there schools nearby? Access to health care? Access to resources such as water & land? Access to food (quality of food)? Now, let’s talk about your farm when you first started growing crops: 12. What did you grow on your farm when you first started? What things were involved in running your farm at that time? [inputs, skills required, etc.] 13. Thinking back, what are some of the challenges you faced when you first began farming this property? 14. How would you describe the economic situation for you as a coffee grower? 15. How would you describe the environment/ecology of your coffee farm? (prompts: erosion? Water? Soil? Tree cover? Variety of trees? Number of coffee trees?) 16. How would you describe your community? (prompts: schools? Access to health care? Access to resources such as water & land? Access to food (quality of food)? 17. What are the main differences between when you first started and now? Based on what you are saying, things are different now from when you first started farming. 18. What led to the changes you mentioned (insert the specific things that are different based on question 17) I would like to ask you some questions about farmer associations in your community: 19. Are you aware of farmer training or organizing happening in your community? If yes, can you tell me what you know about these activities? (probe: either Fair-Trade or Non-Fair- Trade; do you participate in this training/organization?) 20. Before today, have you heard of the Just Haiti Fair-Trade Farmers’ Association? Are you a member of this farmers’ association? Are you a member of any other farmers’ associations? a. What made you decide to join/not join the farmers’ association(s)? b. Tell me how you learned about the farmer association 21. Do you have any role besides growing coffee with the Fair-Trade Farmers’ Association? If yes, tell me about your other role? 22. According to your personal knowledge, what is necessary to become a member (land ownership, coffee plants, etc?) Next, I would like to ask you about the roles of people who help grow coffee in your farm. 23. On your coffee farm, who is responsible for each activity? a. Planting? b. Caring for the coffee while it is growing? c. Harvesting? d. Washing? Drying or preparing for market? 120 e. Bringing the beans to (local/international) market? f. Managing the money 24. How would you describe the differences between men and women as primary coffee growers? (wrt responsibilities such as: participation in coffee economy, care for environment, and community)? 25. Do you know how many women are members of the Farmers’ Association? (If yes, how many?) a. Do women in your community want to be members of the Associations? (Prompt: can you tell me more?) b. Have there always been women members of the FA? i. Are women encouraged to join the FA? ii. What are the requirements for a woman to become a member (land ownership, coffee plants, single parent, etc?) iii. What roles do women have in the Farmers’ Association? iv. Do any women hold offices? Finally, I want to ask you questions about the Fair-Trade coffee association: 26. Consider what you have learned about growing, processing and selling your coffee as a result of the Fair-Trade Farmers’ Association, are these practices that you will continue to use as you continue to grow coffee here? Tell me about your answer. 27. Will you (or in the case of a non-coffee growing community member, “do you think the coffee farmers in your community will”) continue to grow or work with the coffee economy in Haiti? What could happen that would make you (them) do something different? a. How would you describe success for your family? What could happen to make this possible for your family? b. How would you describe success for your farm? What could happen to make this possible for your farm? c. How would you describe success for your community? What could happen to make this possible for your community? d. What are the greatest hopes/fears for the future (for yourself, your parents, brothers, sisters and children, your coffee farms) 121 Fair-Trade Coffee in Haiti Key Informant Questionnaire (Questionnaire For Agronomists and In-country Just Haiti Personnel) Preliminary Questions: 1. What is your name? 2. What is your main occupation? (if not agronomist, what is your role with coffee farmers in [insert community]?) a. How long have you worked in this capacity (role with the coffee farmers)? Interview Guide 1. I would like you to think about the community where you work as they are today (Current situation): a. How would you describe the economic situation for the (coffee growers) in this community? (prompts: access to market to sell beans? Primary sources of income?) b. How would you describe the environment/ecology for the coffee growers in this community? (prompts: erosion? Water? Soil? Tree cover? Variety of trees? Number of coffee trees?) c. How would you describe the state of the community where you work? (prompts: schools? Access to health care? Access to resources such as water & land? Access to food (quality of food)? d. Are there women who are coffee growers in the community where you work? i. (if Yes,) How would you describe the differences between men and women as (primary coffee growers) (wrt economy, environment, and community)? 2. I would like you to think about the community you have worked with as it was before you began to work with the growers: a. How would you describe the economic situation for the coffee growers? (prompts: access to market to sell beans? Primary sources of income?) b. How would you describe the environment/ecology for the coffee growers? (prompts: erosion? Water? Soil? Tree cover? Variety of trees? Number of coffee trees?) c. How would you describe the state of the community? (prompts: Schools? Access to health care? Access to resources such as water & land? Access to food (quality of food)? Access to banks/lines of credit?) d. Were there women who were coffee growers in your community? i. (if Yes,) How would you describe the differences between men and women as (primary coffee growers) (wrt economy, environment, and community)? 3. (Based on what you are saying, things are different between now and before you started to work with them.) a. In your opinion, what has led to the changes in…(insert the specific differences identified between today and the past situation on the farms) b. In your opinion, are these changes beneficial for the growers? Explain your answer, please. 122 c. In your opinion, will the growers continue the practices that are beneficial? Explain your answer, please. d. In your opinion, is there anything that might cause the growers to discontinue these practices? Explain your answer, please. 4. This set of questions is about the farmers’ associations in the community where you work: a. Are you familiar with farmers’ associations in your community? (if yes, can you tell me the names of the different associations and the types of farming each focuses on?) b. Are you familiar with the practices taught by the (Just Haiti Fair Trade Farmers’ Association)? (if yes, please tell me about the Fair Trade practices that you believe have led to the benefits for the growers that you spoke of earlier;) c. How does a coffee grower become a member of the association? Are you familiar with anything that would keep a grower from participating with this association? (If yes, please tell me what things make it hard for a grower to participate?) d. What, in your opinion, are the greatest benefits of Farmer Association participation to each of the following: i. growers’ families? ii. their farms? and iii. their communities? 5. The focus of next set of questions is about the women who work with coffee in the community where you work: a. Do women join the farmer associations in this community? b. Do you have knowledge of whether women want to be members of the Associations? (Prompt: can you tell me more?) c. What is necessary for a woman to become a member (land ownership, coffee plants, single parent, etc?) 6. Tell me about Just Haiti a. Please tell me about your personal affiliation with this organization and how long you have been affiliated with it? When did you, as an individual, begin working with the coffee farmers? 7. When you think of the term “sustainability,” how would you define it with respect to: a. The environment? b. The economy? c. The community? d. Do you have a different definition of sustainability for Haiti than for other areas of the world? If yes, what makes you say that? If no, what makes you say that? 8. Before I ask the next line of questions, I would like to ask you for your definition or understanding of the term “success” with respect to Fair-Trade Plus in Haiti? What would you consider the success(es) of this FA program in Just Haiti communities? a. Have you observed differences between the “success(es)” of women (or the families of the women) and those of the men (or the families of the men) who are members of Just Haiti FAs? If yes, please describe these differences. If no, why do you think there are no observable differences for these participants? 123 9. (Referring back to the other coffee FAs from answer to question 4a) How would you describe the success(es) or lack of success(es) of other farmers’ associations (in comparison to Just Haiti communities?) (What makes you say that?) 10. Finally, as an organization, how do you see the future of Just Haiti? a. Would you classify Just Haiti as a sustainable organization? (what makes you say that?) b. Would you say that Just Haiti is successful? (what makes you say that?) 124 APPENDIX E Notes from The Field Problem #1 The word SUCCESS & how it is translated into Creole/Kryol & the IDEA of what English speakers have of SUCCESS and how to translate that across cultures. 12, Septembre 2018 1. Meeting w/APCDAH coordinator – agreement to travel to farmers in the a.m. of each day and to gather everyone together for a meal. 2. Coordinator brought a committee of APCDAH to meet @ 5 p.m. at the hotel … my big questions/take-aways from this meeting: a. How do I get agreement to participate from a group? b. Can I do it orally? c. This development effort came from the people first and when JH stepped into the fray, with resources, technical support, etc., it began to take shape. d. Sustainability? – isn’t that what the reach into the community by this organization is? 13, Septembre 2018 Morning: Visited a “female farmer” who is not in the Association, her husband was there, they were an older couple. First, I took photos/video of some of their coffee. They have only old growth. We spoke to the woman with her husband, 3 APCDAH members and some of her offspring (likely grand-children). When asked about who does the work, she deferred to the husband – it’s the Haitian way – discussing the visit with Alcéus afterward, I wondered out loud if this was a token female for the purposes of satisfying my requests. Then I asked him if she was either not the head farmer or the society is so patriarchal that her voice is not allowed – Alcéus said this is it. When I asked for her name, she said that his name has to be on it too and his mane has to come first. – this is a typical peasant family, he, who is older and reportedly has other plots of land (according to EA, the coordinator) is likely darrying on the Haitian culture of holding a different family at each location. – What do I do with this? 5:00 p.m. – we had a scheduled interview with a farmer whose coffee garden we stopped at in the morning for photos. They, (EA and the farmer) show up at 6:00. V6, the teacher, the hobby- farmer (my categorization for him). V farms ~1 hectare by himself with one hired hand. His children are away at school and his wife is not involved in the farming. 6 I use initials in these notes rather than names or codes 125 EA says the hope for the future is through educating today’s children to want to continue with the coffee – but what happens for the V’s? where is the sustainability here? Also, if JH7 goes away, is this the end? 15, Septembre 2018 Thoughts on my interview process - & getting genuine, open responses. - To my benefit, EA is present, whom the farmers trust, yet, with he and P (as - interpreter) present, being both male, I have to be paying close attention to nuances and considering whether females feel trusting enough to give the answers that are from their hearts. Interview with farmer in APCDAH – so far, the perceptions given around women are that they fill traditional roles: cooking, cleaning, taking care of children and only when there is a situation of no husband, do they take the lead in coffee growing. o In his responses about who does each job related to the coffee farming, each time, except for one, he answered with “APCDAH and family” – it makes me wonder if it is similar to harvest time in the days of my Grandfather’s Threshing machine (1940’s and 50’s) 16, Septembre 2018 Ask EA about seeing the difference of spaces where a farmer has been applying the practices on his/her farm and where he/she has not improved yet. 17, Septembre 2018 - Morning visit to farm of female teacher who will come to the hotel for an interview. - We met a cacao (kakawo) farmer, father of 8 who cannot afford to send even 1 child to school. - Most of these farmers are surviving and cannot think beyond today. - The deeper the poverty, the more patriarchal the roles it seems. - The teacher who we met today around 4 p.m. was, by appearance, an independent and strong woman. She manages her farm and hires out all of the jobs – somewhat like Madebel, from the opening story of my proposal. 18, Septembre 2018 Notes from my readings: localism – interview as a social encounter which cannot be isolated from the situational aspects such as culture, socio-economics. Individual subject as a source of meaning and voice. (Alveson, 2011 – add this citation to End Note!!) Today, we had rain and PL arranged for 5 farmers to come to us from the mountains. 3 men, 2 women. We were left with no option but to interview them all together. We have asked 2 women so far about who manages the $, I feel that I can learn from how this is answered from men too but I’m uncomfortable asking in such a case/situation as today. 7 JH references the US organization that purchases coffee and assists in the creation of the associations. 126 (question: do Haitian men value family in the same way as women do?) 19, Septembre 2018 Today, we traveled up into the mountains, further away from the coastline than any day to this point. At the foot of the last climb, we dismounted the motos8 and walked. An agronomist joined us as we walked, and when we arrived, the man of the house showed us about, as he cut down some sugar cane for us, he took the time to comment on my bravery or strength…not expecting a US citizen – much less a woman from the US - to march into the muddy slopes of his farm, I suppose. Again, they gathered as a group, 4 at first, then 5, for me to interview. This included Madanm of the house, who was very willing to respond when given the turn. Then, suddenly, she stood, pushed her chair to the wall and disappeared into the house. Emerging in a short while, she placed a tub filled with bananas on her head, said goodbye and headed for the gate. The men all remained, we finished our interviews while she went to sell bananas at the market. *One thing I keep hearing is that the coffee needs “cleaning” – what I finally discovered today, is that what is meant by this is that the weeds and overgrowth need to be “cleaned out” of the coffee gardens, not that the coffee berries need cleaning after harvest. Thoughts on REGENERATION 1. How is it possible to allow character and integrity to be regenerated in the individual or community while providing regenerative assistance for the farms? 2. Is the 2 years of support really enough? 3. Is the 2 years enough for some farmers but others need more? 4. Is the 2 years enough barring an unforeseen event such as a hurricane or an earthquake? Landsize is probably very inaccurate. Why is the rice bitter? (one of the extra bits of information shared with us during the interview, was that the farmer’s rice crop this year produced bitter rice) What is the quality of the soil? 20, Septembre 2018 We arrived at the meeting of APCDAH and were able to do a group interview with 10 women, varying in age from 15 (representing her grandma) to over 50. All women said that they or those they represented had been members of the association since its inception, and all said that they had attended all seminars and trainings offered by the association, yet the two common responses to the question of the most important benefit from being a member were 1) the seedlings given and 2) the food given. (curious that the training of how to improve the quality of the coffee that they produce, which, in theory at least, could bring more money to the farm and family was not considered most important – this is why I wonder about the question of regeneration of coffee and how/whether the activities and resources 8 A moto is a motorcycle taxi, commonly used throughout Haiti, but especially in the country-side where the traditional “TAP-TAP” taxi truck is both too expensive for ownership and incapable for driving the “roads.” 127 provided can also build a sense of self-sufficiency or sustainability that allows the farmers themselves to move beyond a survival thinking into a place of security.) Most of the farmers we have talked with have next to nothing for resources and feeding their families each day seems to be their greatest challenge. Many claim to still live in tents (the chapel directors who are all men wanted to meet with me to ask how I could bring them resources to rebuild their homes that were destroyed by Matthew). And the female heads of household, after Matthew, can no longer pay for their children to be in school. They want the coffee to be as productive as it once was, and they fear that if it isn’t restored soon, it never will be, and they (the women) have no suggestions for something different (besides coffee). Some of the men see driving a moto taxi as an alternative and that other men are abandoning their coffee to drive a moto. The men tell me that the taxi-drivers move to the Dominican. - No one should have to live in such a hopeless state - It’s less about WHO is helping and more, simply about the help. Although the 2 times being paid is also helpful 21, Septembre 2018 Technology transfer? Farmers speak of planting new seedlings with hired help only to have them die in the dry season. How much of that death is due to the inefficient passing of technology that resulted in seedling left in bags (as the agronomist spoke of and demonstrated removal of for me, but is disputed by the coordinator)? 22, Septembre 2018 We met a woman today and had a casual conversation. She told us her father left her some land with coffee and cacao, but that it has fallen off in production of coffee and cacao and that she has no means to take care of it. And because she’s a woman, she cannot do the hard, physical work, so she uses the land only for consumption. She has no children (to send to school). Here is a woman who believes that because she is physically not as strong as a man, and she has no money to pay to clean up the coffee fields (jarden), she cannot grow coffee or cacao. (I do not have a consent form from her – we met her while eating lunch) Later thoughts: contrary to what I have read and heard from diaspora, the responses from farmers who have inherited their land indicate that rather than it being split up, often whoever remains on the land has freedom to farm it all or everyone shares without splitting it up. 26, Septembre 2018 Thinking about the days spent in Anse d’Hainault and the conversations I had there: The women in the group who are all just surviving didn’t open up much – they are the women who traditionally don’t have a voice…I wonder how much they simply didn’t think about the fact that this opportunity that I gave them might offer them a chance to talk from their hearts and how much they might simply be used to outsiders arriving and wanting their stories so they have learned to only give enough to get through the interview…this thought comes from both overhearing some and being directly informed about past experiences of researchers coming but never coming back. 128 In Thiotte: today, we were introduced to COOPCAB, an organization in the Belle Anse Arrondissement that works with cooperatives of coffee farmers throughout the region. The owner of the hotel where we are staying drove us out in his SUV – several kilometers away, heading south out of town, down the mountainside and then back up a narrow difficult road to their headquarters at the end of this little road. He left us there, saying he would catch up with us later. The story of the hotel owner is interesting in and of itself – he sat with us yesterday afternoon to discuss our reasons for visiting Thiotte. He was a poor child who longed for something more. As he walked to school, he would pass what was at the time, the nicest house in town, and tells that if he so much as glanced at the house, the owner would fly into a rage. He resolved that one day, he would own that house…it is now the caretaker’s house at the front of his hotel property. He says that when he purchased it, it needed so much repair and upgrades that he was only able to preserve the roof – and he wondered what it was about the house that was supposed to have been so grand! But, back to COOPCAB – they have international funding and offer training and services to the farmers so that the farmers can get their beans to the International Market. The head guy sat with us and spoke with us for quite a while, we were joined by 2 others during this interview. The head guy seemed as if he wanted to impress us with his credentials and before we began the actual interview, he spoke for quite a while. One of the other young men gave us his number and offered to help us by introducing us to the coffee growers. After our interview was over, as we walked down the hill toward the main road, we found a moto taxi driver who drove us back to town. In the evening, we arranged with the friend from the meeting (who we found out is one of the agronomists with COOPCAB) to take me to visit 1 or 2 female farmers each day for the next week and a half, or until I have enough data. We learned that COOPCAB is starting two new development projects, one that focuses on women and one focusing on the youth (which we were told includes those in the age-group of 18 to 30 years …. Interesting grouping since the life expectancy in Haiti is 63 according to the World Bank, and that more than 50% of the population is under the age of 24 according to 2017 estimates (cia.gov). Thoughts: 27, Septembre 2018 • When people are struggling day-to-day simply to survive, it is impossible for them to think about community as a concept. They may know that they depend on people around them, but I don’t think that they are conscious of, or describe “the people around them” as “community” I believe that *there is a separation between “family” and “community,” this is most likely due to the exodus of people from the country-side. The youth, in particular are leaving and this fact results, in part, in the falling apart of rural community life. (*this part added at a later date) • Solutions of more plants, but no mention with it, of the way to control disease/insects, or to do regular cleanup. • What is the ideal size for a single woman to farm? Something she can handle w/out needing outside resources for hiring help or donated compost/nursery plants? 129 28, Septembre 2018 I know this is a crazy idea – but today, I met an older widow** who has 7 grown children who all still live at home. They “have nothing to do,” so, when she needs “hands” to work on her farm, she hires them and she, who cannot fix her house, gives them money because they have none. • Yet, she does not have enough money to take her produce to the local market to earn some additional money. • The COOPCAB** wants to start (is starting) both an organization of female farmers and one of youth • MY “crazy idea:” “counselors” who facilitate family meetings to problem solve how to “save the family farm.” **they want me to come back with solutions 29, Septembre 2018 After reading some Emerson – the voice within, is it possible for people living in survival mode to hear that voice? Or is it possible for them to even listen to that voice? Walking the mountains this morning – passing the people who are out on foot also: • an uncle, holding the hand of his little niece, her slightly older brother walking alongside – (on their way to school) • a woman with a full 5-gallon bucket on her head, the man carrying a machete, walking with her. • Another woman, bucket on her head, the accompanying men – one with a machete, the other with some small thing in his hands. • Prior to these meetings: descending into the valley, meeting young women (ages 15-25?) one after the other, climbing the “road” to town, each with a 5-gallon bucket full of water on her head, hands free. • Looking around, it’s the way of life if you are poor and female. The burden is heavy… Thinking about categories: 02, Octobre 2018 1. Husband and Wife with outside employment 2. Husband and Wife with produce and market vending 3. Husband and Wife with coffee only 4. Widow with produce and market vending 5. Female Head of Household with street vending or roadside market 6. Female Head of Household with coffee only 7. Husband, whose wife lives in another town, (leaving him alone on farm) with coffee and produce for possible market vending Timoun/Children categories: 1. Young children at home and in school 2. Young children at home and not in school 3. Grown children at home with education and no job 130 4. Grown children at home no education and no job 5. Grown children living in homes built on family land – may or may not work on farm 6. Grown children away (in PAP or other towns) Land access categories: 1. Often inherited 2. Sometimes purchased 3. Occasionally a combination of inheritance and purchase 4. Rarely rented Hopes: 1. Regeneration of Coffee to support family: a. Educate children b. Fix house “so you don’t have to sit on the floor” (told to me as we sat on the “floor” of the porch – which to me, did not seem like I was sitting on the floor!) c. Invest back into coffee as retirement d. My children won’t have to work hard like I do 06, Octobre 2018 Transcribing Continues… Over breakfast with some priests, I shared with them what my research is about. They lamented about how the Haitian gov’t will spend $1,000 (USD) per gun to arm the people, yet they refuse to spend the $ on peasant farmers to regenerate agriculture across Haiti. Thinking about my interview process: Questions had to be modified as I got a more clear idea of how the thinking goes in the culture – • To get a response to questions of “success,” for example in Thiotte, it is better to frame a “what do you like/dislike about coffee farming” or, in the case of Anse d’Hainault, “what would it look like for you to ‘arrive’?” and “what are your hopes and fears for the future?” • These, and questions about the weather and the soil are the closest I could come to finding out about ideas around sustainability about the environment. There is a problem with the ability to reach all the farmers who have “memberships” whether from • Lack of resources on part of the organization • Distance from the ‘center’ • Perceived need o A farmer with clear abundance of crop to harvest gets chosen I should have asked Thiotte interviewee #4 about alternatives to cooperative (listen to audio at around minute 19) Transcribing Thiotte #6 08, Octobre 2018 131 • When she said she was too young to remember good times with coffee, I should have asked how long she has been farming coffee…I finally asked at 15 minutes into the interview. • She doesn’t recall receiving assistance or training from the co-op - this makes me wonder if the husband received the training o Makes me wonder also how the co-op does its outreach (remember to ask the agronomist) 09, Octobre 2018 (working in the wee hours of the morning, I have these thoughts:) The story of Haitian women in coffee is not the story of a collective group. It is not a story, but a collection of stories. I can no more summarize what it is to be a woman in the coffee economy than I can consider myself – and my 3 sisters – as having one experience and one set of outcomes to become who we each are and how we approach being a woman in the US culture, despite being given the same family, the same land to work and explore, the same school system to guide our education and the same church to foster our spiritual development – we have become, in many ways, very different women. Later, same day: The hour is early, the sun slowly brightening the sky. Mingled with the occasional sounds of engines of passing trucks, is a strong voice in song. The voice seems to be carried by someone making their way across town. I have heard and read stories; I have watched movies of the days of slavery in the US. From those places, I understand that singing while enduring labor to survive was a thing that kept the souls of the oppressed people alive. That clear voice above and mingled with the sounds of the waking town – that voice carries in it all of the history of this country and the hope that persists also. The souls of the people are still alive and hopeful! 10, Octobre 2018 Repeating theme: coffee needs nurture and that takes money…there is not enough money for hiring hands, buying seedlings, fertilizer, compost, treatments for insects and diseases…. Question: What is said about how coffee was “raised” when the older coffee growers were young? Response (from my interviews): Largely the memory is that the coffee didn’t need the same level of care that it requires today. (notes that I am adding as I rewrite my journal: it could be that the memories are from a time before the “intentional destruction” of the coffee gardens, and of a time when the older generation was young and not necessarily trained to care for the gardens, but simply to harvest and clear out debris of fallen leaves, branches, weeds. So events that have occurred between the era from which their memories come and today include: loss of pigs, crash of international coffee prices, destruction of forests and associated climate change. Today, the island is warmer, including in the higher elevations, there is an explosion of ruyi (check spelling) disease and of the scolyte insect, and other pests (disease and insect). These things while the forest cover has gone, the climate has changed, and the youth (potential workforce) are leaving. This leaves the coffee grower in greater and greater need of resources to regenerate the coffee industry in Haiti.) 132 Climate Change… Soil quality… 11, Octobre 2018 12, Octobre 2018 - Ants are beginning to create yet another problem at lower elevations for coffee growers (at least we only heard about ants as an issue from the lowest elevation grower in the Thiotte area and the agronomist confirmed that it is his experience right now – only hearing of ants at lower elevations and that it is a new problem) - The nursery (as seen at the final site in the Thiotte area) is a family work o I’m thinking of people I know in the US who share things like gardening and farming & how I don’t feel that roles are always divided along “traditional” gender lines and although much of “gardening” in the backyard here (US) is viewed as a hobby – it is not necessarily a woman’s work or a man’s work - A question not asked…of the “hands” hired, are women among those who are hired? 13, Octobre 2018 - Long-term thinking - Assistance that includes a version of an emergency fund and tapers off as incomes become sufficient to cover living expenses, savings and emergency fund becomes large enough to cover emergencies like Matthew or a drought 16, Octobre 2018 These thoughts come after a visit in Port-au-Prince with Gerry Straub, who runs an orphanage for abandoned children and those whose parents have both passed. He has written several books, one of which is Hidden in the Rubble “Scripture makes it abundantly clear that God asks three things of us: To walk humble with God, to love kindness, and to do ‘justice.’ “And to do justice is more than being fair. It means we cannot tolerate injustice and must intervene when the powerful abuse the powerless; it requires us to change systems of institutionalized injustice that imprison people in chains of poverty and hunger. We need to be willing to lay down our own lives for the sake of those whose lives have been stolen from them.” (p. 11) I don’t know what else I can say, Gerry (an American) and his wife (a Haitian), exude the presence of something I can only describe as “Sainthood” – it is something few possess and yet, a conversation with Gerry will inform you that he was not always this way. My heart, my soul, my being, knows that it is toward such a calling that I walk. 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