Sustainability Awards

The 2025 Sustainability Awards recognize for-profit and non-profit organizations that advance sustainability in the coffee sector while inspiring others to initiate similar endeavors.

Since 2004, the SCA has recognized outstanding work in the field of sustainability with its annual Sustainability Awards. The companies, organizations, projects, and people receiving these awards have not only dedicated themselves to confronting the enormous challenges facing the specialty coffee industry—from climate change to gender inequality—but also to collaborating across geographies, cultures, and value chain roles, and to sharing the lessons they have learned for the benefit of the entire coffee sector.

Winners will be recognized for their achievement at the Specialty Coffee Expo in Houston, USA April 25 - 27th.

Submissions for the 2025 awards closed on January 31, 2025.

 
 

Categories

FOR-PROFIT

This award recognizes the role that for-profit companies play in the sustainability of the coffee sector. Please note that this award is for businesses that have been operating for at least three years. Products, projects, and ideas do not qualify for the award.

Judging Criteria

  1. Exceptional approach. For-profit organizations will pursue equity, prioritize mutual benefits, and address intertwined social, economic, and environmental challenges facing coffee value chains.
  2. Adaptability. Business practices will be relevant to companies of various sizes and across diverse cultures and geographies.
  3. Impact. Businesses will clearly articulate how their models have achieved measurable results.
  4. Equitable Value Distribution. The SCA uses the Sustainability Awards to advance its sustainability agenda by shaping mindsets about how value is created, measured, and distributed in coffee value chains and within firms. For-profit organizations will be evaluated on their efforts towards distributing value more equitably.

For this question, please bear in mind that the SCA does not use "value" to solely refer to money, but rather to a combination of different types of reward in relation to the cost or investment made.

"Equitable distribution" refers to how the total value (monetary and non-monetary) created by all actors in the coffee system is distributed among them. Equitable distribution does not result in everyone receiving the same reward, but rather the right reward for the value they add, the risks they take, and the costs they bear.

Eligibility and Process

This annual award is open to SCA members. Applications must be submitted by, or on behalf of, a business in operation for a minimum of three years. An individual may submit applications for multiple businesses.

For 2025, there will be two rounds of review: first, a team of SCA staff will review all submissions that meet the requirements listed in the form below, considering a wide range of applicationsfrom across the specialty coffee industry.

A second round of applicants will be selected as finalists and may be asked to provide additional information to a panel of judges comprised of previous SCA Sustainability Award Winners.

Prize

  • SCA Sustainability Award Winner plaque
  • SCA Sustainability Award Winner logo for promotional use
  • Recognition on sca.coffee, in SCA News article and in press release
  • One complimentary three-day pass to the 2025 Specialty Coffee Expo in Houston, Texas OR one complimentary three-day pass to the 2024 World of Coffee Europe in Geneva, Switzerland.
  • Sustainability Awards Reception at Expo and World of Coffee events (specific details to be determined)
  • A US $1,500 travel stipend to attend the 2025 Expo and/or World of Coffee Europe events

NON-PROFIT

This award celebrates a non-profit organization (or one of its projects) that advances the coffee sector’s pursuit of sustainability. Please note that this award is only for organizations/projects that have been operating for at least three years. Products, companies, business models, and ideas do not qualify for the award.

Judging Criteria

  1. Exceptional approach. Non-profit organizations will pursue equity, prioritize mutual benefits, and address intertwined social, economic, and environmental challenges facing coffee value chains.
  2. Adaptability. Organization practices will be relevant to organizations of various sizes and across diverse cultures and geographies.
  3. Impact. Organizations will clearly articulate how their models have achieved measurable results.
  4. Equitable Value Distribution. The SCA uses the Sustainability Awards to advance its sustainability agenda by shaping mindsets about how value is created, measured, and distributed in coffee value chains and within firms. For-profit organizations will be evaluated on their efforts towards distributing value more equitably.

For this question, please bear in mind that the SCA does not use "value" to solely refer to money, but rather to a combination of different types of reward in relation to the cost or investment made.

"Equitable distribution" refers to how the total value (monetary and non-monetary) created by all actors in the coffee system is distributed among them. Equitable distribution does not result in everyone receiving the same reward, but rather the right reward for the value they add, the risks they take, and the costs they bear.

Eligibility and Process

This annual award is open to SCA members. Applications must be submitted by, or on behalf of, an organization or project in operation for a minimum of three years. An individual may submit applications for multiple organizations/projects.

For 2025, there will be two rounds of review: first, a team of SCA staff will review all submissions that meet the requirements listed in the form below, considering a wide range of applications from across the specialty coffee industry.

A second round of applicants will be selected as finalists and may be asked to provide additional information to a panel of judges comprised of previous SCA Sustainability Award Winners.

Prize

  • SCA Sustainability Award Winner plaque
  • SCA Sustainability Award Winner logo for promotional use
  • Recognition on sca.coffee, in SCA News article and in press release
  • One complimentary three-day pass to the 2025 Specialty Coffee Expo in Houston, Texas OR one complimentary three-day pass to the 2024 World of Coffee Europe in Geneva, Switzerland.
  • Sustainability Awards Reception at Expo and World of Coffee events (specific details to be determined)
  • A US $1,500 travel stipend to attend the 2024 Expo and/or World of Coffee Europe events

A note on the Individual Award: The SCA is reevaluating how to best identify and celebrate individuals from across the value chain who have contributed to advancing sustainability in the coffee industry and will pause the Individual Award until further notice.

If you have any questions on how to complete your submission, please contact sustainability@sca.coffee

Explore

 

Past Winners

2024

  • Root Capital | Non-Profit Award

  • Sancoffee | For-Profit Award

2023

  • José Rivera & David Griswold | Individual Award

  • Root Capital | Non-Profit Award

  • Primavera Green Coffee | For-Profit

2022

  • David Browning | Individual Award

  • Jimma Agro-Biodiversity Project | Project Award

  • Caravela Coffee | Business Model Award

2021

  • Michael Sheridan | Individual Award

  • Alto Mayo Landscape Peru REDD+ Project | Project Award

  • Pachamama Coffee Cooperative | Business Model Award

2020

  • Dr. Timothy Schilling, Founder of World Coffee Research | Sustainability Champion Award

  • Las Manos del Café by RGC Coffee | Sustainable Project Award

  • Cooperative Coffees | Sustainable Business Model Award

2019

  • Esperanza Dionisio Castillo | Sustainability Champion Award

  • “Mainstreaming biodiversity conservation and climate resilience at Yayu Biosphere Reserve” by Union Hand-Roasted Coffee | Sustainable Project Award

  • Agricafe | Sustainable Business Model Award

2018

  • Guatemalan Coffee Foundation for Rural Development (Funcafé) |  Sustainable Project Award

  • Progresso Foundation | Sustainable Business Model Award

2017

  • World Coffee Research | Sustainable Project Award

2016

  • Bukonzo Joint Cooperative Union | Sustainable Project Award

2015

  • Bunkozo Joint Cooperative for their project "Gender Action Learning System (GALS): Enhancing the participation of women coffee farmers in western Uganda” | Sustainable Project Award

2014

  • Twin & Twin Trading for their project Congo Coffee Revival - Regenerating Communities by Linking Remote Farmers to Mainstream Markets

2013

  • Pueblo a Pueblo - Organic School Garden Project

2012

  • Thanksgiving Coffee Company for their project “Responding to Climate Change: Building Community-Based Reliance"

2011

  • Grounds for Health

2010

  • Coffee Lifeline

2009

  • ZERI Foundation (Zero Emissions Research and Initiatives)

2008

  • Essent Energy Trading and Solidaridad (The Netherlands)

  • Alianza para la Sostenibilidad/ Sogimex SA/ Ecom Agroindustrial Corp Ltd. (Honduras)

2007

  • Poabs Organic/Biodynamic Estates (Producer, India) - Sustainable Business Practice and Sustainable Projects

  • Selva Negra Coffee Estate (Producer, Nicaragua) - Sustainable Business Practice and Sustainable Project

2006

  • International Paper Company & Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (Allied and Roaster, United States) - Sustainable Business Partnership Resulting in a Sustainable Product

  • La Union de Cooperativas Agropecuarias Soppexcca (Producer, Nicaragua) - Sustainable Business Practices

  • Sustainable Harvest Coffee Importers

  • Timothy's World Coffee & Embera-Chami Coffee Community

2005

  • Las Nubes Coffee, a project of the Fisher Fund for Neotropical Conservation and Timothy's World Coffee

  • Portland Roasting's Farm Friendly Direct Programs, which focus primarily on sustainable, shade-grown and organic coffees

  • Starbucks Coffee Company's Coffee and Farmer Equity Practices

2004

  • IPANEMA Agicola S/A of Minas Gerais, Brazil

  • Thanksgiving Coffee Company

  • Dean's Beans

  • ForesTrade & PPKGO