Coffee Story: Ethiopia Available Now, Needed Now
Wednesday, August 10, 2011 at 11:42AM 
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It's a big day for me today. It's the day Coffee Story Ethiopia comes out, and moreover it is the day I get to thank everyone who has helped support and create this amazing project. We've done it.
This morning a friend asked me to write her a note about why I wrote this book-- where did this passion come from? she asked. This is what I told her: I was drawn to write about coffee because I saw the impact of writing about adventure and climbing in Ethiopia-- and moreover I saw people's responses to a thicker and more complicated way to understand Ethiopia. Climbing was something me and my team brought to Ethiopia in 2007 (ie the technical systems, difficulty, etc); coffee is something that is Ethiopia.
I believe all of us want to understanding things more and feel more connected vis a vis an understanding that is not intellectual but is rather guttural-- we want to care. I saw these connections with writing and speaking about the adventure in Ethiopia and saw interest even further piqued when I would talk about coffee. And then I got it: One tenth more understanding about Ethiopia coffee could change the economic reality for a country that is trying its damnedest to no longer be one of the poorest in the world. How could I not create conversation to further that?