ABSTRACT
This chapter presents a case study, which describes the origins and evolution of the social venture EcoCafé Haiti, founded by co-author Tom Durant. EcoCafé Haiti is a business built around the once well-established Haitian coffee industry while simultaneously addressing local environmental and social needs. Since its inception in 2006, EcoCafé Haiti has made more than 1,000 Haitian workers and their families food secure, provided benefits of employment to over 500 farmer families, restored over 300 acres of land and employed a workforce of over 25 people. EchoCafé Haiti has also provided help to the poorest of the poor in one of the most economically challenged countries in the Western Hemisphere. EcoCafé Haiti directly addresses 5 of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), demonstrating that even with severe social, economic and ecological challenges, implementation of the SDGs is possible.
