Gumantar Coffee Guide
Executive Summary
May 1, 2020
Paige Price
The community of Gumantar in Lombok, Indonesia, one of the poorest regions of the
island, is home to many small-holding coffee farmers. Due primarily to production quality,
these farmers are struggling to earn a sufficient wage. While trying to provide for their
families, they often use farming practices that negatively impact the local environment, while
also inadvertently devaluing their product through their chosen drying methods. The
environmental degradation compounded with reduced or lost revenue only exacerbates poverty
issues experienced by the farmers, resulting in lower family education levels, health care
barriers, and overall decreased well-being.
The farmers are aware of the negative impacts and desire changes that will positively
impact the community and environment while also producing financial benefits. One of the
largest obstacles they have experienced in achieving these goals has been access to reliable,
context-specific best practices.
The aim of this project has been to minimize obstacles to more sustainable farming
practices. Through interviews and an assessment of the farmers current and desired states, it
was determined that a multi-topic guide would help reduce knowledge gaps and the divide
between scientific research and real-world practices. Baseline assessments using Gibson’s
sustainability principles and the Sustainable Development Goals helped clarify the
sustainability problem and determine the best intervention points. Topics of the guide were
co-produced with the community and included farming practices, drying techniques, small
business skills, and coffee certification requirements.
During the development of the guide, regular communication was held with Gumantar
stakeholders. The main mode of connection was through WhatsApp, although Google
Hangout was also used on occasion. The meetings helped ensure the viability of the work and
were instrumental in the completion of the guide. Notably, Arizona State University
GlobalResolve students were involved throughout the development of the guide. The intention
is that GlobalResolve will continue the project initiative in coming years, and to foster that,
students were involved from the beginning. Meetings with GlobalResolve students occurred
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twice weekly, both in person and on Zoom. Ongoing dialog with them and the stakeholders
helped ensure a strong, robust guide was produced.
A completed draft of the guide was sent to a panel of reviewers comprised of four
Gumantar coffee farmers, one Lombok coffee roaster, one Hawaiian coffee farmer, and three
academic subject matter experts. The panel provided encouraging and positive feedback.
Reviewers suggested very few changes and remarked that they hope the guide will expand to
cover more topics in the future.
Many of the project outcomes will not be known until after the guide is implemented by
farmers. Ideally, a follow up assessment will be conducted by GlobalResolve students in the
future to better identify the impact and outcomes of the guide. However, a sSWOT analysis of
each guide section was conducted using the review panel’s feedback. The information
generated by the sSWOT indicates that the project has achieved the intended goal of providing
Gumantar coffee farmers with reliable information and best practices.
Overall, the project went more or less according to plan. Stakeholder engagement was
high and all parties assisting with the guide were passionate and dedicated to seeing the project
through. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted communication frequency
between me, community members, GlobalResolve students, and panel reviewers. The
completion of the project was not significantly hindered by the disruption, though it has
affected the plan for distributing the guide to the community.
Although the project successfully addresses the sustainability problem it originally
defined, room remains for follow up projects. The guide can be expanded, both by elaborating
on existing sections and incorporating additional sections. A section incorporating issues of
gender, class, and disability equity would be an important addition. And finally, an
opportunity exists to expand best practice recommendations beyond coffee production to
cacao, banana, avocado, cashew, and clove crops, which are also farmed locally.

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