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People (TCPI), shared their expectations and how they were met. "I had never been to a workshop like this," Margaret said. "I have attended many other workshops, and although the topics covered have always been interesting, they are often very general. This is the first time I've attended a workshop funded by a donor and in which all the participants have very similar concerns and interests. This is a very good exercise because we have focused all of our energy on resolving questions that all of us share in an environment that allows us to learn from one another by sharing our experiences." María de los Ángeles Muñoz, from partner organization The Advice and Rural Services Center (ASER MAIZ), explained some of the challenges they face and how workshops such as these make a big difference in their long-term success. "Unfortunately, the majority of NGOs dedicate most of our energy to working directly in the field, in the day-to-day activities of the people and trying to achieve our project goals," María said. "This often leaves us with little time to sit down and take a look at the administrative part of the organization. It's clear that administrative and fiscal management is very important to learn how to make better use of human and financial resources and even to save money... It would be excellent if this kind of workshop continues because it helps us a lot in our work and strategic planning." Most of the organizations with which we work are not founded by accountants but rather by biologists, agronomists or simply by people who recognize a problem and envision a solution. They are not trained to understand the highly specialized language of accounting, especially as it pertains to the nonprofit world, which is often even more complex. This workshop was a step toward capacitating our program partners in these issues that are so important to their long-term survival. DOING THE DIRTY WORK When we enthusiastically said to some of our supporters, "We're preparing a workshop on tax laws in Mexico!" we often received wandering gazes and absentminded nods in return. After all, who really cares about tax laws in Mexico? Well, our partners do, because knowing those laws is what will allow them to continue making a difference in their communities. Board president and business development director for Batdorf & Bronson Coffee Roasters, Mike Ferguson, recently expressed the importance of supporting projects such as the capacity building workshop. "We don't always have the sexiest programs, and the projects we fund are not always aimed at issues 'in the news,' but we always do what is truly needed, " Mike said. "The fact that you support an organization that teaches nonprofit groups in coffee-growing communities how to do their taxes might not be an easy thing to explain in your marketing material, but the fact that you helped give an organization at origin the tools they need to stay open when their government might not be friendly to their cause—that is something to brag about." IT'S ALL ABOUT COMMUNITY All in all, participants left feeling confident that many of their questions had been answered. Not only that, they also had the opportunity to network and make new friends in the industry, relationships that will no doubt serve them as they move toward their respective development goals. Program Director José Luis Zárate was pleased as well with the outcome of the workshop. "I have always recognized the tremendous effort put forth by the coordinators in our partner organizations, who often steal time from their families and deny themselves one last hour of sleep so that they are able to achieve more, " José Luis said. "I understand that the lack of administrative and project management tools makes the path to their goals that much harder. I understand, too, that in many Latin American countries fiscal and accounting procedures are much more than a headache for NGOs. That is why this workshop is strategic in nature, in benefit of not only the organizations with which Coffee Kids works, but also of the people who invest their best efforts, trying to achieve better quality of life for coffee- growing families." This workshop marks the beginning of a series of annual capacity building workshops. This is just one of the ways that we work together with coffee-growing communities to bring about change in a sustainable, community-oriented way. You, too, as a supporter of Coffee Kids, are a participant in sustainable projects such as these. www.baristamagazine.com 39