Contract courses and special initiatives are CQI activities underwritten by a single investor, or an investor group, that are focused on a specific group of participants, usually known to the investor.
Contract courses are similar to grant-funded training sessions, but differ in two important respects.
First, contract courses are paid for by a single large investor or a small group of mid-sized investors that bundle funds with the intention of fully funding an entire activity. By contrast, for most grant-funded training sessions, CQI will bundle a larger number of smaller grants from investors whose contributions are not enough on their own to cover the costs of an entire scholarship or fellowship or activity.
Second, in contract courses, the investor decides which specific activities will be undertaken who will participate in those activities. In grant-funded trainings, activities and participants are both determined by CQI.
How do contract courses work?
There is no single formula for contract courses since every offering in the CQI catalog can be the focus of a contract course.
One possible contract course scenario might involve a roaster that is concerned about the quality of deliveries from a particular supplier. Together, the roaster and CQI might work to analyze the situation, identify opportunities for quality improvement, then select a CQI class or course can help suppliers address the issue. The roaster would then contract CQI to conduct a training session or series with members of that cooperative.
How do special initiatives work?
If it is hard to say how a contract course might work in practice, it is even harder for special initiatives, which refer to activities that are not in the CQI catalog and are custom-designed by CQI and an investor based on the investor's needs. These might include quality competitions, auctions, buyer tours, exchanges, or other activities.
It may be helpful to think about our course catalog as a menu. You can select something from the menu, or work with the chef to come up with a different dish that meets your needs.
While the investor (or investor group) behind a contract course or special initiative covers all the costs of the activities themselves, in these cases as well as grant-funded activities, CQI will always offer some co-investment.
For more information on contract courses or special initiatives, contact CQI Director of Mission Engagement T.J. Ryan at tryan@coffeeinstitute.org.
To explore other opportunities for investing in the CQI Global Coffee Fund, visit Grants, Pennies-per-Pound Program, or Volunteering, or return to the Global Coffee Fund landing page.
