Introduction to Cupping
Workshop Description: The Intro to Cupping Workshop provides those new to cupping with tools to analyze and describe their sensory perceptions of coffee. Specifically tailored to beginners, the workshop provides a welcoming and supportive environment to explore the world of coffee evaluation. Participants will learn practical techniques to assess coffee’s sensory attributes through engaging tastings and hands-on activities, bridging theory with practice.
Learners who complete this workshop will be able to:
1. Explain how cupping is used in professional settings across the coffee value chain.
2. Define and differentiate among key terms like fragrance, aroma, flavor, aftertaste, acidity, sweetness, mouthfeel, and overall.
3. Detect differences in intensity and sensory profile among coffee samples.
4. Use sensory evaluation tools like check-all-that-apply (CATA) boxes and nine-point affective scales.
5. Identify personal preferences in sensory attributes in coffee.
4. Use cupping and sensory feedback to refine blend outcomes.
5. Craft concise, engaging narratives explaining blend intention, flavor goals, and origin context.
6. Apply repeatable frameworks for signature, seasonal, or menu-specific blends.
Date: Sunday, April 12, 2026
Time: 9:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
Room Number: 30 DE
Category: Cupping
REGISTRATION FEES:
EARLY BIRD Regular* - $250
EARLY BIRD Paid Member* - $210
Regular - $275
Paid Member - $230
*Early Bird pricing ends March 1, 2026
Booking: To book your place in this Workshop, head to the World of Coffee San Diego Registration & Booking Portal and add a session to your order. Already registered? Simply login using the credentials created at purchase to access your booking and add other paid events to your badge.
Instructor
Ben Helt
Technical Training Director
Ben Helt has worked in specialty coffee for more than 20 years, with experience spanning roasting, café ownership, and global coffee education. He's known for making technical and sensory concepts approachable. Ben had a front-row seat to the development of the SCA Coffee Value Assessment (CVA) and has delivered CVA courses to international audiences, helping cuppers and educators engage the system with confidence and clarity. He previously led the Authorized SCA Trainer Program, supporting a worldwide network of educators. Today, Ben brings his expertise to water quality as the Technical Training Director for BWT Water & More US, helping coffee professionals optimize one of coffee's most essential ingredients.
The Profitable Cafe: Financial Strategies for Sustainable Success
Workshop Description: What does a healthy cafe budget look like? And how do you match that to the reality of operations?
In the dynamic job of running a cafe, a solid grasp of budgeting is vital for sustainable success. This workshop is designed to empower cafe owners, managers, and aspiring entrepreneurs with the foundational tools to create, analyze, and optimize a budget that drives profitability. Attendees will dive into key areas of the P&L—like cost of goods (COGs), labor, and occupancy—to understand how each impacts the overall health of their business and how to control them ongoing via operational decisions.
Using a fill-in-the-blank workbook, attendees actively engage in analyzing financial metrics, calculating ideal expense percentages, and learning actionable methods to control costs. This workshop transforms complex financial concepts into manageable, practical steps. Plus, we’ll explore real strategies for boosting cafe sales and inspiring cafe workers to engage better with the business. Attendees will leave feeling enthusiastic, knowledgeable, and equipped with practical budgeting insights to support their cafe's growth.
This workshop would be perfect for people brand new to these concepts or even experienced cafe owners who are having a difficult time controlling expenses.
Learning Objectives:
1. Identify and understand key budget components in a cafe business, how to analyze them in your own business, and how to strategically control them ongoing through operational leadership
2. Gain a clear understanding of how to build, read, and leverage a P&L statement specifically for the cafe business to assess the café’s financial health and make informed decisions.
3. Explore strategies to increase top-line revenue through effective upselling, product mix adjustments, and employee engagement
4. Walk away with a holistic budgeting approach that combines financial discipline with strategic decision-making, supporting sustainable growth
Date: Sunday, April 12, 2026
Time: 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Room Number: 30 B
Category: Business
REGISTRATION FEES:
EARLY BIRD Regular* - $250
EARLY BIRD Paid Member* - $210
Regular - $275
Paid Member - $230
*Early Bird pricing ends March 1, 2026
Booking: To book your place in this Workshop, head to the World of Coffee San Diego Registration & Booking Portal and add a session to your order. Already registered? Simply login using the credentials created at purchase to access your booking and add other paid events to your badge.
Instructor
Erica Escalante
Cafe & Bakery Consultant
Erica Escalante is a seasoned coffee professional and baker.
She is most know for her time being a cafe/bakery owner for nearly 10 years in the Portland, OR area, starting entrepreneurship at just 21 years old. Her cafe was a beloved and bustling business, growing to 2 locations with a full bakery program (including over a dozen wholesale accounts), a full food program, and
a commissary kitchen program. After her time as a cafe owner, she worked in various operational roles - Head of Retail for Canyon Coffee, and Director of Operations for Goodboybob Coffee Roasters.
She now runs The Cafe Operator, a consulting agency helping businesses become more profitable and create better work environments for all. She focuses her time not only on client work, but also hosting various virtual workshops and running her robust social media accounts where she puts helpful and entertaining cafe business focused content.
Erica lives in Los Angeles with her wife and her two cutie daughters.
Sold Out - Building Better Wholesale: Your Roadmap to Starting & Scaling Your Wholesale Coffee Business.
Workshop Description: This workshop equips new and growing coffee entrepreneurs with the knowledge and tools to start and scale a wholesale coffee business. We’ll cover the full journey—from green coffee buying and roasting to selling your product across B2B and consumer channels. By the end, you’ll have a comprehensive roadmap to develop a profitable, customer-focused wholesale program, along with an understanding of key industry benchmarks and strategies for standing out in a crowded market.
Learning Objectives:
1. To learn how to source green coffee in an effective manner by working with various buying methods, forecasting, and working alongside producers
2. To understand the necessary equipment and education needed to create an in-house roasting program
3. Gain practical and effective sales tactics from two coffee sales professionals, such as how to build a pipeline, creating sales & marketing materials, and how to conduct in & out-bound sales
4. Attendees will have a business plan specially for wholesale coffee roasting to follow along, fill-out, and walk away with
Date: Sunday, April 12, 2026
Time: 9:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m.
Room Number: 30 C
Category: Business
REGISTRATION FEES:
EARLY BIRD Regular* - $250
EARLY BIRD Paid Member* - $210
Regular - $275
Paid Member - $230
*Early Bird pricing ends March 1, 2026
Booking: To book your place in this Workshop, head to the World of Coffee San Diego Registration & Booking Portal and add a session to your order. Already registered? Simply login using the credentials created at purchase to access your booking and add other paid events to your badge.
Instructor
Tarra Samuelson
Consultant
Tarra Samuelson (she/her) has spent the past 15 years working across retail, wholesale, and educational facets of the specialty coffee industry. She has contributed to the growth of both boutique roasters and large, fast-scaling companies through her expertise in sales, business development, and operations. Tarra co-owns Provision Coffee in Phoenix, Arizona with her husband and is the founder of Curated Coffee Consulting, a consulting agency dedicated to supporting specialty coffee start-ups in retail & wholesale. She brings a strong passion for education and relationship-driven sales, and has held national sales and business development roles with companies including Verve Coffee, Equator Coffees, Rishi Tea, and Eversys.
Blair Smith
Southwest Account Manager
Blair Smith is the Southwest Account Manager for Ally Coffee, a green coffee importer. She has been working in specialty coffee since 2012, working in various roles as a barista, store manager, general manager, roaster, and wholesale manager, and now enjoys the role where she can connect both ends of the supply chain. When she's not living and breathing coffee, she enjoys cooking, gardening, and raising chickens.
Intentional Blending: Designing Flavor with Purpose
Workshop Description: Blending is both an art and a science, and intentional design is key to achieving flavor, balance, and consistency. This workshop teaches roasters how to craft blends with clear sensory goals using component tasting, roast-level experimentation, and iterative cupping feedback. Participants explore how origin, variety, and roast interact to influence sweetness, acidity, body, and clarity. Emphasis is placed on co-discovery, allowing participants to hypothesize, test, and refine blends collaboratively. The workshop also incorporates storytelling, helping participants translate blend design into concise narratives for café teams and consumers. Attendees leave with repeatable frameworks, tasting skills, and practical storytelling tools to create blends that are purposeful, repeatable, and memorable.
Learning Objectives:
1. Evaluate individual component coffees for sensory contribution.
2. Adjust roast levels to optimize blend balance, body, and flavor clarity.
3. Co-create blends collaboratively using iterative, sensory-driven experimentation.
4. Use cupping and sensory feedback to refine blend outcomes.
5. Craft concise, engaging narratives explaining blend intention, flavor goals, and origin context.
6. Apply repeatable frameworks for signature, seasonal, or menu-specific blends.
Date: Sunday, April 12, 2026
Time: 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Room Number: 31 C
Category: Cupping
REGISTRATION FEES:
Regular - $275
Paid Member - $230
Booking: To book your place in this Workshop, head to the World of Coffee San Diego Registration & Booking Portal and add a session to your order. Already registered? Simply login using the credentials created at purchase to access your booking and add other paid events to your badge.
Instructor
Ashley Whelan
Director of Coffee
Ashley Whelan is a coffee educator and operator with experience developing training programs, multi-sensory teaching tools, and flavor communication frameworks for café teams, roasteries, and competition-level baristas. Ashley integrates operational knowledge, sensory science, and creative pedagogy to make coffee education accessible, memorable, and grounded in real café practice.
Alchemist of the Pour: An In-Depth Look into Espresso and Latte Art Techniques
Workshop Description: This hands-on workshop is designed for baristas and coffee professionals who want to strengthen their technical understanding of espresso and milk synergy and develop their latte art skills.
This workshop first touches on proper espresso brewing and extraction quality. Participants will learn how minor adjustments can elevate the final cup and create a solid foundation for milk integration.
We'll then shift to focus on milk techniques—from proper steaming and texturing to pour control and integration with espresso. Attendees will practice achieving harmony between the structure of the espresso shot and the texture of the milk for smooth, balanced results.
By the end of the session, participants will leave with a better understanding of espresso variables, milk chemistry, and latte art pouring fundamentals, empowering them to create consistent, high-quality, beautiful beverages with confidence.
Learning Objectives:
1. Demystify espresso extraction by identifying how variables affect balance, flavor, and consistency in pouring into the cup.
2. Master the craft of milk texturing, learning how to create silky micro-foam and achieve the ideal temperature and texture for seamless integration with espresso.
3. Refine pour control and technique, discovering how movement, flow, and timing shape both latte art presentation and flavor synergy.
4. Combine science and craft to design espresso-based beverages that are visually striking, technically sound, and consistently delicious
Note: For the best hands-on experience, we group attendees into small breakout teams according to their self-assessed skill level. This way, you practice with peers at a similar stage and receive targeted guidance and feedback from the supporting instructors.
Date: Sunday, April 12, 2026
Time: 9:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
Room Number: 32 AB
Category: Espresso
REGISTRATION FEES:
EARLY BIRD Regular* - $250
EARLY BIRD Paid Member* - $210
Regular - $275
Paid Member - $230
*Early Bird pricing ends March 1, 2026
Booking: To book your place in this Workshop, head to the World of Coffee San Diego Registration & Booking Portal and add a session to your order. Already registered? Simply login using the credentials created at purchase to access your booking and add other paid events to your badge.
Instructor
Nicole Rosaly
AST trainer
Nicole Rosaly is an SCA Authorized Specialty Trainer (AST), coffee educator, and consultant with over 15 years of experience in the specialty coffee industry. She serves as Lead Coffee Trainer and Corporate Manager at Not Your Average Joe and is the founder of Barista Summit, a coffee education and consulting platform. Nicole is known for designing inclusive, hands-on training environments, supporting baristas of all abilities and learning styles. She has taught bilingual (English-Spanish) workshops across the U.S. and Puerto Rico, with a strong focus on calibration, milk technique, latte art, and skill confidence. Her work centers on accessibility, mentorship, and empowering individuals to grow beyond expectations.
From Supply and Demand to Numbers, Networks, and Narratives: Confronting the Commodification of Specialty Coffee Producers
Lecture Description
In this lecture, Professor Peter Roberts from Emory University shares insights from his recent book, called "From Supply and Demand to Numbers, Networks, and Narratives: Confronting the Commodification of Specialty Coffee Producers." This book poses an important question for coffee professionals: As expanding specialty markets call for higher-quality coffees produced and transacted in certain ways, why is there not a widespread expectation that the producers who grow these differentiated coffees should receive prices that are commensurate with the economic value they create? Relying on more than a decade of observation and industry engagement, Roberts does not accept that problematic pricing is the direct result of ongoing problems with global supply and demand. The real problems are that the people who grow differentiated coffees do not have access to relevant price information and that they have outdated market connections. These numbers and networks problems are exacerbated by a more fundamental problem. Conversations about the value of green specialty coffees remain rooted in an outdated pricing narrative. After presenting these core arguments, this lecture outlines mosaic of promising market interventions that address the numbers and networks problems before explaining why an outdated pricing narrative is so hard to change.
Date: Sunday, April 12, 2026
Time: 10:00 am - 10:45 am
Location: Room 24C
Category: Sustainability
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Peter W. Roberts
Professor, Emory University
Peter Roberts has a PhD in Organizational Analysis from the University of Alberta (Canada) and has held academic positions at the Australian Graduate School of Management (Australia), Carnegie Mellon University (USA), Colombia University (USA), and Emory University (USA). For more than a decade, he has been the Academic Director of Specialty Coffee Programs at Emory University.
Peters’ 10+ years of work in and around the specialty coffee industry includes an annual pricing report (The Specialty Coffee Transaction Guide) that has been downloaded more than 10,000 times. His coffee work attracts the attention of industry media outlets. For instance, a recently published World Development article (Is the rising tide of specialty coffee lifting all boats?) was specifically covered by Daily Coffee News. This work also attracts considerable social media attention. Here, the Instagram page for the Specialty Coffee Transaction Guide has more than 5,200 followers.
Finally, Peter teaches an elective class in the business school at Emory University (called The Past, Present and Future of Specialty Coffee: An Integration of Historical, Market and Cultural Perspectives) that attracts more than 150 students per year.
Influence of a virtual reality cafe context on specialty coffee consumers’ willingness to pay and purchase preference
Lecture Description
This talk explores how a virtual reality (VR) café environment influences specialty coffee consumers’ willingness to pay (WTP), liking and purchase preferences. Coffee is rarely experienced in isolation; the ambience, service style, and surrounding cues all shape how people perceive coffee quality and value. Using immersive VR technology, our research simulated a café context to understand how environmental context can change the choices specialty coffee consumers make in comparison with a neutral environment, even when the coffee itself remains the same. This study further assessed how liking and purchase preferences are affected by environmental context. This research provides insight into how much context truly matters, whether environments influence perceived coffee value and WTP, and how VR can serve as a powerful, cost-effective tool for testing café concepts or product launches before investing in physical spaces.
Date: Sunday, April 12, 2026
Time: 10:00 am - 10:45 am
Location: Room 25AB
Category: Science
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Aishwarya Badiger
Postdoctoral Researcher, The Ohio State University
Dr. Aishwarya Badiger is a Postdoctoral Researcher at The Ohio State University and co-founder of Coffea & Company. Her interdisciplinary expertise spans consumer behavior, flavor chemistry, and specialty coffee. She has experience across academic research, the coffee startup space, and green coffee sourcing, where she applies sensory skills to understand consumer behavior around coffee products, sustainability initiatives, and roasters’ perspectives on green coffee value. Her current research examines how context and engagement level with coffee and other products influence decision making. She enjoys sharing her passion by introducing her community to new specialty coffees and advancing industry-science collaboration.
5 Essentials A Growing Coffee Roaster Needs
Lecture Description
Do you feel like you and your team are frantically filling orders at the last minute? Do you wonder whether or not you are making a profit? Do you feel like your coffee releases are rushed and your buyers never really understand what you are offering or why?
To answer these questions effectively, you need to examine the inner workings of your business to ensure you have the necessary structure to maintain the health of both your business and your people.
In this presentation, we'll cover the five essentials every growing coffee roaster needs, including product pricing structure, building and using a pricing calculator, creating and using a coffee release process, green coffee management and tools, financial structure and dry product management.
Date: Sunday, April 12, 2026
Time: 10:00 am - 10:45 am
Location: Room 25C
Category:
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Luke Waite
Consultant, Pomelo Coffee Consulting
Luke is the founder of Pomelo Coffee Consulting and the creator of the Core 7, a framework built to help specialty coffee roasters build efficient, profitable, and sustainable businesses. He helps owners of specialty coffee roasters from startup to multi-million dollar operations build stronger teams, smarter systems, and more profitable businesses. His background spans leadership roles at Metric Coffee, Passion House, Pickwick, and more, giving him a holistic, ground-level understanding of how roasteries actually work. He also hosts Good Folks, Doing Good Work, a podcast for specialty coffee professionals who believe business can be a force for good.
Exploring Cultural Dynamics in Global Coffee Consumption
Lecture Description
In coffee, we talk endlessly about quality, process, and origin. But whose definitions are we using - and what do they leave out?
This lecture reframes coffee through culture, exploring how people around the world - from Ethiopia to India, Indonesia to the Arabian Gulf - have brewed meaning into their cups for centuries. These practices reveal that coffee has always been more than a drink - it’s a reflection of identity, ritual, and belonging.
Author and food anthropologist Lani Kingston, Director of Education & Conference for Coffee Fest and teacher of The Anthropology of Coffee at Portland State University, guides attendees through a journey that blends anthropology, history, and industry insight. Her bestselling books, including Spill the Beans: Global Coffee Culture and Designing Coffee, have been translated into over 17 languages and continue to shape how coffee professionals understand culture and consumption.
Attendees will leave this session with:
– A deeper understanding of how global coffee cultures influence flavor, ritual, and perception of “quality”
– Practical ideas for incorporating cultural awareness into storytelling, menu design, and customer experience
– A renewed sense of connection to the people and histories behind the cup
Ultimately, this talk calls for a more culturally literate coffee industry - one that values origin not only as a source of beans, but as a source of ideas, flavor, and identity.
Date: Sunday, April 12, 2026
Time: 10:00 am - 10:45 am
Location: Room 26AB
Category:
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Lani Kingston
Director of Education, Coffee Fest
Lani Kingston is a Portland-based author and consultant specializing in brand development, systems building, and professional education. As the Director of Education for Coffee Fest and Editor of its upcoming publication, The Drip, she spearheads professional programming and industry discourse across the United States.
Lani also serves as an adjunct professor of Coffee Anthropology at Portland State University and is the author of definitive coffee books translated into over 20 languages, including How to Make Coffee and Spill the Beans: Global Coffee Culture. Her consulting portfolio spans international contracts across the food, agriculture, chocolate, coffee, and tea sectors.
Precision Brewing: Advanced Flavor Profiling in Automated Espresso Systems
Lecture Description
Automation has revolutionized consistency in coffee preparation, but achieving specialty-level flavor in automated systems requires a deeper understanding of extraction science. This session builds on last year’s discussion by exploring advanced variables that influence taste in modern espresso machines—grind particle distribution, water chemistry, pressure and flow profiling, and sensor-driven adjustments. We’ll examine how these factors interact in automated environments and how operators can leverage data to fine-tune recipes for optimal flavor. Attendees will gain practical insights into bridging the gap between artisanal expectations and high-volume efficiency, ensuring that automation doesn’t compromise quality but elevates it.
Date: Sunday, April 12, 2026
Time: 10:00 am - 10:45 am
Location: Room 23BC
Category: Science
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Gage Johnston
Marketing Manager, Franke Coffee Systems - Dalla Corte
Gage Johnston is a marketing and operations leader in the specialty coffee industry, focused on bridging global innovation with real‑world operator needs. With experience spanning product marketing, roasting, sourcing, cafe management, consulting, and industry insights, he brings a cross‑functional perspective on technology, consumer expectations, and the future of coffee service. Passionate about connecting people and ideas, Gage champions community‑driven growth and helps brands translate their value to customers in meaningful, memorable ways.
Origin with Purpose: Redefining Guatemalan Coffees Country Brand
Lecture Description
This presentation, “Building the Human Story of Guatemalan Coffees,” introduces a transformative approach to national coffee branding by leveraging the rich narrative and heritage of Guatemalan Coffees. It addresses the opportunity behind a strong, yet under-recognized, coffee brand, revealing how the power of human stories can elevate a nation’s coffee identity on the global stage.
The story centers on the human element—how coffee growers, diverse landscapes, and Guatemala´s vibrant culture come together to produce world-class coffees that connects emotionally with consumers worldwide.
Through a clear positioning framework, the presentation defines the brand’s target audience as global coffee drinkers seeking authenticity, connections and positive impact. It showcases Guatemala’s leadership in quality, innovation, community, and sustainability, emphasizing artisanal traditions, pioneering methods, and deep commitment to the coffee growing families and their communities.
The case study demonstrates measurable growth in brand awareness, engagement and international recognition, mainly driven by strategic storytelling and multi-channel communication.
By weaving together research insights, stakeholder perspectives, and actionable branding strategies, this presentation delivers a compelling blueprint for how Guatemalan Coffees—and the country itself— can transform and reposition a country’s image on the world stage. Supported by engaging videos and social media examples, it also shows how the Guatemalan Coffee brand identity was brought to life at the WOC San Diego booth, so that attendees would have a more likely experience of the case study. Inspirational and practical, this presentation offers valuable lessons for industry leaders, marketers, and coffee professionals, making it an ideal addition to the SCAs’ Education Program.
Date: Sunday, April 12, 2026
Time: 10:30 am - 11:45 am
Location: Room 24AB
Category: Business
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Andrea Vergara
Marketing Manager, Guatemalan National Coffee Association (Anacafé)
Holds a Master's degree in international marketing and a Bachelor´s degree in Business Administration. Has more than twelve years of professional experience in marketing, with a strong focus on the food and beverage sector. Currently serves as Marketing Marketing at the Guatemalan National Coffee Association (Anacafé), leading strategic initiatives that strengthen the global positioning and value proposition of the Guatemalan Coffees country brand in international markets.
Mike Dabadie
CEO, Heart and Mind Strategies
Mike Dabadie is the CEO of Heart and Mind Strategies, an insights, strategy, and activation consultancy. He has worked with SCA on strategic planning, consumer insights, and was the global campaign manager for the merger of SCAA and SCAE. Mike provided the strategy for the new brand positioning and new brand design for Anacafé and Guatemalan Coffee.
From Fire to Future: How Electric Roasting Is Reshaping the Coffee Industry
Lecture Description
Over the past century, coffee roasting technology has transformed dramatically, moving from manually controlled, fire-powered machines to automated systems built around data, precision, and repeatability. Today, the specialty coffee industry is entering a new phase of that evolution: the transition from gas-fired roasting to fully electric roasting systems. This shift is driven not only by sustainability goals, but also by advances in roast profiling, consistency, workspace design, and regulatory pressures affecting roasteries around the world.
This lecture explores the historical evolution of roasting technology, the forces driving current changes, and what roasters of all sizes can expect in the next decade. Attendees will gain a practical, non-commercial understanding of electric roasting: how it works, where it excels, what limitations exist, and how it compares to traditional gas roasting in workflow, cup quality, maintenance, safety, and environmental impact.
This session uses practical examples and clear technical insights to help coffee professionals understand the future of roasting technology and how to adapt their businesses accordingly.
Date: Sunday, April 12, 2026
Time: 11:00 am - 11:45 am
Location: Room 25AB
Category: Sustainability
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Zoe Gigas
Head Roaster, Bellwether Coffee
Zoe Gigas is a roaster, a consultant, an educator, and a sustainability advocate — sometimes all in the same conversation. Based in Berkeley, California, she serves as the Head Roaster at Bellwether Coffee, where she works with customers of their fully electric, ventless roaster to bridge the gap between technology and craft. With over ten years across roasting, green buying, quality assurance, and production, she has made it her mission to stay visible in an industry where roasters often work in the background. For Zoe, the work is always evolving — and that's exactly how she likes it.
AI, Digital Tools, & Global Calibration in QC
Lecture Description
This lecture explores how Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transforming quality control workflows - making processes faster, more reliable, and easier to manage. We'll dive into how AI supports QC teams in tackling everyday challenges, where its current limits lie, and why professionals in the field can view AI not as a threat, but as a powerful partner rather than a replacement.
Date: Sunday, April 12, 2026
Time: 11:00 am - 11:45 am
Location: Room 25C
Category: Science
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Franciska Apró
Quality Business Process Owner, Sucafina
Franciska Apró is a coffee professional with over 15 years of industry expertise, primarily in quality control. A certified Q Grader and WCC sensory judge for Brewers Cup and Barista competitions, she brings strong sensory and technical insight to her work. At Sucafina NV in Belgium, she manages the quality department and leads global Quality Control initiatives as the group’s Quality Business Process Owner. Her role includes process mapping, process harmonization, identifying best practices, and advising on global quality projects. Passionate about quality, she champions systems and tools that enhance consistency and efficiency across the value chain.
Susan Wilcox
Quality Manager North America & Q Arabica Grader, Sucafina
Susan Wilcox is a Quality Control Manager, licensed Q Grader, and spot sales trader at Sucafina North America, where she leads coffee quality evaluation, sample analysis, and QC lab operations. Her work focuses on bridging sensory evaluation with data analytics to improve decision‑making, consistency, and transparency across the coffee supply chain. Susan develops standardized QC workflows, reporting frameworks, and operational tools that translate cupping data into actionable insights for traders, producers, and clients. Passionate about innovation in specialty coffee, she regularly collaborates across quality, sourcing, and trading teams, and is an active contributor to industry education and knowledge‑sharing initiatives.
Aplicaciones de la Agricultura Regenerativa en la Caficultura Moderna
Lecture Description
La agricultura regenerativa se presenta hoy como una alternativa sólida para enfrentar los desafíos de la caficultura moderna, como la degradación del suelo, la variabilidad climática, la disminución de la productividad y la presión sobre los ecosistemas.
En esta conferencia exploraremos prácticas que ayudan a construir plantaciones más sanas, productivas y sostenibles, reduciendo costos, mejorando la calidad del grano y fortaleciendo la capacidad de los productores para enfrentar el cambio climático. También presentaré las principales aplicaciones regenerativas adaptadas al cultivo de café y cómo integrarlas en fincas de distintos contextos y tamaños, con énfasis en mejorar la salud del suelo, incrementar la cobertura vegetal y promover la biodiversidad para lograr sistemas más productivos y resilientes.
Date: Sunday, April 12, 2026
Time: 11:00 am - 11:45 am
Location: Room 26AB
Category: Sustainability
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Oscar Zacarias de Pedro
CEO, AGROSANA
El Ing. Oscar Zacarías es CEO y fundador de la empresa consultora AGROSANA, especializada en el fortalecimiento y desarrollo sostenible de la cadena de valor del café en Latinoamérica. Cuenta con más de 25 años de experiencia asesorando a organizaciones y empresas privadas dedicadas a la producción, procesamiento y comercialización de café. A lo largo de su trayectoria profesional ha acompañado a casi un centenar de empresas del sector cafetalero, brindando asistencia técnica y estratégica para mejorar la competitividad, sostenibilidad y resiliencia de los sistemas productivos. Su experiencia se enfoca en el diseño e implementación de estrategias de adaptación al cambio climático, el incremento de la productividad y la mejora de la calidad del café. Asimismo, ha promovido activamente la transición hacia modelos de agricultura orgánica y regenerativa, apoyando a productores y organizaciones en la implementación de buenas prácticas agrícolas sostenibles. También posee amplia experiencia en la gestión e implementación de certificaciones sostenibles y de comercio justo, trabajando con organizaciones cafetaleras en diversos países productores de Latinoamérica, particularmente en Centroamérica y México. A través de AGROSANA, el Ing. Zacarías continúa contribuyendo al fortalecimiento del sector cafetalero mediante asesoría técnica especializada, desarrollo de capacidades y acompañamiento estratégico a organizaciones y empresas comprometidas con una caficultura sostenible.
Relax with Decaf: Decaffeinated Coffee Lowered the Stress Marker Cortisol in a Pilot Clinical Trial
Lecture Description
Stress is a part of our everyday lives. Coffee contains bioactive components that may affect stress responses, including caffeine, chlorogenic acids, trigonelline, and other phenolic compounds. In this pilot clinical trial, we examined the effects of coffee on three stress measures (self-reported, interleukin-6, and cortisol) using a placebo-controlled randomized crossover design. Subjects consumed one of three beverages (caffeinated or decaffeinated coffee, or a placebo). Beverages were consumed thirty minutes before a Trier Social Stress Test (TSST), which presents verbal and mathematical challenges to produce a short-term mental stress. Self-reported stress was assessed using a standardized questionnaire. Interleukin-6 and cortisol stress markers were measured by sampling saliva throughout the study. Caffeinated and decaffeinated coffees were chemically similar in terms of 3-chlorogenic acid, trigonelline, and total phenolics, only differing in caffeine content (40 versus 6 mg caffeine/100 mL). No differences in self-reported stress or interleukin-6 were observed across treatments. In contrast, subjects consuming decaffeinated coffee maintained significantly lower cortisol levels compared to both caffeinated coffee and to the placebo. This study provides preliminary evidence that decaffeinated coffee lowered cortisol, a key stress marker, relative to caffeinated coffee or a placebo. Future studies will examine the effects of coffee chemistry on stress responses.
Date: Sunday, April 12, 2026
Time: 11:00 am - 11:45 am
Location: Room 23BC
Category: Science
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Yukun Niu
Research Technician, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Yukun Niu is a research technician at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She obtained her Master's degree from the Department of Food, Bioprocessing and Nutrition Sciences at the North Carolina State University (2024) under the guidance of Dr. Gabriel Keith Harris. Her research is focused on understanding how food processing affects the health properties, especially coffee roasting and extracting, using a combination of analytical techniques, such as HPLC, and physicochemical analysis assays.
Mental Health Support as the Foundation for Gender Equity at the Farm Level
Lecture Description
Sustainability and gender equity in coffee begins with the wellbeing of the people who cultivate it. Yet, while the industry invests heavily in productivity, climate resilience, and certification systems, the mental health of women coffee farmers—who make up a significant portion of the global workforce—remains largely invisible.
This session, inspired by SANA, an integrative mental health care and wellness program who has more than a 100 women coffee farmers in Colombia we have completed, demonstrates how investing in mental wellbeing is a sustainability strategy. Through data, stories, and measurable outcomes, we will explore how women’s emotional health impacts decision-making, community leadership, farm management, and long-term wellbeing.
Attendees will learn why mental health should be integrated into gender equity and sustainability frameworks, what scalable models exist, and how brands, roasters, and organizations can co-invest in wellbeing initiatives that create healthier, more equitable, and sustainable coffee systems.
Date: Sunday, April 12, 2026
Time: 11:00 am - 11:45 am
Location: Room 24C
Category: Sustainability
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Lucia Bawot
Founder & CEO, SANA
Lucia Bawot is passionate about transforming ideas into tangible projects. With more than a decade of experience working with leading companies in the coffee industry, she has built narratives and communicated the impact of their sustainability projects. In 2023, she published the her awarded first book, We Belong: An Anthology of Colombian Women Coffee Farmers. Currently, Lucia leads SANA, an initiative that provides a mental health and wellness support to Colombian women coffee farmers through a five-month integrative program that combines tele-counseling, virtual education, and community support, creating spaces to break silence, strengthen personal agency, and improve their well-being to live healthier and more fulfilling lives.
Auctions as Catalysts: Reimagining Value Discovery in Coffee
Lecture Description
Coffee auctions can feel intimidating and opaque to many buyers—but they're increasingly important tools for price discovery, quality incentives, and direct market access, particularly in regions where consistent pricing mechanisms have been lacking. This panel demystifies how auction systems work in specialty coffee and explores their evolving role in empowering producers and connecting buyers. From Cup of Excellence and AFCA's Taste of Harvest to newer origin-based platforms with Mountain Harvest, panelists will discuss how these systems drive quality, transparency, and collaboration—and walk buyers through the practical steps of participating with confidence.
Date: Sunday, April 12, 2026
Time: 12:00 pm - 1:15 pm
Location: Room 24AB
Category: Business
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Cultivating A Strong Team and an Engaging Coffee Environment
Workshop Description: In this workshop, participants will learn how to create a thriving coffee shop environment by mastering the full barista experience—from hiring to daily engagement. We begin with strategies for attracting and selecting the right candidates, focusing on identifying the qualities that make exceptional baristas and hospitality professionals. Next, we explore effective onboarding practices that set new team members up for success, ensuring they feel confident, welcomed, and aligned with your shop’s values from day one. This workshop emphasizes the importance of cultivating a warm, motivated, and team-oriented culture. Attendees will learn how to create a supportive environment that fosters communication, accountability, and genuine connection—both between staff and with guests.
By the end of the session, managers and owners will walk away with actionable systems and tools to strengthen their team, elevate service quality, and enhance the overall guest experience. Whether you're launching a new cafe or improving an existing operation, this workshop provides the foundation for building a consistent, engaging, and memorable coffee shop culture.
Learning Objectives:
1. Develop an Effective Onboarding Plan:
Attendees will outline a step-by-step onboarding process that helps new hires feel welcomed, informed, and prepared to contribute within their first week. They will learn to define the skills, traits, and values that make an ideal coffee shop team member, and apply structured interview techniques to select strong candidates.
2. Create a Structured Training Framework:
Participants will understand the design of a practical training roadmap—including barista skills, feedback standards, and barflow expectations—that supports consistent performance across all shifts. Managers will learn simple methods for providing constructive feedback, monitoring progress, and supporting ongoing skill development.
3. Cultivate an Engaging Team Culture:
Attendees will discover strategies to foster teamwork, ownership, and communication to improve morale and reduce turnover. They will connect employee engagement practices with customer-facing behaviors to create a warm, memorable cafe.
Date: Sunday, April 12, 2026
Time: 12:30 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Room Number: 30 B
Category: Business
REGISTRATION FEES:
EARLY BIRD Regular* - $250
EARLY BIRD Paid Member* - $210
Regular - $275
Paid Member - $230
*Early Bird pricing ends March 1, 2026
Booking: To book your place in this Workshop, head to the World of Coffee San Diego Registration & Booking Portal and add a session to your order. Already registered? Simply login using the credentials created at purchase to access your booking and add other paid events to your badge.
Instructor
Selina Viguera
Cafe Leader
Selina Viguera is a Café Leader for Blue Bottle Coffee in Venice, bringing 25 years of experience in coffee, including 17 years in specialty coffee and 15 years with Blue Bottle. Her expertise spans café leadership, clear and effective communication, barista coaching and training, and cultivating hospitality-driven culture. An SCA volunteer since 2011, Selina has worked at and managed bars for the Barista Guild, TED, and TEDxMed coffee services. She has supported dozens of cafés across a wide range of workflow configurations, pairing operational excellence with a people-first approach to create memorable guest experiences.
Emma Isabel
Learning & Development
Emma Isabel is the Regional Trainer for Southern California and Las Vegas at Blue Bottle Coffee, supporting barista and leadership development through intentional training, facilitation, and mentorship. Her work spans multiple markets and new cafe openings, helping teams build strong foundations and sustainable practices. She began her career in 2010 at Tierra Mia Coffee, gaining early experience with a rapidly expanding independent Latino brand. Since then, she has been passionate about engaging baristas at every stage of their careers and bridging the gap between making coffee and becoming a true coffee professional in ways that feel fun, authentic, and empowering.
Beyond the Resume: Interviewing for Values in Specialty Coffee
Workshop Description: In today’s coffee industry, hiring for a cafe or roastery goes far beyond determining whether a candidate can execute the technical requirements of the job. Across the specialty coffee industry, leaders are recognizing that the skills that matter most: hospitality, problem-solving, curiosity, teamwork, and alignment with company values, are rarely revealed by traditional interviews. This session will explore a structured approach to interviewing that helps employers identify not just who can do the job, but who will elevate the team, represent the brand, and grow with the company.
We will discuss how to translate company values into interview questions, how to assess behavioral responses to real-life scenarios, and how to build a consistent, equitable interview structure that reduces bias and leads to stronger hires. By shifting interview focus from task capability to values alignment, you can improve retention, engagement, and strengthen workplace culture.
Learning Objectives:
1. Distinguishing the difference between hiring for technical skills and hiring for values, and understanding the role each plays in long-term retention and team stability.
2. How to design and apply values-based interview questions that reveal motivation, interpersonal abilities, and alignment with company culture.
3. Understanding how structured interviewing and consistent evaluation practices can reduce bias and improve hiring effectiveness across all teams in your business.
Date: Sunday, April 12, 2026
Time: 12:30 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Room Number: 30 C
Category: Business
REGISTRATION FEES:
Regular - $275
Paid Member - $230
Booking: To book your place in this Workshop, head to the World of Coffee San Diego Registration & Booking Portal and add a session to your order. Already registered? Simply login using the credentials created at purchase to access your booking and add other paid events to your badge.
Instructor
Richelle Taylor
Richelle Taylor is the Director of Operations at Olympia Coffee, bringing over a decade of experience across both front and back of house in the coffee industry. A systems thinker and passionate team builder, she has worked with countless teams to strengthen operations, improve collaboration, and drive meaningful change. Her work has supported impactful initiatives, including B Corp certification, Living Wage practices, and Fair for All programs. Known for her thoughtful leadership and people-first approach, Richelle is dedicated to building resilient teams and sustainable systems that elevate both the employee and guest experience.
Making Sense of Coffee’s Value: Sector Perspectives on How Coffee’s Value is Created and Distributed
Lecture Description
What does the coffee sector think about how value is created and shared? How do different actors feel about this? Are we making progress towards equity? And what are the sector's visions for the future? In 2023 and again in 2025, the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA) conducted a global survey to explore these questions.
In this lecture, the SCA takes the role of narrator—making sense of the findings from the 2025 Equitable Value Distribution survey. Rather than offering a single view, we share the range of experiences and perceptions gathered from respondents across the value chain, including where there is diversity and tension, and where there is consensus.
Date: Sunday, April 12, 2026
Time: 1:00 pm - 1:45 pm
Location: Room 24C
Category: Sustainability
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Laurel Carmichael
Editor and Writer, Specialty Coffee Association
Laurel Carmichael is the Content Development Manager and Editor of 25 at the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA). At the SCA, their work involves writing, editing, and helping shape publications, including the Equitable Value Distribution Report that is the foundation of this lecture. Prior to joining the SCA in 2024, Laurel spent over 10 years as a barista, roaster, and green coffee buyer in their home country of New Zealand, and in Berlin, Germany. Laurel's work is motivated by a desire for collective learning and greater equity in the coffee sector.
Andrés Montenegro
Sustainability Manager, Specialty Coffee Association
Andrés Montenegro is a leading figure in sustainability leadership within the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA), where he drives the sector's strategic evolution toward business models that are more equitable, resilient, and oriented toward shared value. With an international background in agri-food systems and sustainable development, he has spearheaded initiatives that integrate social impact, new value economies, and processes of deep organizational transformation. His work sits at the intersection of sustainability, strategy, and systemic leadership, guiding coffee organizations and communities in their transition toward models that are more conscious, adaptive, and capable of co-creating the future of the sector.
Sustainable coffee culture : How to eliminate 200,000 Single use Cups at Nomad Coffee
Lecture Description
Nomad Coffee is a community-focused café leading a meaningful shift toward sustainable coffee culture. Through our reusable-cup program, we eliminated single-use cups from daily operations and successfully saved over 200,000 disposable cups to date. This presentation will share the story behind this transition—why we made the change, the challenges we faced, how we built customer engagement, and the practical systems we created to make sustainability achievable in a busy café environment. Attendees will learn actionable strategies for reducing waste, designing an effective cup-return model, encouraging customer participation, and integrating sustainability into day-to-day operations without compromising service quality.
Date: Sunday, April 12, 2026
Time: 1:00 pm - 1:45 pm
Location: Room 25AB
Category: Sustainability
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Annette Kim
CEO, Nomad Coffee
Nomad Coffee, based in Vancouver, is a specialty café committed to sustainability, community, and exceptional coffee experiences. Known for its innovative approach to reducing environmental impact, Nomad has successfully eliminated over 200,000 single-use cups through a robust reusable-cup program, demonstrating that sustainable practices can thrive in a busy café environment. Beyond crafting high-quality coffee, the company focuses on building customer engagement, staff training, and practical systems that make sustainability accessible and achievable. Through its cafés and initiatives, Nomad continues to lead a meaningful shift in coffee culture, inspiring both professionals and communities to embrace environmentally responsible practices without compromising quality or service.
Headhunting the Beans: Using Talent Acquisition Strategies to Assess Coffee Quality
Lecture Description
What if you could apply the same principles used to recruit top talent to selecting the best coffee beans? This presentation challenges traditional cupping methods and introduces a novel approach inspired by modern HR practices.
We'll explore the newly introduced Coffee Value Assessment (CVA) system through the lens of a headhunter, uncovering surprising similarities between evaluating job candidates and assessing coffee quality. Discover how contemporary HR knowledge used in specialized recruitment can revolutionize your cupping process and enhance your understanding of the SCA's new system.
Date: Sunday, April 12, 2026
Time: 1:00 pm - 1:45 pm
Location: Room 25C
Category: Science
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Filip Bartelak
Consultant Instructor, Consonni
Filip Bartelak brings a unique perspective to coffee evaluation, blending his expertise as a Q Instructor and coffee professional with his background in Industrial/Organizational Psychology. He holds a Master's degree in this field and was a PhD candidate at Jagiellonian University, giving him a deep understanding of assessment methodologies. Filip has held leadership roles in the Coffee Roasters Guild and served as a consultant for the International Trade Center at the United Nations, demonstrating his commitment to coffee quality and sustainability. As a certified Q Instructor, he not only possesses coffee evaluation skills but also trains and certifies other Q Graders, solidifying his position as a leading expert in the field. He leverages his diverse experience to introduce innovative approaches to coffee assessment, bridging the gap between human resources and sensory analysis.
A Systemic Perspective: Building Psychological Safety in Specialty Coffee
Lecture Description
Psychological safety—the shared belief that it’s safe to speak up, make mistakes, and offer ideas—is foundational for learning, innovation, and retention. Yet in coffee workplaces, where pressure and hierarchy often shape communication, it can be difficult to practice in real terms.
This session explores how psychological safety shows up (or breaks down) in the daily realities of cafés, training programs, importing teams, and roasting companies. Drawing from systems thinking and relational leadership, we’ll look at how leaders—whether owners, managers, trainers, or buyers—shape workplace dynamics through small, everyday actions.
Participants will leave with practical tools for recognizing how power and communication interact in their own contexts and how to respond in ways that build trust, accountability, and collective resilience. This lecture invites reflection, not perfection—helping attendees turn awareness into actionable, sustainable practices that strengthen both people and performance.
Date: Sunday, April 12, 2026
Time: 1:00 pm - 1:45 pm
Location: Room 26AB
Category: Business
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Daphne Allison
Associate Marriage and Family Therapist
Daphne Allison is an Associate Marriage and Family Therapist (AMFT) and former coffee professional with over a decade of experience in the specialty coffee industry. Before transitioning into mental health, they worked primarily in specialty coffee retail while gaining perspective on the wider supply chain, developing a deep appreciation for the global coffee community. Though clinical work is now their focus, Daphne draws on both professional paths to bring a unique perspective to conversations about mental health, workplace culture, and care within specialty coffee spaces—highlighting how supportive environments can ignite potential and fuel our innate capacity to grow, learn, and heal.
Filter Builders: An Ion Exchange Lego Lab
Workshop Description: Snap into water chemistry with this hands-on workshop where we explore the compounds and ions commonly found in water—like calcium, magnesium, and sodium. Piece-by-piece, learners will see how minerals move through filters like ion exchange cartridges. We will also talk about why the coffee industry wants to manage minerals in water that is already safe to drink. Whether you are a technician, barista, or just curious about what’s happening inside your water filter, this session helps build clarity—literally. Come ready to stack knowledge and connect the dots on how filters manage minerals.
Following this workshop, attendees should be able to:
1. Identify compounds typically found in tap water
2. Define and list components that contribute to the total hardness of a water
3. Define and list components that contribute to the temporary hardness of water
4. Define and list components that contribute to alkalinity
5. Describe what happens inside of an ion exchange water filter cartridge
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 1:30 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Room Number: 30 C
Category: Science
REGISTRATION FEES:
Regular - $275
Paid Member - $230
*Early Bird pricing ends March 1, 2026
Booking: To book your place in this Workshop, head to the World of Coffee San Diego Registration & Booking Portal and add a session to your order. Already registered? Simply login using the credentials created at purchase to access your booking and add other paid events to your badge.
Instructor
Ben Helt
Technical Training Director
Ben Helt has worked in specialty coffee for more than 20 years, with experience spanning roasting, café ownership, and global coffee education. He’s known for making technical and sensory concepts approachable. Ben had a front-row seat to the development of the SCA Coffee Value Assessment (CVA) and has delivered CVA courses to international audiences, helping cuppers and educators engage the system with confidence and clarity. He previously led the Authorized SCA Trainer Program, supporting a worldwide network of educators. Today, Ben brings his expertise to water quality as the Technical Training Director for BWT Water & More US, helping coffee professionals optimize one of coffee?s most essential ingredients.
The Future of Coffea: Exploring Species Diversity and Adaptation
Workshop Description: Deep dive into this immersive workshop examining the history and future of the Coffea species. Focusing on the diversity of flavor and the lack of genetic diversity endangering the species, the workshop walks participants through key factors that make Coffea, particularly Arabica, vulnerable to extinction.
Part presentation, part tasting, this workshop is open to and has been fruitful for people with varied levels of experience, from those new to cupping all the way to seasoned coffee traders. Discover what is at stake as we face environmental and genetic challenges, and gain first-hand insights through compelling case studies from producers of the world’s rarest species and innovative farming initiatives. Some of these producers will join as guest speakers, offering their perspectives and sharing their experiences directly with participants.
Tasting exercises will include multiple Coffea species such as Stenophylla, Eugenioides, Liberica, Excelsa, Racemosa, Wightiana, experimentally processed Canephora, and a selection of several innovative and rare Arabica varieties and processings.
This session will deepen your understanding of the urgent need to preserve coffee biodiversity, highlight the threats and the remarkable potential within this genus, and introduce initiatives underway to navigate the current climate.
Learning Objectives:
1. Understand the importance of genetic diversity in coffee and why many Coffea species, especially Arabica, are endangered, and describe the environmental, genetic, and economic factors involved.
2. Taste and identify a range of Coffea species and Arabicas, while discussing their unique genetic and sensory characteristics.
3. Analyze real-world case studies of innovative farming and conservation practices aimed at preserving rare coffee species and adapting to climate change.
4. Foster professional and community connections through collaborative learning and shared sensory experiences.
5. Enjoy an engaging, memorable coffee experience that sparks curiosity and inspires reflection on coffee’s future.
*A Spanish speaking Instructor will be available for this workshop.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 1:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Room Number: 31 C
Category: Cupping
REGISTRATION FEES:
EARLY BIRD Regular* - $250
EARLY BIRD Paid Member* - $210
Regular - $275
Paid Member - $230
*Early Bird pricing ends March 1, 2026
Booking: To book your place in this Workshop, head to the World of Coffee San Diego Registration & Booking Portal and add a session to your order. Already registered? Simply login using the credentials created at purchase to access your booking and add other paid events to your badge.
Instructor
Leon Grodski Barrera
Co-Owner Little Waves Coffee Roasters
Leon Grodski Barrera approaches coffee through curiosity and wonder. Co-Founder of Little Waves Coffee Roasters, and 21 years in the industry, Leon is interested in the history of coffee, past and present, dimensionally beyond algorithm, third place, and third wave. ZHAW Coffee Excellence Center Advanced Studies grad, this session came out of his awe for flavor, wonder at the defiance of a coffee seedling, diversity of the plant and a deep concern for the endangered state of Coffea. With his partner and wife, Areli, he is currently building out a new roasting and lab facility.
Adriana Uriostegui
Trainer
Adriana Uriostegui has worked in the specialty coffee industry for 13 years. Her career has led her to managing cafes, training, and becoming a wholesale representative. Training and education have always played a meaningful role throughout her journey and now she’s extending her experience through consulting for new and current cafe owners.
Roasting at Origin: The Next Frontier in Coffee Manufacturing
Lecture Description
For decades, roasting has been concentrated in consuming countries—far from the farms and communities that produce coffee. But advances in processing consistency, packaging technology, and origin-based expertise are unlocking a new frontier: roasting at origin as a viable, high-quality, and economically powerful alternative.
This panel brings together producers, roasters, engineers, and supply-chain innovators to examine how decentralized, origin-based roasting can reshape the global coffee landscape. We will explore the scientific, economic, and cultural implications of shifting manufacturing upstream, including improved roast precision through proximity to processing, reduced carbon footprint, lower logistics costs, and the potential for significant value retention within producing countries.
Panelists will share real case studies from coffee producing countries, explaining how origin roasting can impact cup quality, local economies, and business feasibility. We will also address challenges—including energy needs, equipment accessibility, training, financing, and global distribution—to create a realistic roadmap for implementation.
This session aims to move the industry from theory to practice, offering a framework for how roasters, importers, retailers, and producers can participate in a more equitable and scientifically robust future of coffee manufacturing.
Attendees will leave with an understanding of how origin roasting works, why it matters, and what steps they can take to integrate decentralized manufacturing into their businesses.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 1:30 pm - 2:45 pm
Location: Room 24AB
Category: Sustainability
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Shanita Nicholas
Founder, Quantum Seeds
Shanita Nicholas is the Director of Coffee Ecology at Quantum Seeds LLC, where she leads the development of decentralized origin-roasting networks that unite sensory science, sustainable manufacturing, and cultural storytelling. A chemical engineer by training, attorney by profession, and Q Grader by craft, she brings a rare combination of technical precision, legal strategy, and sensory expertise to the redesign of global coffee systems.
Before founding Quantum Seeds, Shanita co-founded Sip & Sonder, one of Los Angeles’ most influential specialty coffee brands and cultural hubs, where she built community-centered experiences rooted in Black creativity, entrepreneurship, and connection. Her work at Sip & Sonder established her as a leader capable of navigating the entire coffee value chain — from sourcing and roast profiling to retail operations, wholesale strategy, and hospitality design.
Health and Science Behind Filter Coffee Extraction Parameters
Lecture Description
What if brewing didn’t just change taste—but also health?
This talk explores how extraction parameters modulate coffee’s chemical profile, influencing both sensory quality and key bioactive compounds. From antioxidants to potentially harmful molecules, we will uncover how to design a better—and smarter—cup.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 1:30 pm - 2:45 pm
Location: Room 23BC
Category: Science
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Agnese Santanatoglia
Coffee Scientist, Simonelli Group S.p.A.
Agnese Santanatoglia is a food chemist and postdoctoral researcher at the Research and Innovation Coffee Hub (RICH), a collaboration between Simonelli Group S.p.A. and the University of Camerino. Her research explores how extraction conditions shape coffee quality through chemical and sensory mechanisms. She combines analytical techniques, such as GC-MS and HPLC, with sensory evaluation to translate coffee science into actionable insights for coffee professionals. She conducted part of her research at The Ohio State University, focusing on coffee acidity and flavoromics. Alongside her academic work, she is also involved in science-driven innovation projects and entrepreneurial initiatives aimed at transforming coffee research into real-world products and impact.
Sold Out - Strength vs. Extraction: Understanding What You’re Tasting
Workshop Description: Many coffee drinkers use the word strong to describe what they like in espresso, but strength is only one part of a much bigger story. In this interactive tasting workshop, we’ll explore the critical and often misunderstood difference between strength and extraction quality. Through guided tastings and intentionally varied espresso shots, participants will learn how brew ratios, grind size, and temperature influence both intensity and flavor clarity.
We’ll begin by clarifying what strength truly means in espresso: the concentration of dissolved coffee in the final shot. From there, we’ll dive into extraction, how much of the coffee’s soluble material is pulled during brewing, and how under-extracted, balanced, and over-extracted espresso presents itself on the palate. By tasting contrast shots that isolate these variables, participants will build a clearer sensory vocabulary to identify cleanliness, acidity, sweetness, body, and finish with greater confidence.
Whether you’re a barista looking to sharpen your dialing-in skills or a coffee enthusiast curious about why some shots taste vibrant and balanced while others feel harsh or hollow, this workshop will provide practical tools to diagnose espresso and make intentional, repeatable adjustments behind the bar. Come ready to taste, compare, and better understand what’s really happening in your cup.
Learning Objectives
1. Clarify Strength vs. Extraction in Espresso
Help participants understand the distinction between espresso strength (brew ratio and concentration) and extraction (how much flavor is dissolved), and how each variable impacts the final shot.
2. Develop Espresso-Specific Sensory Awareness
Strengthen participants’ ability to taste and identify sensory cues associated with under-extracted, balanced, and over-extracted espresso.
3. Translate Taste Into Actionable Adjustments
Equip attendees with practical tools to connect what they taste to specific, repeatable adjustments such as dose amount, grind size, and yield.
4. Foster Confidence, Curiosity, and Dialogue
Create an engaging, supportive environment where participants feel comfortable asking questions, comparing shots, and deepening their understanding of espresso through shared sensory experience.
Note: This workshop will use espresso as the brew method to explore these principles, but the content covered can be applied to all coffee brewing methods.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 1:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Room Number: 32 AB
Category: Brewing
REGISTRATION FEES:
EARLY BIRD Regular* - $250
EARLY BIRD Paid Member* - $210
Regular - $275
Paid Member - $230
*Early Bird pricing ends March 1, 2026
Booking: To book your place in this Workshop, head to the World of Coffee San Diego Registration & Booking Portal and add a session to your order. Already registered? Simply login using the credentials created at purchase to access your booking and add other paid events to your badge.
Instructor
Emma Isabel
Learning & Development
Emma Isabel is the Regional Trainer for Southern California and Las Vegas at Blue Bottle Coffee, supporting barista and leadership development through intentional training, facilitation, and mentorship. Her work spans multiple markets and new cafe openings, helping teams build strong foundations and sustainable practices. She began her career in 2010 at Tierra Mia Coffee, gaining early experience with a rapidly expanding independent Latino brand. Since then, she has been passionate about engaging baristas at every stage of their careers and bridging the gap between making coffee and becoming a true coffee professional in ways that feel fun, authentic, and empowering.
Sold Out - Sensory Toolkit 2.0 — Aroma, Texture & Narrative for Modern Coffee Training
Workshop Description: Sensory Toolkit 2.0 is a dynamic, hands-on workshop that expands traditional cupping and flavor-wheel training into a multisensory approach designed for modern baristas, trainers, and sensory professionals. Participants explore the intersection of aroma, texture, and narrative to build a more intuitive and inclusive sensory vocabulary. Through guided tasting, aroma jar identification, tactile mouthfeel stations, and narrative-based flavor mapping, attendees learn practical methods for breaking the “language trap” that limits sensory communication in cafés and training environments. This workshop equips participants with actionable tools to strengthen team calibration, improve guest communication, and enhance their own ability to perceive and describe coffee in a meaningful, memorable way.
By the end of the workshop, participants will be able to:
1. Identify and describe key aromas using a simplified, accessible scent library.
2. Use tactile cues to interpret and communicate mouthfeel and structure in brewed coffee.
3. Apply multisensory anchors (texture, color, temperature, emotion, memory) to develop more expressive and accurate tasting language.
4. Break common sensory “language traps” through narrative-based flavor communication.
5. Implement quick, low-cost sensory training exercises in their own cafés or training programs.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 1:30 p.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Room Number: 31 AB
Category: Brewing
REGISTRATION FEES:
EARLY BIRD Regular* - $250
EARLY BIRD Paid Member* - $210
Regular - $275
Paid Member - $230
*Early Bird pricing ends March 1, 2026
Booking: To book your place in this Workshop, head to the World of Coffee San Diego Registration & Booking Portal and add a session to your order. Already registered? Simply login using the credentials created at purchase to access your booking and add other paid events to your badge.
Instructor
Ashley Whelan
Director of Coffee
Ashley Whelan is a coffee educator and operator with experience developing training programs, multi-sensory teaching tools, and flavor communication frameworks for café teams, roasteries, and competition-level baristas. Ashley integrates operational knowledge, sensory science, and creative pedagogy to make coffee education accessible, memorable, and grounded in real café practice.
Using the Coffee Value Assessment - a Workshop for Experienced Cuppers
Workshop Description: The SCA Coffee Value Assessment (CVA) is a tool developed as a universal system of evaluating and documenting coffee quality, and is the most widely used quality evaluation system in the Specialty Coffee industry. The CVA is an evolution of previous cupping systems, like the 2004 SCA Cupping Protocol, but it integrates current sensory science, economics, evolved techniques, and current coffee market dynamics. This 3-hour course will orient experienced cuppers to the system, teach proper use of the CVA, and explore how the CVA can be adapted for use across a variety of business environments.
Learning objectives:
1. Understand the purpose and design of the Physical, Descriptive, Affective, and Extrinsic Assessments of the CVA.
2. Perform a coffee assessment using all four elements.
3. Understand how to use tools like aroma examples and triangulations to improve skills.
4. Learn how to adapt CVA to specific business environments such as the roasting company, the coffee trader, the coffee exporter, etc.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 1:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Room Number: 30 DE
Category: Cupping
REGISTRATION FEES:
Regular - $275
Paid Member - $230
*Early Bird pricing ends March 1, 2026
Booking: To book your place in this Workshop, head to the World of Coffee San Diego Registration & Booking Portal and add a session to your order. Already registered? Simply login using the credentials created at purchase to access your booking and add other paid events to your badge.
Instructor
Peter Giuliano
Senior Advisor of Science Communication and Engagement Strategy
Peter Giuliano is the Senior Advisor of Science Communication and Engagement Strategy for the SCA. With 35 years of experience in the coffee trade, he focuses on supporting, promoting, and communicating scientific and economic research that benefits the entire coffee industry.
Taste the Cold Brew Science: A Sensory Exploration of Recent Cold Brew Research
Workshop Description: Since cold brew coffee entered the industry's main stage a decade ago, many coffee professionals believe they've learned all there is to learn about the brewing method. This workshop is an interactive exploration that demonstrates some of what the latest coffee science has taught us about cold-water brewing and how to apply scientific and sensory skills to transform cold brew cups from mediocre to extraordinary.
Designed for coffee professionals across various segments, this workshop delivers a science-driven, practical experience with cold brew. You'll discover how cold-water brewing shapes flavor, learn strategies to optimize your cold brew offerings, and uncover actionable ways to apply the latest research in your role. Whether you're focused on quality, innovation, or storytelling, this session offers relevant insights for anyone interested in cold brew's potential.
Learning Objectives:
1. Understand how the cold water brewing method impacts flavors in the cup compared to hot brewed counterparts.
2. Learn how to use cold brew cupping to explore possibilities and make meaningful program decisions.
3. Explore how cold brew can showcase the unique characteristics and stories behind different coffees and origins.
4. Practice cold brew sensory analysis with CVA (serves as an easy-to-follow intro to CVA forms).
5. Participants will engage in approachable sensory comparisons designed for all experience levels.
6. Leave with practical, evidence-based takeaways—whether you want to understand cold brew's popularity or discover insights aimed at improving your offerings for cold brew consumers.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Room Number: 30 B
Category: Sensory
REGISTRATION FEES:
EARLY BIRD Regular* - $250
EARLY BIRD Paid Member* - $210
Regular - $275
Paid Member - $230
*Early Bird pricing ends March 1, 2026
Booking: To book your place in this Workshop, head to the World of Coffee San Diego Registration & Booking Portal and add a session to your order. Already registered? Simply login using the credentials created at purchase to access your booking and add other paid events to your badge.
Instructor
Julia Leach
President
Julia Leach leads Toddy, LLC, a company that has been at the forefront of cold brewing since 1964. Julia’s team works with cafes and roasters worldwide to help them develop cold brew programs that highlight the nuances of the brewing method and inspire their customers to fall in love with cold brew. She is passionate about the art and science of cold brewing and is active in developing quality cold brew education for the coffee industry. She has presented at SCA Re:co, SCA Expo, NCA Convention, and also frequently presents at industry events around the world.
Brewing a New Narrative: How 45 Years of Science Transformed Coffee’s Global Health Reputation
Lecture Description
For much of the late 20th century, the scientific and public narrative surrounding coffee and health was dominated by risk and caution. Early toxicological and epidemiological studies positioned coffee as a potential risk factor for a range of diseases. Media reporting also reinforced a largely negative public perception. Few would have anticipated the dramatic reversal that has unfolded over the past four and a half decades. This presentation examines how advances in research design, analytical rigor, and global data integration have fundamentally reshaped the scientific assessment of coffee’s health effects. Improved scientific studies and emerging mechanistic evidence have converged to reveal a different narrative: consistent associations between moderate coffee consumption and reduced risk of several major chronic diseases (type 2 diabetes, liver disease, neurodegenerative conditions, certain cancers). Whereas earlier media coverage often sensationalized limited preliminary data, today’s reporting more frequently reflects the weight and quality of scientific and medical evidence. Drawing from 45 years of first-hand experience at the intersection of science, industry, and public communication, this presentation will explore how coffee’s health reputation has been radically transformed and how the industry can responsibly leverage this evolving evidence base to “brew a new narrative” in the years ahead.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 1:00 pm - 1:45 pm
Location: Room 24C
Category: Science
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
James Coughlin
Health Scientist, Coughlin & Associates: Consultants in Nutritional Toxicology
Dr. James R. Coughlin, MS PhD is an accomplished expert in food chemistry, nutritional toxicology and global regulatory affairs, including 45 years’ experience with coffee/health science. In his independent consulting role for the past 35 years, he continues to focus on coffee and health. He has served for several decades as a Board Member at the Association for Science and Information on Coffee. He has often communicated to the public about coffee’s risks and benefits, while assisting global research scientists in the design, interpretation and dissemination of their studies. He has also assisted the global coffee industry in representations to public health and regulatory organizations.
The Systems Neuroscience of Coffee Flavor and Customer Experience: How the Brain Shapes Taste, Emotion, and Hospitality
Lecture Description
Coffee flavor extends beyond mere taste; it constitutes a multisensory experience constructed by the brain. This lecture, delivered by Ramon Parada, adopts an interdisciplinary approach informed by neuroscience, biomedical research, medicine, and specialty coffee hospitality, drawing upon his background in the El Paso U.S.-Mexico border region.
This session examines how the brain merges taste, aroma, memory, expectation, emotion, and environment to shape our experience. Attendees will see why two identical coffees can taste different depending on packaging, storytelling, presentation, environmental cues, and a guest’s mindset.
Grounded in neuroscience and scientific skepticism, this lecture underscores a key point: our sensory systems are not neutral measuring devices. Human perception is powerful, but also flawed, biased, and vulnerable to suggestion. This perspective matches current sensory science, which finds that flavor perception and analysis are shaped by smell, taste, integration, and bias.
By applying a skeptic’s lens to sensory evaluation, participants will better understand how expectation, priming, branding, origin narratives, and other cognitive biases can distort both cupping results and everyday guest experiences. The lecture challenges common misconceptions about taste, clarifies the dominant role of aroma and neural processing in flavor perception, and offers practical strategies for reducing bias, communicating tasting notes more clearly, and designing hospitality experiences that align with how the brain actually works. Blending scientific rigor with practical café application, this session provides baristas, roasters, trainers, and hospitality leaders with a more evidence-based framework for improving sensory evaluation, guest communication, and perceived quality.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 1:00 pm - 1:45 pm
Location: Room 25C
Category: Science
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Ramon Parada
Owner/Founder, Glia’s Coffee
Ramon Parada is the founder and owner of Glia’s Coffee Co., a multi-location coffee business in El Paso, Texas, with operations in the county courthouse and experience in mobile coffee, high-volume events, and catering. He is also a medical student at the Paul L. Foster School of Medicine. Through Glia’s, Parada has helped fund scholarships for El Pasoans pursuing careers in medicine while using his business to support broader community initiatives. His work reflects a strong commitment to serving El Paso through both Glia's and medicine.
Coffee as an Ingredient: The Hidden World of Concentrates Behind Modern Drinks
Lecture Description
Most people in specialty coffee still think in terms of cups: espresso, filter, cold brew served as is. But behind many Ready-to-Drink (RTD) cans, chain beverages, and tap systems there is something different: coffee brewed to become an ingredient – a liquid base that will later be diluted, mixed, or canned. These coffee concentrates are rarely talked about in the specialty community, even though they are quietly reshaping how the world drinks coffee.
This lecture opens that black box. We will first map how the industry uses coffee concentrates today for cold brew, RTD beverages, foodservice, and efficient café service, explaining in simple terms what a concentrate is (and is not), and why it is becoming so important. We will then compare the main ways these bases are produced and their impact on flavor and quality.
Finally, we will dive into a case study using falling-film freeze concentration (FFFC) on specialty cold and hot brews, showing how this low-temperature approach changes strength, volatile and bioactive compounds, and sensory attributes. Attendees will leave with a practical framework to reframe coffee as an ingredient, along with clear ways to assess if this new perspective can be applied in their own coffee businesses.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 1:00 pm - 1:45 pm
Location: Room 25AB
Category: Science
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Dr. Nancy Cordoba
Westrock Coffee
Dr. Nancy Córdoba is an engineer, scientist, and CQI-certified expert in coffee post-harvest processing with more than 20 years of experience in coffee process engineering, flavor chemistry, and sensory science. As Principal Scientist at Westrock Coffee, she leads strategic R&D and innovation initiatives in coffee and liquid extracts. Her career bridges industry and academia across the coffee value chain, from farm-level processing to the development of new beverage systems. She integrates analytical chemistry, predictive modeling, and descriptive sensory science to drive evidence-based decisions in coffee innovation. Dr. Córdoba was recognized as part of The Sprudge Twenty Class of 2023 for her global contributions to coffee science and education.
EUDR Lessons for the US Coffee Industry
Lecture Description
The European Union's Deforestation Regulation formed a monumental shift in the baseline level of sustainability and transparency required to operate in the EU market. Despite the myriad pitfalls regarding the regulation's implementation - lack of clarity, negotiations and delays - the industry-wide exercise of ensuring supply chain compliance illuminated many issues pervasive throughout the coffee supply chain. US operators can examine the benefits and lessons learned from the EUDR implementation process on the ground level without the fear of imminent enforcement. This allows us to examine the breakthoughts in supply chain traceability, scale geospacial technology to our needs, and use the framework of the EUDR process to guide our future buying decisions for the benefit of a deforestation and exploitation-free supply chain.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 1:00 pm - 1:45 pm
Location: Room 26AB
Category: Sustainability
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Ilya Byzov
Head of Research, Sucafina
Ilya is the Head of Research and Quantative Trading at Sucafina. With 17 years of experience in commodities and 14 in coffee, Ilya's main role is to understand global coffee supply and global coffee demand. This information is fed into models that forecast global coffee prices and guide the company's trading decisions. With the initial aim of forecasting coffee acreage globally, Ilya has been working with geospatial technology since 2019. Ilya has been helping to guide Sucafina's policy on deforestation and supply chain traceability since 2021, relying on his educational background of Environmental Studies. In 2023, this role has been expanded to include guidance on fulfilling requirements for the upcoming EUDR legislation. Ilya's passion for trees and coffee place him in a unique position to speak on the challenges facing our industy and possible solutions to those challenges.
Measuring What Matters — The Role of Impact Reporting in a Changing Industry
Lecture Description
Impact reports have proliferated across specialty coffee—but are they driving genuine progress or just good PR? As buyers demand proof of sustainability claims and producers seek recognition for their investments, the stakes for meaningful transparency have never been higher. This panel explores how coffee companies can move beyond glossy reports toward genuine accountability and measurable improvement. Featuring Mountain Harvest's Impact Report—which tracks outcomes including income uplift for participating farmers, soil health improvements, and supply chain traceability—alongside perspectives from buyers and certification organizations, panelists will examine what transparency really means, how to distinguish between authentic impact and "impact washing," and how aligned partners can co-create long-term frameworks for shared progress.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 12:00 pm - 1:15 pm
Location: Room 24AB
Category: Business
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Building Sustainability Solutions: Designing, Testing, and Implementing Sustainability Models that Respond to Real Needs and Create Shared Value
Lecture Description
Putting sustainability goals into practice can be challenging for coffee businesses. While many organizations are committed to sustainability, they often struggle to move from aspiration to practical solutions that deliver measurable impact.
In 2025, the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA) published its first How-To Guide, introducing the Sustainable Design Framework—an approach that helps organizations design sustainability strategies grounded in real-world needs, stakeholder collaboration, and long-term business viability.
This panel brings together perspectives across the full lifecycle of the framework. Moderated by SCA Sustainability Manager Andrés Montenegro, the session will explore the “before–during–after” of its development and application. Dr. Kate Fischer will share insights from the research and case studies that informed the framework. Angela Peláez (RGC Coffee) will reflect on the co-development process and how companies helped shape the approach. Brandon Bir (Crimson Cup) will present early lessons from piloting the framework in practice, including work in Guatemala.
Together, the panel will highlight how sustainability solutions can be designed, tested, and refined to respond to real needs and create shared value across coffee supply chains.
What will attendees learn from this presentation?
Attendees will gain practical insights into how to move from sustainability ambition to implementation within their own organizations. Specifically, they will:
Understand how design approaches such as the Double Diamond can help identify sustainability challenges and develop actionable, context-specific solutions.
Learn how business design elements—purpose, networks, governance, and finance—support the integration of sustainability into core operations and decision-making.
Explore real-world lessons from the design, co-development, and piloting of the SCA Sustainable Design Framework, including key challenges, adaptations, and early outcomes.
Identify practical ways to design sustainability initiatives that respond to real needs, create shared value, and strengthen relationships across coffee supply chains.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 12:00 pm - 1:15 pm
Location: Room 23BC
Category: Sustainability
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Andrés Montenegro
Sustainability Manager, Specialty Coffee Association
Andrés Montenegro is a leading figure in sustainability leadership within the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA), where he drives the sector's strategic evolution toward business models that are more equitable, resilient, and oriented toward shared value. With an international background in agri-food systems and sustainable development, he has spearheaded initiatives that integrate social impact, new value economies, and processes of deep organizational transformation. His work sits at the intersection of sustainability, strategy, and systemic leadership, guiding coffee organizations and communities in their transition toward models that are more conscious, adaptive, and capable of co-creating the future of the sector.
Kate Fischer, Ph.D.
Professor & Coffee Researcher, University of Colorado
Dr. Kate Fischer is a cultural anthropologist and Associate Teaching Professor at the University of Colorado-Boulder. She has been in coffee since 2005 and has conducted research with producers in Costa Rica, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, and Colombia. Her research focuses on gender and ethnicity; the political economy of coffee; migration and stability; and the challenges in determining quality at all levels, from farms and mills in Central America to industry centers in the global North. She is a CQI Post-Harvest Processing Expert and was a core member of the team that developed the Coffee Sustainability program for SCA.
Angela Pelaez
Director of Global sustainability and coporate compliance, RGC Coffee
Angela Peláez, from an agricultural family, is Director of Global Sustainability and Corporate Compliance at RGC Coffee. She specializes in sustainable sourcing, compliance, and impact-driven programs. At RGC, she led the design, development, and implementation of 3E, the company's flagship sustainability program, delivering measurable social, economic, and environmental benefits across coffee-producing countries. Her work strengthens supply chains, promotes biodiversity, climate resilience, and social equity, and improves traceability. Angela previously served on the SCA Sustainability Center's Farmworkers Committee and currently sits on advisory bodies for Fair Trade USA and Colombia's Coffee, Forest & Climate Agreement, focusing on making sustainability a strong business case.
Brandon Bir
Director of Sustainability, Crimson Cup Coffee
Brandon Bir is a dedicated coffee professional, Q-Instructor, and Q-PHP assistant instructor centered on international community development and supply chain equity. As Director of Sustainability, he travels extensively to forge direct-trade relationships across Africa, Asia, and the Americas, ensuring transparency from seed to cup. With an MBA in International Business and Sustainability, Brandon integrates sensory science with systemic social impact. He oversees the "Friend2Farmer" initiatives, focusing on long-term mutual success and environmental stewardship. A frequent SCA contributor and industry educator, Brandon remains committed to evolving global coffee standards through collaborative and equitable sustainability models.
Designing Drinks with Intent: Visual and Textural Craftsmanship in Specialty Coffee
Lecture Description
The specialty coffee movement has pushed producers, roasters, and baristas to achieve remarkable complexity in the cup—yet the beverages we build around those coffees often fall short of expressing that same level of creativity and intention. This lecture explores how to craft drinks whose visual presentation, texture, and structure are as thoughtfully composed and sensorially rich as the coffees they feature.
Participants will learn how to apply culinary principles, multi-layered textures, ingredient preparation techniques, and strategic visual design to create beverages that amplify—not overshadow—the coffee at their core. We’ll examine the role of emulsions, foams, gels, syrups, dustings, layering, ice shape, milk aeration, glassware, and color perception in shaping the drinker’s full experience.
Through kitchen-inspired methods and specialty-coffee sensibility, this session will empower baristas to move beyond “pretty lattes” into genuinely crafted, multi-sensory beverages that tell a story from the first glance to the last sip.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 11:00 am - 11:45 am
Location: Room 25AB
Category: Business
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Heather Perry
CEO, Klatch Coffee
Heather Perry is the CEO of Klatch Coffee and a lifelong figure in specialty coffee. Growing up in the business founded by her parents, Mike and Cindy Perry, she began working in Klatch cafés at a young age, building her expertise through competition, education, and industry involvement. Heather became the first woman to win the U.S. Barista Championship, and the first person to earn the title twice. Since then, she's placed second in the World Barista Championship, trained coffee professionals worldwide, and served as SCA President. Heather holds a BBA from Cal Poly Pomona and leads Klatch Coffee?s continued growth.
Tariffs and Trade: How U.S. Policy Is Reshaping the Coffee Market
Lecture Description
Recently, the coffee market has experienced a great deal of volatility, driven by supply-side tightness and exacerbated by shifting U.S. tariff rates, which have added further uncertainty as global availability continues to tighten. This lecture will provide participants with an overview of the impacts of U.S. tariffs on the NY “C” market price. We will provide a background in economic theory of international trade and protectionist policies, a look at how tariffs have changed the speed and sources of coffee flowing into the U.S., and an analysis of their impact on the NY “C” market. The session will equip stakeholders across the coffee supply chain with a practical framework to understand and anticipate the effects of tariffs on the coffee market.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 11:00 am - 11:45 am
Location: Room 26AB
Category: Business
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Hannah Fox
Director of Market Analysis, Advanced Economic Solutions
Hannah Fox is a market analyst at Advanced Economic Solutions, where she specializes in the analysis of coffee, cocoa, sugar, and other commodities. She provides clients with rigorous, data-driven insights to inform strategic decision-making. Hannah holds a PhD in Agricultural Economics from Texas A&M University.
The Sweet Science of Lactose-Free Milk in Coffee
Lecture Description
This session provides coffee professionals with essential knowledge about lactose-free milk, bridging dairy science and barista practice. We'll explore what lactose-free milk is, how it is produced, and why it tastes distinctly sweeter than regular milk. We’ll draw on recent consumer research around consumer preferences, and examine purchasing patterns and motivations to highlight the broad appeal among consumers. The session will also be practical, touching on key considerations including foaming performance, cost implications for cafe owners, and positioning strategies.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 11:00 am - 11:45 am
Location: Room 25C
Category: Science
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Ty Wagoner
Senior Manager, California Dairy Innovation Center
Dr. Ty Wagoner brings over 15 years of experience in dairy research and product development. A trained chef turned food scientist, he holds BS and PhD degrees in Food Science from NC State University. His work spans dairy ingredient functionality, product development, and precision fermentation, with 10 peer-reviewed publications and 6 patents to his name. At CDIC, he collaborates with dairy processors, entrepreneurs, and students to advance new product innovation for the California dairy industry.
Folk Coffee: Reviving Slow Coffee Culture and Latin American Traditions in the Modern Cafe
Lecture Description
In a culture defined by speed and consumption, the concept of Folk Coffee requires us to bring coffee back to the people. It calls us to return to the roots of coffee as a communal, reflective, and culturally rich practice. This lecture explores the deep connections between Latin American coffee traditions and the global “slow” coffee culture movements that once defined social life; such as sobremesas, salons, and other spaces of dialogue and leisure. Drawing from Latin American rituals of hospitality and shared experience, Folk Coffee reimagines how these traditions can inspire a more sustainable, intentional, and people-centered coffee culture today.
The lecture also considers how shared coffee education, through cuppings, workshops, and community tastings, echoes oral traditions and fosters accessibility across diverse communities. By treating education as a collective and story-driven process, the modern specialty coffee movement is reintroducing human connection and inclusivity into what was once an exclusive field.
Attendees will examine how cafés are already shifting away from grab-and-go service toward spaces of learning, ritual, and connection, and how embracing a “folk” mindset can deepen both community engagement and environmental care.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 11:00 am - 11:45 am
Location: Room 24C
Category: Sustainability
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Jacqueline McCourt
Coffee Educator, San Diego Coffee Training Institute
Jacqueline McCourt is a coffee educator and museum professional based in San Diego, California. She teaches at the San Diego Coffee Training Institute and works in visitor experience at the Mingei International Museum, where she engages the public with global craft traditions. She holds a bachelor's degree in History and is currently pursuing a museum studies certification. Her work is rooted in bringing a humanities perspective to the world of specialty coffee. Drawing on her Salvadoran and Irish American heritage, Jacquie is particularly interested in the role coffee plays in ritual, hospitality, and community traditions.
Financing regenerative, resilient coffee: lessons from across the supply chain
Lecture Description
Regenerative agriculture is increasingly recognized as essential for the future of coffee, but the path to scaling it is neither uniform nor straightforward. Sustainable Food Lab will moderate a panel of leading experts exploring how different financing models can support coffee farmers to adopt and sustain regenerative practices across diverse landscapes. We will open with a brief framing on the social, environmental, and economic opportunities of regenerative agriculture, and why no single financing structure can meet the needs of all coffee farmers globally.
Four panelists, representing key stakeholders in coffee value chains, will share practical lessons from their work:
● Root Capital: Insights on financing regenerative agriculture in partnership with producer organizations across Africa and Latin America.
● Rainforest Alliance: How the organization is driving the adoption of regenerative practices through their Regenerative Agriculture Certification and field programs.
● Keurig Dr Pepper: Lessons from a portfolio of regenerative agriculture investments with varied funding models and supply chain integrations.
● ACODIHUE Cooperative: A cooperative perspective on the challenges and opportunities for implementing regenerative practices, especially during times of high coffee prices.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 10:30 am - 10:45 am
Location: Room 24AB
Category: Sustainability
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Molly Leavens
Program Manager, Sustainable Food Lab
Molly Leavens is a Program Manager at Sustainable Food Lab, where she works with multinational food companies, NGOs, and public agencies to improve smallholder farmer livelihoods and climate resilience. Her work focuses on corporate sustainability strategy, living income, and regenerative agriculture across coffee and cocoa supply chains in Latin America, Africa, and Asia. She holds a BA in Food and the Environment from Harvard University and an MA in Management and Global Affairs from Tsinghua University.
Miguel Gamboa
Coffee Lead, Rainforest Alliance
Miguel Gamboa, Coffee Lead at the Rainforest Alliance, was trained as an industrial engineer with Masters in Reengineering and International Trade. He started his professional career working in a coffee exporting company. Then, 23 years ago, he started working with the UTZ certification program. Being part of the support team for the members of the certification program, he was able to learn about different realities of coffee production and marketing throughout Latin America. After the merger of UTZ and the Rainforest Alliance, he was appointed as a Coffee Representative Manager for Latin America, and since September 2022 - as a Coffee Sector Lead.
“I believe that the certification is a good basis to start improving the living conditions of producing families. Coffee is synonymous with life—not only for producers and workers but also for flora and fauna, and all of us who taste its flavor”.
Marco Garcia
Business Development Manager, Root Capital
Marco García is Business Development Manager at Root Capital, an impact investor supporting agricultural businesses across Latin America, Africa, and Southeast Asia. Based in Costa Rica, he leads the development of new market opportunities, financial solutions, advisory services, and partnerships that advance regenerative agriculture and climate resilience. His work focuses on connecting capital, advisory services, and market linkages to help agricultural enterprises scale sustainably and improve farmer livelihoods.
Sergio Silvestre
Commercial Manager, ACODIHUE
Agricultural Engineer with over 16 years of experience in developing coffee and honey value chains. He possesses a strong academic background with master's degrees in International Trade, Strategic Management, and Business Administration from the USAC Business School and EUDE Business School. He currently serves as Production and Marketing Manager at ACODIHUE, where he leads efforts to improve access to global markets and promote the sustainability of small-scale producers. He is an expert in implementing international certifications such as Fair Trade, Organic, and Rainforest Alliance, with extensive experience managing projects with international cooperation.
Whitney Kakos
Sr. Director, Sustainability, Keurig Dr Pepper
Whitney Kakos is the Sr. Director of Sustainability at Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP). She oversees the company’s strategy and programming across the areas of Climate & Nature, Water, Responsible Sourcing and Farmer/Worker Livelihoods. This work balances risk management and compliance with long-term impact work within the company’s owned operations and diverse upstream supply chains. Whitney has strong roots at the intersection of sustainability and coffee, first at UK-based Cafédirect and then at Keurig Dr Pepper. She holds a MSc in Environmental Policy from LSE and lives with her husband and two children in Boston, MA.
Barista-Led CPG: Why the Cafe Supply Chain Should Be Built—and Owned—by Coffee Professionals
Lecture Description
Every year, roughly a million independent cafés purchase tens of billions of dollars’ worth of coffee-adjacent products. These products are meant to complement the work of the barista community, a hive of some of the most thoughtful, innovative operators in the world. Yet despite the community’s outsized contributions to the broader F&B world, it has had essentially zero involvement in creating these products; baristas are largely left out of the process and they capture little-to-no economic value within it. That should change.
In this lecture, we’ll explore how the industry arrived here, how products flow into cafes, and chart a path toward a supply ecosystem of CPG brands that truly represent — and are owned by — the best our community has to offer.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 10:30 am - 11:45 am
Location: Room 23BC
Category: Business
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Michelle R. Johnson-Strickland
CEO, Ghost Town Oats
Michelle R. Johnson-Strickland is the co-founder and CEO of Ghost Town Oats, an award-winning premium oat milk brand made by baristas. She is also the creator of The Chocolate Barista, the foremost platform amplifying Black voices in specialty coffee. A seasoned coffee professional with over a decade of experience, Michelle’s journey from behind the bar to leading a disruptive brand is fueled by a deep commitment to equity, authenticity, and freedom—values that have shaped every step of her career.
Bryan Harmer Hasho
Co-Founder, The Usual Company
Bryan Harmer Hasho is a Co-Founder of The Usual Company. After spending time in wholesale at Blue Bottle Coffee, he co-founded NYC’s Stand Coffee and went on to be employee one at Oatly North America where he spent seven years leading Oatly’s presence in the coffee channel.
From Orthonasal to Retronasal: What Coffee Professionals Really Need to Know About Smell
Lecture Description
Coffee flavor is not built on taste alone: it emerges from two distinct olfactory pathways—orthonasal and retronasal perception—working together. Yet most coffee professionals rarely receive clear, practical explanations of how the system actually functions, how aroma memory develops, or why some descriptors feel intuitive while others remain elusive.
This session offers a simple, rigorous, and non-medical introduction to smell tailored for the coffee trade: how the brain organizes aromas, how “aroma grammar” structures sensory language, and what methods help tasters build reliable, shared references. Drawing on cross-disciplinary sensory pedagogy, attendees will leave with usable tools for improving their consistency, vocabulary, and tasting accuracy—without needing scientific training.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 10:00 am - 10:45 am
Location: Room 25C
Category: Science
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Viva Lenoir
CEO, Editions JL Le Nez du Café
Viva Lenoir is a sensory educator specializing in smell and multisensory perception. For more than a decade she has trained coffee, wine, and whisky professionals across Europe, North America, and Asia, helping them build stable aroma memory and clearer sensory language. Her work focuses on translating olfactory science into practical tools for cuppers, roasters, baristas, and instructors. She frequently collaborates with researchers, Q graders, and hospitality professionals to develop accessible, evidence-informed approaches to aroma training.
Inventory Management Fundamentals for Green Coffee Buyers
Lecture Description
In this lecture, we'll explore the fundamentals of inventory management for green coffee buyers at coffee roasting companies. Precise inventory management can help coffee roasting companies avoid critical mistakes that cost money and create stress. Expect to learn how to make important inventory calculations that will help you run an efficient business
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 10:00 am - 10:45 am
Location: Room 25AB
Category: Business
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Jay Kling
Green Coffee Buyer, Efficiency in Coffee
Jay Kling is a green coffee buyer with over a decade of experience in the coffee industry. Through his project, www.efficiency.coffee, Jay works to create resources for green coffee buyers to help build and hone business skills. Jay's goal is to help green coffee buyers become proficient at fundamental supply chain skills like inventory management, demand planning, and understanding unit economics. Sustainable coffee purchasing starts with running a smart, efficient business that has enough profitability to pay higher prices for green coffee.
Panama in the Cup: Turning Terroir, Varieties, and Processing into Meaningful Cafe Experiences
Lecture Description
“Panama in the Cup” uses Panama as a living case study for how terroir, varieties, and processing choices can be translated into meaningful experiences at the roastery and in the café. Rather than focusing only on Panama Geisha, this lecture explores the broader ecosystem of Panama’s highlands—regions such as Boquete, Volcán, and Renacimiento—and how their conditions shape cup structure and flavor expression.
We will connect origin-side decisions (farming, selection, and processing) with practical questions at the bar: Which coffees do we highlight? How do we choose brew methods and service formats? How do we communicate value and terroir to guests in a way that is engaging, honest, and accessible?
Throughout the session, we will look at real examples from Panama and break them down into frameworks that can be adapted to any origin. Attendees will leave with concrete ideas for designing origin-focused menus, tasting flights, and education experiences that respect producers, support better pricing, and create long-term value for both cafés and guests.
This lecture uses Panama as a comprehensive case study to offer frameworks that cafés and roasteries anywhere can adapt, regardless of origin. The emphasis is on building origin-driven experiences that respect producers and create sustainable value on both sides of the supply chain.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 10:00 am - 10:45 am
Location: Room 24C
Category: Sustainability
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Ytzvan Mastino-Morales
Founder, CEO & Roaster, Pulpa Specialty Coffee
Ytzvan Mastino is a Panamanian coffee professional, software engineer, and founder of Pulpa Coffee Company, a specialty coffee roastery, academy, and sensory coffee experience based in Panama City. Through Pulpa Coffee, he works directly with producers from the highlands of Chiriquí, helping showcase Panama’s exceptional coffees to a broader audience. Ytzvan is a certified Roasting Professional by the Specialty Coffee Association and represented Panama at the 2024 World Brewers Cup in Chicago. Combining his background in technology with his passion for coffee, he explores how innovation, roasting, and brewing techniques can elevate the expression of origin while connecting producers, professionals, and consumers
Coffee Consolidations 3.0: Smart Scaling in the Hyper-Growth Coffee Era
Lecture Description
In the past decade, consolidation in coffee has moved from iconic deals (JAB, Nestlé, Blue Bottle, Intelligentsia) to a new wave of hyper-scaling retail models such as Luckin Coffee and Blank Street Coffee. These players combine aggressive store roll-outs, technology, data, and capital to reshape customer expectations and competitive dynamics.
This lecture updates my previous “Coffee Consolidations” presentation with a sharper focus on what these developments mean for small and medium coffee businesses—roasteries, cafés, and emerging chains. We will unpack how consolidation, roll-ups, and VC-backed scaling models impact margins, location strategy, and brand positioning, and how independents can respond without trying to “out-Luckin Luckin.”
Using real-world examples and case studies, we will explore practical options: strategic partnerships, smart M&A, multi-channel models, and technology adoption at a realistic scale. Attendees will leave with a clearer understanding of consolidation trends and a toolbox of actionable strategies to protect their independence, grow sustainably, and stay relevant in a market increasingly shaped by giants.
This session is designed to be pragmatic, non-theoretical, and directly applicable to everyday business decisions.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 10:00 am - 10:45 am
Location: Room 25AB
Category: Business
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Lukasz Mrowinski
Speaker, The Coffee Fund
Lukasz Mrowinski is a seasoned entrepreneur and former co-founder and CEO of Etno Cafe, the largest Polish-originated coffee shop chain. Under his leadership, the company expanded to 28 cafes, a roastery, and a cold brewery. Known for its rapid growth and innovation, Etno Cafe secured 7th place in the Food and Beverages category and 196th overall in the Financial Times FT 1000 ranking of Europe’s fastest-growing companies in 2020. Lukasz played a key role in driving the company’s success through organic expansion and strategic M&A, leveraging investor funds to scale its operations. In 2022, he exited Etno Cafe to focus on M&A ventures including joining the Harbour Club, the largest global organization of M&A specialists. He is also an experienced speaker (the presentations at World of Coffee Copenhagen 2024, World of Coffee Dubai 2025, and the Specialty Coffee Expo 2025 in Houston), with his lectures on coffee market consolidation and growth strategies receiving high acclaim. His deep experience positions him as a strong workshop facilitator for entrepreneurs navigating market challenges. Lukasz is also the host of the Coffee On Air podcast, where he shares his practical approach to the coffee business and related industries.
Sold out - Crafting Excellence: Espresso Extraction and Proper Beverage Preparation
Workshop Description: This immersive workshop introduces participants to the foundations of espresso, from its role in the cafe to the science behind proper extraction. Through clear demonstrations and guided practice, attendees will learn essential techniques, including dialing in grind size, effective tamping, and pulling consistently balanced shots.
Participants will learn to steam milk for high-quality results, with dedicated practice time. Experienced instructors will provide individualized support, ensuring personalized coaching and skill development during practical activities. This workshop also explores traditional espresso beverages and their preparation.
By the end of the workshop, attendees will walk away with a deeper technical understanding of espresso extraction, improved beverage-building skills, and practical knowledge they can apply immediately. If you’re new to espresso or looking to develop your barista skills further, this session offers a valuable, engaging learning experience.
Learning Objectives:
1. Learn the fundamentals of espresso preparation — Understand how variables such as grind size, dose, tamping pressure, and shot time influence flavor, balance, and overall espresso quality.
2. Develop consistent extraction techniques — Practice dialing in espresso, adjusting grinders, and pulling shots with accuracy to achieve repeatable, café-quality results.
3. Foundational beverage preparation skills — Attendees will learn the proper construction of staple espresso-based drinks and gain confidence in steaming milk to different textures and correct temperatures.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Room Number: 32 AB
Category: Brewing
REGISTRATION FEES:
EARLY BIRD Regular* - $250
EARLY BIRD Paid Member* - $210
Regular - $275
Paid Member - $230
*Early Bird pricing ends March 1, 2026
Booking: To book your place in this Workshop, head to the World of Coffee San Diego Registration & Booking Portal and add a session to your order. Already registered? Simply login using the credentials created at purchase to access your booking and add other paid events to your badge.
Instructor
Ahmad Aziz-Taylor
Ahmad Aziz-Taylor, known as Taylor, is the founder of 7even Seas Coffee Co., a Los Angeles-based specialty coffee brand built around quality, hospitality, and community. Beginning as a mobile coffee operation, 7even Seas has expanded into multiple locations with a focus on thoughtful sourcing, precise execution, and intentional design. Taylor remains closely involved in daily operations, menu development, and brand partnerships, with an emphasis on creating accessible yet elevated coffee experiences. His work reflects a belief that specialty coffee should be welcoming, experiential, and rooted in genuine connection between producers, baristas, and guests.
Fluid Dynamics and Coffee: How Physics Decides What Ends up in Our Cup
Lecture Description
Coffee is a complex product shaped by a combination of physical, chemical, and thermodynamic processes. This lecture will explore how fluid dynamics and transport phenomena are integral to understanding the science behind coffee roasting and brewing. The roasting process involves heat transfer and gas exchange that occur within the coffee beans, which are key to developing aroma, flavor, and texture. Fluid dynamics influences the movement of air and steam within the roasting machine, impacting heat distribution and moisture evaporation. Understanding these factors is crucial for optimizing roast profiles and ensuring consistent quality.
Similarly, the extraction of coffee during brewing relies heavily on principles of fluid flow, diffusion, and convective heat transfer. The interaction between water and coffee grounds determines the extraction efficiency and ultimately the flavor and aroma profile of the brew. Through new and practical examples, we will delve into how concentration gradients, temperature gradients, and solubility properties affect the extraction process.
By examining these transport phenomena together, this lecture will provide insights into how they govern coffee’s transformation from raw bean to beverage, offering valuable knowledge for both professionals and enthusiasts aiming to elevate their coffee-making techniques and creativity.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 9:00 am - 9:45 am
Location: Room 25C
Category: Science
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Connor Firth
Consultant, CRF Specialty Coffee Consulting
Connor Firth is a specialty coffee consultant from Chicagoland. Since completing his PhD in chemistry and chemical engineering in 2024, he has leveraged his technical background to educate coffee industry experts about the fundamental scientific principles underlying the field. His focus on transport phenomena and fluid dynamics — the physics behind nearly all coffee-related processes — makes him unique in an industry where hard science often takes a backseat. He aims to inspire creativity and promote scientific thinking, enabling industry professionals to navigate abstract marketing claims and, more importantly, deliver unique products and services of the highest quality.
Opening a New Cafe? Design it Right - Build it Once
Lecture Description
This PowerPoint presentation will explore the most critical issues (and mistakes) owners face during the design and build-out process when opening a new café. Topics covered include: floor plan design, health and building codes, equipment needed to support your menu, and timelines. The seminar will also examine ways to reduce build-out costs, improve employee efficiency and increase seating capacity. Since 1996, Tom Palm has worked with over 1000 clients interested in opening a new café. This is a must see seminar for anyone entering the specialty coffee business.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 9:00 am - 9:45 am
Location: Room 25AB
Category: Business
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Tom Palm
National Sales Manager
Tom brings almost three decades of expertise in foodservice equipment to Design & Layout Services. His deep knowledge of the industry, combined with a passion for helping entrepreneurs, has made him a sought-after speaker at coffee trade shows across the country. Whether it’s offering guidance on selecting the right equipment or sharing insights on how to successfully open a cafe, Tom is known for his ability to break down complex topics into actionable advice. His presentations are not only informative but also engaging, thanks to his larger-than-life personality that draws in audiences and keeps them captivated.
The Value of Living Income: Understanding the Connection between Resilience and Prosperity
Lecture Description
The industry knows that coffee's future depends on farmers' ability to adapt to a changing climate, but what is less known is whether and how the market will pay to enable these adaptation strategies. Put simply: when farmers can't afford to invest in resilience and supply chains inherit the risk, who pays the cost? The conversation around resilience cannot be decoupled from the conversation on prosperity—covering costs and ensuring dignity—and Living Income Reference Prices are a framework for understanding how smallholders can afford to invest in regenerative practices or remain trapped in vulnerability.
This panel brings together sustainable livelihoods experts, data scientists, and coffee industry professionals to examine the role fairer pricing plays in building a climate-adaptive, regenerative coffee sector. Panelists will explore the interplay between sustainable agricultural practices and market incentives, and how they affect the ability to implement a holistic approach to farmer resilience.
The session will focus on the data and calculations needed to close income gaps and achieve true resilience, featuring an in-depth discussion of the Living Income Reference Price (LIRP) model—a data-driven framework linking farm practices to prices that sustain dignified livelihoods and enable adaptation—along with case studies from Mexico and Rwanda.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 9:00 am - 10:15 am
Location: Room 24AB
Category: Sustainability
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Colleen Anunu
Sr Advisor for Coffee, Fairtrade International
Colleen Anunu is the Sr. Advisor for Coffee at Fairtrade International, leading coffee product strategy and coordination among a diverse group of coffee stakeholders in the Fairtrade system. Colleen’s vision is a transformed coffee sector that sees more power and value in the hands of producers. They have previously served as Co-Managing Director and Head of Product Development for New York-based Gimme! Coffee Cooperative, as Director of Coffee Supply Chain at Fair Trade USA, and is a Past President of the Specialty Coffee Association.
Anneke Theunissen
COO, CLAC - Fairtrade
Anneke Theunissen has worked with CLAC Fairtrade, the Latin American and Caribbean Network of Fairtrade Smallholder Producers and Workers, since 2013. Currently, she is Chief Operating Officer and coordinates the main operations of CLAC in the field, assisting approximately 900 Fairtrade Producer Organizations in their process of empowerment and organizational strengthening, human rights, access to markets, inclusion, climate resilience and advocacy.
Molly Leavens
Program Manager, Sustainable Food Lab
Molly Leavens is a Program Manager at Sustainable Food Lab, where she works with multinational food companies, NGOs, and public agencies to improve smallholder farmer livelihoods and climate resilience. Her work focuses on corporate sustainability strategy, living income, and regenerative agriculture across coffee and cocoa supply chains in Latin America, Africa, and Asia. She holds a BA in Food and the Environment from Harvard University and an MA in Management and Global Affairs from Tsinghua University.
Jessica Mullan
Senior Director of Strategic Advisory & Measurement Systems, COSA
Jessica leads COSA’s advanced measurement systems and global advisory services to assess sustainability in agricultural supply chains.
Her work spans both the private and public sectors working in large-scale and smallholder systems. She has created and deployed measurement systems for global institutions and multi-nationals such as the Gates Foundation’s Agile Data Initiative, McDonald’s Sustainability Improvement Platform, PepsiCo’s Livelihoods Improvement framework, FAO’s Sustainability Assessment of Food and Agriculture Systems for Smallholders and the Global Coffee Platform’s Data Standard. Most recently, she has been leading the technical working group on livelihoods and income for the Digital Integration of Agricultural Supply Chains Alliance (DIASCA).
Vanusia Maria Carneiro Nogueira
Executive Director, International Coffee Organization (ICO)
Victor Enrique Cordero Ardila
Commercial Manager, Red Ecolsierra
A Practical Framework for Telling Your Story Using Strategic Communications Tools
Lecture Description
In an increasingly competitive local and global coffee landscape, fragmented markets, increased competition, and changing consumer expectations have made communications a core business skill rather than a marketing add-on. Many farmers, roasters and café operators possess compelling missions and exceptional products, yet struggle to articulate them in ways that resonate with target audiences. In such a crowded market, how can you differentiate your brand from the coffee next door?
This session will present a practical framework for developing a clear strategic communications plan rooted in established public-relations principles that will lead to business growth and success. Attendees will learn how to identify their core message, define priority audiences, and create a simple, actionable public relations plan that supports business goals — whether selling green coffee, building wholesale partnerships, or inspiring customer loyalty. The session will include real-world examples, templates, and repeatable tools designed to help coffee professionals confidently communicate their value in a crowded market without promotional bias.
This practical approach is designed for producers, roasters, café owners, and other small and medium-sized coffee businesses seeking to strengthen their market position through clear and consistent messaging.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 9:00 am - 10:15 am
Location: Room 23BC
Category: Business
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Michelle Franklin
Director of Communications, UC San Diego
Michelle Franklin has over 15 years of communications experience in corporate communications, media relations and higher education. She is currently director of communications for the School of Physical Sciences at UC San Diego, where she leads the university's Public Relations Council. She earned her Accreditation in Public Relations in 2021 and is a member of the Public Relations Society of America.
Anthony King
Public Relations Professional
Anthony King is a communications and public-relations strategist with more than 16 years of leadership experience in higher education and journalism. He is Assistant Dean of Strategic Engagement at UC San Diego, guiding executive leaders on public-relations practices that support institutional priorities and organizational change. Anthony earned his Accreditation in Public Relations (APR) from the Public Relations Society of America and is a founding chair of UC San Diego's Public Relations Council. He is a member of the International Public Relations Association and has volunteered as a communications professional for several international nonprofits.
Toward Climate Resilient Coffee: the science on where we stand, the cost of transition, and financing pathways
Lecture Description
This lecture will explore the current state of climate and nature risks impacting coffee production, showcasing new research, tangible resources, and innovative pathways that guide action toward a more resilient coffee future.
First, we will look at an industry-wide initiative through the Sustainable Coffee Challenge to increase and improve open-access primary data on carbon emissions from coffee production in 5 Latin American countries, building on a similar effort in Asia. These datasets offer practical references for producers, coffee companies, policymakers, and researchers to benchmark and lower emissions.
Complementing these baselines, we’ll also explore a new analysis on derisking coffee supply chains and landscapes for a net-zero and nature positive coffee future. Participants will examine where the greatest risks lie, the most promising interventions and pathways to mitigation, and the cost of transition vs. business as usual.
Finally, we'll discuss innovative yet practical opportunities to collaborate and pool resources to ensure sustainable coffee supply while protecting and restoring nature and safeguarding the livelihoods of coffee communities.
Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026
Time: 9:00 am - 9:45 am
Location: Room 24C
Category: Sustainability
Access: This lecture is free to attend with a World of Coffee entry badge. Register to attend World of Coffee here.
Please note that lecture sessions are open on a first-come, first-served basis. Early arrival is highly recommended to secure your seat.
Speakers
Raina Lang
Sr Director, Sustainable Coffee, Conservation International
Raina Lang works at Conservation International as the Sr Director of Sustainable Coffee, leading the organizations’ coffee program. She is tasked with building and overseeing partnerships in the coffee sector, with a focus on achieving CI’s long-term goal of making coffee the first sustainably produced agriculture product as part of the Sustainable Coffee Challenge. With over 20 years in the sector, including a decade of field-based experience in Central America, Mexico & the Caribbean, Raina has worked with agricultural value chain programs focused on supplier growth and sustainability in coffee and cocoa at the International Finance Corporation and Peace Corps in Nicaragua.
Nora Burkey
Founder and Executive Director, The Chain Collaborative
Nora is the Founder and Executive Director of The Chain Collaborative, a non-profit in the coffee sector focused on community-led development and investing in the visions of local leaders in coffee communities around the world. She holds a master’s degree in Sustainable Development from the School for International Training, where she concentrated on gender in development and food systems, and conducted research in Nicaragua on the unpaid work of women in supply chains. Under the banner of The Chain Collaborative, she has consulted for a variety of companies, organizations, and projects in tropical agriculture, including Fairtrade International, Conservation International, IDH, and more. She was a co-creator of the Specialty Coffee Association's Coffee Sustainability Program (version 1), and additionally supported the development of version 2.
Isabella Turbyville
Manager, Sustainable Coffee, Conservation International
Isabella is a manager for the coffee program at Conservation International. In her role, she primarily supports the Sustainable Coffee Challenge, a multistakeholder initiative through which she helps drive sector collaboration and investments to mitigate and adapt to climate and nature risks affecting coffee production, its surrounding ecosystems, and communities.
She studied Environment and Development at McGill University and previously worked on getting new impact funds and instruments off the ground. Her passion for sustainable business models brought her to Conservation International, where she has had the privilege of being immersed in the coffee industry ever since.