1. DO WE BUY THE TREES?
2. WHAT ARE CT POINTS?
3. WHY CT POINTS?
4. A ONE-OFF PAYMENT FOR 5 YEARS NOW, OR COMMITMENT TO ANNUAL PAYMENTS FOR THE NEXT 5 YEARS?
5. IS THIS A DONATION OR RETURN ON INVESTMENT EVERY YEAR? IF RETURN, WHAT CAN YOU REASONABLY EXPECT IN DOLLARS PER TREE PER YEAR?
6. WHAT IS THE “LIFE SPAN” OF MY CAMPAIGN / CT POINTS?
7. CAN I TRANSFER MY CT POINTS? CAN I CANCEL MY CT POINTS?
8. HOW SAFE ARE MY CT POINTS? HOW ARE THEY PROTECTED AGAINST LOSS?
9. CAN I MAKE JUST 1 PAYMENT FOR ALL 5 YEARS OR DO I HAVE TO MAKE YEARLY PAYMENTS FOR 5 YEARS?
10. WHAT ARE THE EXPECTED RETURNS FROM MY CT POINTS?
11. I’M A LITTLE CONCERNED FOR THE FARMER – THEY GIVE THE LAND AND ALL THE WORK OF NURTURE AND HARVEST – I HOPE THEY GET THE VAST MAJORITY OF INCOME FROM CROP?

DO WE BUY THE TREES?: No, we acquire Coffee Tree Points (CT Points) when we make payments to fund campaigns.

WHAT ARE CT POINTS?: CT Points represent the number of trees the funding party is entitled to during the campaign. 1 CT Point = 1 mature coffee tree.

WHY CT POINTS?: Simply because we pool all the funds of a campaign and use them as needed to cover all needed expenses at the nursery and in the farm until they become mature and producing commercial amounts of coffee (set at 5 years for our CCP campaigns). There are many communal resources which farmers share and which cannot easily be pro-rated for each farm, so we use CT Points to as a way of ensuring that your number of trees remain constant for the duration of the campaign you fund.

A ONE-OFF PAYMENT FOR 5 YEARS NOW, OR COMMITMENT TO ANNUAL PAYMENT FOR NEXT 5 YEARS?: a commitment to annual payments for 5 years. This way, those funding and those taking care of the trees will build (hopefully lasting) relationships around the coffee tree. (Individuals with “deep pockets” cannot just “buy” their full 5-year campaign and sit back.)

IS THIS A DONATION OR RETURN ON INVESTMENT EVERY YEAR? IF RETURN, WHAT CAN YOU REASONABLY EXPECT IN DOLLARS PER TREE PER YEAR?: not a donation, rather process of “investing in one another”. Campaign contributors provide the fiscal means while farmers provide the human means (skill and labor) and real property (land) to ensure that the resulting coffee trees can be sold in markets that will generously reward their collaborative effort. The expected yield of coffee per tree is 2 to 3 pounds of export grade coffee. Cameroon Boyo Coffee (which is grown in this region) sells in the range of $2.50 to $3.50 in world markets.

WHAT IS THE “LIFE SPAN” OF MY CAMPAIGN / CT POINTS?: The Campaign Life is not yet determined, however it is expected to be in the range of 10 to 15 years. The campaign life will be set when some important parameters of the CCP are established, such as the split of net proceeds (between farmers and those funding) after the coffee is sold. This determination will be made during the pilot phase and initial non-pilot campaigns. The CCP is intended to empower all that participate in it and to build strong relationships. After a number of years, the fiscal partner would see a very significant fiscal benefit and the farmer partner would have gained some economic self-sufficiency. The parties, having built a strong relationship up to this point, may now freely enter into a longer term arrangement for their mutual benefits.

CAN I TRANSFER MY CT POINTS? CAN I CANCEL MY CT POINTS?:Yes, CT Points may be transferred, however, the original paper and/or electronic certificate must be cancelled and a new one issued in the name of the new beneficiary. CT Points cannot be cancelled, however, some of the total paid campaign funding may be refundable as dictated by the agreement signed at the start of the campaign. (Note that this provision does not apply to the pilot campaign.)

HOW SAFE ARE MY CT POINTS? HOW ARE THEY PROTECTED AGAINST LOSS?: Some seedlings will likely die before they become commercially viable coffee trees. The “communal” approach to the CCP means that when such losses occur, they are covered for by the entirety of the remaining (including producing) trees. A form of self-insurance, so even if the trees were not immediately replaced, the CT Points do not lose value.

I’M A LITTLE CONCERNED FOR THE FARMER – THEY GIVE THE LAND AND ALL THE WORK OF NURTURE AND HARVEST – I HOPE THEY GET THE VAST MAJORITY OF INCOME FROM THE CROP?: some checks and balances already exist in that there will be farmer-families involved in the pilot program to advocate for farmers. More importantly, this is main reason why we limit the “Campaign Life” to 10 to 15 years whereas the coffee tree can live for as much as 35 to 45 years and still be productive. So in the initial years, the farmers are partnering with the funding parties to quickly build capacity and financial empowerment. At the same time, the parties are forging relationships. At the end of  the campaign life, farmers become full owners of their coffee and free users of their land. At the farmers’ options at that time, they may elect to extend or enter into a different arrangement with the funding party.