Growers Alliance is an organization that helps coffee growers in Kenya sell directly to the international market and raise money for community projects. Before 2005, Kenyan coffee growers could only sell to their government, which paid them pennies for their goods. Since then, a law has passed allowing them to sell to other buyers who are willing to pay a fair price. Growers Alliance set up an e-commerce website allowing anyone in the world to purchase a bag (or more) of coffee. A portion of the profits goes to community projects such as digging wells, providing electricity, building schools, and teaching women how to become more financially independent.

The main idea of the ad campaign is that good coffee does good. Each ad focuses on a community project that Growers Alliance provides the coffee growers. The first ad’s focus is on digging wells. This is an important project, because the streams running through the villages contain muddy water contaminated with pesticides from all the farming in the area. The dirty water creates sickness in the community. Growers Alliance’s solution is to build clean water wells in the villages. A single well can benefit up to 10 families.

The second ad focuses on the electricity project. Growers Alliance provides electricity to a community building where coffee growers can attend agricultural workshops that teach them sustainable farming methods.

The third ad’s focus is how Growers Alliance helps women become more financially independent. Women learn how to make handbags, carvings, rugs, and other items, then learn how to market them for sale.

The final ad focuses how Growers Alliance builds schools. Primary education is free for children through grade eight, but few villages have a building where children can learn comfortably. Most are made of mud and grass, but Growers Alliance is helping them build schools out of bricks. Uniforms and school supplies are also provided.

The process for making this ad campaign consisted mostly of handmade artwork. This reflects the handmade items women are taught to create and makes the ads more individual and personal. The material used to make the lettering is ground coffee and the backgrounds in the ads are espresso paintings. Even though much of the ad talked about the “doing good” aspect of the campaign, I wanted to keep it centered around coffee as well.