A drastic turn of events in shaping America’s history, the Boston Tea party may have just paved the way for a drink to enter the spotlight—coffee. First introduced in the 15th century, coffee has accompanied society through ups and downs, setting off a spark as a motivating force of the world. Its popularity has earned it its own day: International Coffee Day, on October 1, 2022, to honor the craft of coffee-making and to celebrate a shared passion for the beverage.
Declared as a holiday in 2014, International Coffee Day has been organized to foster a “commitment to coffee farmers’ prosperity to reduce the coffee industry’s impact on the environment and mitigate climate change,” as emphasized by the International Coffee Organization. Highlighting the importance of a shift from a linear to a circular economy in the coffee sector by moving away from the traditional focus on profits, it is evident that there are many areas pertaining to sustainability, quality, and much more open for further improvement.
In line with International Coffee Day, the World’s Biggest Coffee Morning takes place on September 30, 2022. Gathering coffee lovers to enjoy together, this initiative extends to drinking with a purpose. This is in fact a fundraising event to support people living with cancer, where one can sign up to host a Coffee Morning and receive a Coffee Morning kit for fundraising records. Since 1990, this annual event has impacted many lives, from providing pay for support workers to helping people living with cancer and their families receive essential medical, practical and emotional support. Partnering with Costa Coffee and sponsored by Betty Crocker, the World’s Biggest Coffee Morning strives to donate for a great cause through the organization of coffee gatherings that one might have otherwise taken for granted.
It’s no surprise that coffee has found its way into the lives of many CA students. With particular emphasis, “Coffee is my life,” Maya Lin ’25 notes, “A coffee a day, keeps the doctor away.” In addition to the boost in energy levels, coffee can also support brain and heart health, and even potentially increase longevity. Although not a particular fan of coffee myself, I’ll wait until my college years before I embrace this seemingly inevitable addiction.
As the second largest traded commodity in the world, coffee has made an everlasting impact on individuals from all around the world. According to a study by the National Coffee Association, 64 percent of Americans drink coffee each day, where the average American spends about $1,097 on coffee each year. Echoing Maxwell House’s slogan coined by former U.S. president Theodore Roosevelt himself, coffee is truly “good to the last drop.”