FROM THE EDITOR

“YOU MUST BE the change you wish to see in the world.”
      How many times have you seen this famous quote from Gandhi? Chances are, you’ve seen it so many times it might no longer make much of an impact. I’ve seen it on T-shirts, bumper stickers, journals, cards and, most recently, coffee cups.
      Despite the quote’s ubiquity, I still find myself reading it and thinking, “Yes, I believe that. But am I doing it?”
Sometimes the answer is yes. I try to treat people with respect and care. I try to make choices that are environmentally and socially sound. I go through each day with the intention to be true to who I am and what I believe, and to respect others who do the same.
      But I know that’s not always enough. It seems like a passive version of what Gandhi was talking about. Granted, everybody makes change in their own way, but after coming back from this year’s SCAA show in Long Beach, I was inspired and humbled by those who are putting this idea into action and making changes everywhere in the industry.
      So many roasters have embraced their desire to create social and environmental changes, whether through compostable cups, transparency contracts or long-term relationships. Many of the people who’d had complaints at the 2006 show—either about the show itself or the inner workings of the organization—were no longer harping about those issues. Instead, they’d spent the last year stepping up to the plate. They ran for board positions. They offered presentation proposals and assisted with classes. They brought in inspirational and moving speakers. They worked toward making an entire 9,000-person conference into a carbon-neutral event.
      In many ways, I think this willingness to work towards change is a coffee industry thing. How many people do you know who started their own cafés just because they were tired of only having big guys and/or bad coffee as options in their areas? How many roasters have helped you become better at what you do, just because they want to see the industry improve?
      There are some changes we’d like to make here at Roast too, for the betterment of our readers and the industry. But after the show, I realized I wasn’t putting my desire for change into action. Here are the changes we’d like to see in the future: For one, we’d like to fill our pages with more technical roasting articles. For another, we’d like to find roasters out there who are doing scientific research into coffee roasting, from roasting profiles to air flow to flavor profiles. For years, roasting has been an oral tradition, passed on from one roaster to another via internships and classes. Roast is the first magazine to put that information down on paper, and I want to make sure we’re getting it right, every time.
      So, here’s me, stepping up to the plate, and asking you to do so too. Are you doing some great roasting experiments that you’re really excited about? Would you be willing to share some of the research you’re doing in the cupping lab, at origin or in the roastery? Have you discovered a great roasting secret that you think would benefit other roasters? Is there a roasting issue you’re struggling with that you wish we’d cover?
      If you’re saying yes to any of these questions, I hope you’ll e-mail me at shanna@roastmagazine.com. I’d love to work together with you to create the changes we’d like to see in our pages. You are our readers, our writers and our inspiration. Together, I have faith that we can do amazing things. After all, as Gandhi asked, “What is faith if it is not translated into action?”
      Making change by taking action. Now that seems like a perfect quote for a coffee cup.

      Keep the flame burning,

      Shanna