Dossier Geohistory of coffee in Latin America

The general aim of this dossier is to contribute to comparative discussion of the geohistorical trajectories of coffee in Latin America and the Greater Caribbean from its early stages up to the present and for various periods, setting them within a long-term perspective. We seek to do this by shedding light on the various scales -both national and regional or territorial, cross-border or supranational, from farms to the broadest trade circuits- of all aspects of coffee-related activities.

In the cross-disciplinary field of Geohistory, where geographical and historical approaches as well as those of other natural and social sciences come together and enhance each other, we can address both the special variability and the shared traits of Latin American coffee production. This approach also enables studies of changes and continuities in the special, technical and social organization of the various phases of coffee as an economic activity: harvesting, gathering, processing, transport and distribution, both domestically and overseas. Likewise, the study of interactions between Society and Nature in coffee-producing territories or regions, as well as their co-evolution over time is clearly significant. Along these lines, mutual influences, various types of exchanges and converging or diverging trends of coffee-related activities in the countries of Latin America and the Greater Caribbean are also relevant and significant aspects of this approach. Finally, in local production systems and in regional agrarian systems, in the national economies where coffee has been a major export, and in the world economy of each period, it is crucial to consider interactions between coffee and other commodities. In recent times, these interactions have also involved other legal or illegal products in the region that supply certain market segments and influence financial flows and commercial exchanges, as well as the labor-force mobility and the circulation of knowledge, technical inputs and information, among other aspects.

Finalmente, tanto en los sistemas de producción locales como en los sistemas agrarios regionales, en las economías nacionales donde el café ha constituido un rubro de exportación significativo, y en la economía-mundo propia de cada período, resulta imprescindible considerar las interacciones entre el café y otros commodities. En tiempos recientes, estas relaciones se extienden también a otras mercancías (legales o no) que, desde la región, abastecen a determinados segmentos del mercado e inciden en los flujos financieros y comerciales, laborales y de conocimientos, insumos técnicos e información, entre otros.

We invite those proposing articles for this Dossier to frame their studies in the broader context of geohistorical processes at greater geographic and time-scales; to explore connections among short-, medium- and long-term dynamics, and also among local or regional and national as well as international systems.

For this, we suggest two core questions regarding geohistorical studies at various spatial and time-scales:

1) How to link the process studied with broader historical (economic, social, political, cultural) forces that shape it, but whose scope goes beyond the immediate geographical area studied?

2) How does the process studied fit in longer time-scales?

We suggest the following thematic areas:

• Significance of coffee in local production systems, rural landscapes and agrarian systems.
• Changes and continuity in the spatial, technical and social organization of coffee growing and harvesting; collection centers; processing, transportation and distribution both within each country and overseas.
• Relative availability of production factors: land, labor, capital, and technology.
• Geographical distribution and socioeconomic differentiation of the various coffee production systems and of related practices and inputs.
• Introduction and dissemination of different species or new varieties.
• Spread of coffee pests or diseases and their effects on production and on farming systems.
• Scientific research, extension services, and experimentation in coffee by innovative farmers.
• Verified and foreseeable impacts of climate change on coffee growing altitudes and locations of Arabica and Robusta in the various countries or regions.
• Changing interactions among participants along the respective coffee commodity chains or sub-chains and their links.
• Nature of and transformations in gender relations in coffee-related activities in different regions or countries.

The guest co-editors of this dossier are:

• Dr. Rafael de Bivar Marquese,
Professor in the History Department and co-coordinator of the Laboratorio de Estudios sobre Brasil y el Sistema Mundial (Lab-Mundi), University of Sao Paulo
E-mail: marquese@usp.br

• Dra. Andrea Montero
Professor in the History Department and in the Graduate Program in History at Universidad de Costa Rica. Coordinator of the Environment, Science, Technology and Society Program at the Centro de Investigaciones Históricas de América Central (CIHAC), Universidad de Costa Rica
E-mail: histmont@gmail.com

• Dr. Mario Samper K.
Independent researcher and international consultant
E-mail: mario.samper@gmail.com

Time-table

• 06/30/2026 Extended abstract (up to 1000 words)
• 07/31/2025 Virtual workshop
• 12/15/2026 First manuscript for review
• January - July 2027 Review rounds
• 09/18/2027 Final manuscript for publication
• 11/30/2027 Publication of dossier in regular issue

Format

Final date to send the extended summary: June 30, 2026.

Send the Word file as an attachment in an e-mail to the three guest editors, indicating as subject matter: HAAL Geohistory of coffee in Latin America

The summary should state the title and topic, geographical scope and period covered; the key question or issue to be addressed; the main thesis or hypothesis; main conceptual references and methodological strategy, including the types of primary sources.

Final date to send article manuscripts: December 15, 2026, to
https://www.haal.cl/index.php/haal/about/submissions

Manuscripts must adhere to the format and citation system of HAAL: https://haal.cl/index.php/haal/instruccionesenvio

 

In accordance with HAAL’s editorial policy, this dossier will include manuscripts in Spanish, Portuguese and English.