Endless Grounds: Coffee's Social, Economic, and Cultural Life (Lecture)




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Coffee will provide a lively lens on major past and present issues, including climate change, social life, health, global North–South differences, social and economic justice, tourism, and slavery. We will begin “from the ground up,” tracing coffee from planting and processing through shipping and, ultimately, the beverage in our cups - part of nearly two billion cups consumed daily worldwide. We will explore coffee’s global history and its shift from an elite drink to an everyday staple. Drawing on current research, we will examine coffee and health, as well as practical questions such as how more income might reach farmers and how coffee production might adapt to a changing climate. The instructor will share firsthand experiences from coffee farms around the world, discuss a range of brewing methods, and demonstrate how coffee is brewed. Sessions will be interactive, with time for questions throughout.

Your instructor: Robert Thurston, PhD
Robert Thurston, PhD, is Emeritus Professor of History at Miami University (Oxford, Ohio). He earned a BA in History from Northwestern University and a PhD in modern Russian history from the University of Michigan. His writing spans twentieth-century Russian/Soviet history, witch hunts (Europe and Salem), the body in the Anglosphere (1880–1920), and coffee as an economic and social force. A devoted coffee educator, he has opened a roastery and coffee shop and has visited coffee farms from Asia to South America.

Class Dates and Time: Thursdays, July 9 through August 13
8am Pacific | 9am Mountain | 10am Central | 11am Eastern
Each session is 90 minutes. 
 
 Class schedule: Live lecture will take place on Thursdays via ZOOM 
  • 7/9/2026
  • 7/16/2026
  • 7/23/2026
  • 7/30/2026
  • 8/6/2026
  • 8/13/2026

June 30, 2026, 1pm Central is the Osher Online Member Orientation.

Class Details

6 Session(s)
Weekly - Thu

Location
Virtual - Any Location

Instructor
Osher Online 

Tuition: 

$70.00

Email olli@northwestern.edu for more information. Send to Friend »

Schedule Information

Date(s) Class Days Times Location Instructor(s)
7/9/2026 - 8/13/2026 Weekly - Thu 10:00 AM - 11:30 AM N/A, Virtual - Any Location  Map Osher Online 

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