Laura Rathmell

Laura is the Outreach & Engagement Specialist for Smithsonian Bird Friendly® program, working to grow demand and support for Smithsonian Bird Friendly certified coffee - the gold standard in biodiversity-friendly coffee and the only certification that guarantees that every bean sold is grown in a way that protects high-quality habitat for birds and other wildlife. In her role, she works to grow the Bird Friendly Community, and build new relationships with mission-aligned institutions. Her goal is to expand outreach and establish new potential points of sale for Bird Friendly certified coffee. Prior to joining the Bird Friendly team, Laura worked in the financial industry as a commodities and logistics analyst, where she managed relationships with coffee importers and other commodities clients. Laura wields a fantastic knowledge of and passion for Bird Friendly coffee, having written an award-winning thesis titled Coffee and Conservation: The Ecology and Marketing of Bird Friendly Coffee as part of her undergraduate degree at The University of Texas at Austin.