ASUCD Resolution 26 states ASUCDs support for the Coffee House and the UC Davis campus community to become more socially and environmentally responsible purchasers of goods. See also Fair Trade and Fair Trade Coffee.

 Resolution 26 
WHEREAS, many students are looking for more socially conscious and environmentally responsible ways to conduct their lives, ways which do not degrade people, animals or the environment; and


WHEREAS, many coffee farmers receive market payments for their coffee which are less than the costs of production, forcing them into a cycle of poverty and debt; and


WHEREAS, intensive coffee farming also leads to environmental problems, such as pesticide pollution, deforestation and extinction of some bird species through habitat destruction; and


WHEREAS, Fair Trade works to correct these imbalances by guaranteeing a minimum wage for the small producers harvest, as well as encouraging the cultivation of coffee without the use of pesticides; and


WHEREAS, with the profit generated from receiving a fair wage, coffee growers are able to invest in such areas as health, education, and environmental protection; and


WHEREAS, more than 500,000 farmers in 20 countries produce and sell more than 32 million pounds of coffee each year through the fair trade network; and


WHEREAS, the United States consumes a fifth of all coffee  produced in the world, and as a whole consumes the greatest  amount of goods and services in the world, invests the most  capital, and thus wields tremendous influence in the global  economy; and


WHEREAS, cooperatively owned companies are more socially responsible; and


WHEREAS, a current example of a cooperatively owned company,  Equal Exchange, reinvests 80% of its profits in its fair trade mission of supporting small farmers and sustainable agriculture;  and


WHEREAS, Equal Exchange is a fullservice company which is  competitive with the current ASUCD supplier and which has experience with larger institutions; and


WHEREAS, ASUCD, as a purchaser of goods and services, has a  responsibility to ensure that funds are spent in a manner  consistent with decent ethical and labor standards, including  assuring that workers are paid a living wage, and purchasing  goods made in the most fair manner when possible; and


WHEREAS, a change towards sustainable coffee will bear positively on the University and its students, by setting an example in the community and furthering education about responsible consumer choices;


THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT, insofar as is judged practical  and feasible by the Coffee House management, ASUCD will purchase  coffee that is certified as Fair Trade, Organic organic, and shadegrown  by independent certifying agencies and that is from the most socially and environmentally responsible company available; and


THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT, ASUCD promote Fair Trade coffee  to the greatest extent at the Coffee House and continue to  investigate environmentally and socially responsible  alternatives for its purchases; and


THEREFORE BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT, ASUCD encourage  university and community leaders to adopt a similar policy of  social and environmental responsibility; and


THEREFORE BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED THAT, copies of this  resolution be sent to Chancellor Larry Vanderhoef; Sharon Coulson and Alex Park of the Coffee House; Global Exchange;  The California Aggie; The Davis Enterprise; The Sacramento  Bee; KDVS; and La Palabra, Because People Matter,  Java City, Starbucks, Café Roma, Delta of Venus,  Mishkas, City of Davis Chamber of Commerce, Davis City Council,  Davis City Manager, Retail Food Service Director of Sodexho Marriott Services, CURB Chair, and Oakland City Council Member  Nadel.
