2008 Woodie Awards
Make a fair decision
Liz Schmitt
Issue date: 2/15/07 Section: Op/Ed
- Page 1 of 1
Across campus, our coffee places are making the switch from just plain old coffee to organic Fair Trade. So what does that matter? Let's be realistic here. It's great to try and save the world, but we're college kids on a budget. Should we really be expected to change? Luckily, making this change has just become a lot easier here at the College.
Now, I'm a conscious consumer. I try to buy at least one organic item each time I am grocery shopping, but there are two problems with this. Firstly, it is expensive. Going all-organic simply isn't an option for most college students. Secondly, most of the organic food available in supermarkets isn't exactly sustainable. Organic greens, for instance, probably come from a subset of a giant produce corporation where business practices just barely meet the organic criteria and whose shipping distance and packaging habits certainly aren't environmentally sustainable. Furthermore, I know nothing about how the workers are treated or whether I'm being charged a fair price.
But one consumer decision I find easy to make comes around each holiday season. I have the opportunity to buy my Christmas gifts at the College's 10,000 Villages sale. I can give my friends and family gifts that are unique and handmade while I am ensured that the artists who make them are paid a living wage, since all the items are Fair Trade certified. And I don't need to burn any gasoline to get them either, since the shop is right here on campus.
Now the College has given us an even easier choice to make--one that allows us to make an environmentally responsible purchase every day. I cannot afford to fill my closet with organic cotton or fill my kitchen with organic groceries, but I can afford to fill my mug with Fair Trade organic coffee instead of the regular stuff. And anyone else can too, because we're not being charged extra for it.
Most coffee shops have a wide range of customers, and many don't care what they drink or where it comes from. When the majority of customers at one's shop are undergrads and professors, then there's a group of people who are either paying or being paid to think. Not all of us spend our days thinking about sustainability or developing countries. Many are focused on math, music or human evolution. But I'd like to think that we're all open to learning about the world around us. Whether you trust the positive-sounding name, "Fair Trade," you read the card on your Garden Room table or better yet, do a little research online, I'd like to encourage everyone not to let this opportunity pass by. There are so many difficult issues to think about these days--at least one has been partially simplified into a choice about what we pour into our coffee cup.
Now, I'm a conscious consumer. I try to buy at least one organic item each time I am grocery shopping, but there are two problems with this. Firstly, it is expensive. Going all-organic simply isn't an option for most college students. Secondly, most of the organic food available in supermarkets isn't exactly sustainable. Organic greens, for instance, probably come from a subset of a giant produce corporation where business practices just barely meet the organic criteria and whose shipping distance and packaging habits certainly aren't environmentally sustainable. Furthermore, I know nothing about how the workers are treated or whether I'm being charged a fair price.
But one consumer decision I find easy to make comes around each holiday season. I have the opportunity to buy my Christmas gifts at the College's 10,000 Villages sale. I can give my friends and family gifts that are unique and handmade while I am ensured that the artists who make them are paid a living wage, since all the items are Fair Trade certified. And I don't need to burn any gasoline to get them either, since the shop is right here on campus.
Now the College has given us an even easier choice to make--one that allows us to make an environmentally responsible purchase every day. I cannot afford to fill my closet with organic cotton or fill my kitchen with organic groceries, but I can afford to fill my mug with Fair Trade organic coffee instead of the regular stuff. And anyone else can too, because we're not being charged extra for it.
Most coffee shops have a wide range of customers, and many don't care what they drink or where it comes from. When the majority of customers at one's shop are undergrads and professors, then there's a group of people who are either paying or being paid to think. Not all of us spend our days thinking about sustainability or developing countries. Many are focused on math, music or human evolution. But I'd like to think that we're all open to learning about the world around us. Whether you trust the positive-sounding name, "Fair Trade," you read the card on your Garden Room table or better yet, do a little research online, I'd like to encourage everyone not to let this opportunity pass by. There are so many difficult issues to think about these days--at least one has been partially simplified into a choice about what we pour into our coffee cup.