Julia Goldasich

Professor Marx

English 145

10 June 2009

Empower Poly Coalition

In today’s culture, marked by a seemingly insatiable consumer demand, is sustainability really attainable? Sustainability is defined as meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs (U.S. EPA). This definition implies that sustainability would most likely be achieved when individuals use goods in moderation and conserve through actions such as recycling. Cal Poly San Luis Obispo’s Empower Poly Coalition, EPC, recognizes this and hopes to reform unsustainable practices by unifying the student voice for a sustainable future in a coalition of 27 member clubs (EPC).

Ben Eckold, the former president of the EPC, says “EPC prides itself in building a community of clubs and student networks to further sustainability actions… at Cal Poly and in San Luis Obispo.” Eckhold realizes the diversity found in large numbers grants them “a wide spectrum of interests… [which allows the coalition to] better understand the issues confronted and the solutions… possible.” EPC is best known for putting on Focus the Nation, an educational event on sustainability, which drew a crowd of over 4,000 students and community members this year. (Hartrich). Focus the Nation “is a nationwide educational symposium… [that occurs] at over 1000 university campuses simultaneously on February 5, 2009… [to discuss] solutions that will both solve climate change and revitalize our economy” (Focus). Tyler Hartrich, the Vice President “Grass Roots Organizer” of the EPC, says EPC plans to broaden its focus by introducing new campaigns next year, including “The Green Initiative Fund, Take Back The Tap, Real Food Challenge, Composting, [and] Banning of Bags/bottles.”

According to Hartrich, awareness is the key to sustainability, which EPC promotes through “news updates, information, events, programs, and campaigns.” The EPC, geared towards Cal Poly students, hopes students become more green by becoming educated on the environmental movement through the EPC website or other environmental websites, subscribing to the EPC email list, or attending EPC meetings which are also featured on the website (Cannizzo). The “Calendar” section on their website advertises scheduled events that one may attend, such as the Green Printing Club’s meetings (EPC), which focuses on ways to make the printing process on campus more eco-friendly (Green Printing). The EPC website also includes a “Green Spot” tab, which makes student articles from the Mustang Daily newspaper accessible (EPC). For instance, “Find your Niche in the Scheme of Green,” by Eckold, emphasizes the need to integrate ideas of sustainability into one’s professional future in order to remain competitive, and thus be profitable (EPC). “Green Living Tips” are also displayed on the EPC website, which give two environmentally friendly suggestions each week. This week’s tips suggested “turn[ing] your thermostat back to 68 degrees [to]… save 10-15% on heating and cooling,” or “tak[ing] shorter showers… to cut 2 minutes off your shower time and save as much as 700 gallons per month” (EPC). The EPC website, in addition to their monthly meetings, serves as an informative tool that focuses on how individuals can reduce their environmental footprint and get involved in EPC clubs.

One of the EPC clubs is the Student Community Services Environmental Council, a program that strives to make a positive impact on the environment (Student Community). Environmental Council focuses on improving the local environment through the use of volunteer events, such as beach cleanups in Avila, that occur the first Saturday of each month (Student Community). Environmental Council also organizes tree plantings and Earth Day, and encourages volunteers to bike to each event or carpool (Student Community).

The Cal Poly Zero Waste Program, an active member of the EPC, focuses on reducing the generation of solid waste through recycling and composting (Zero Waste). Their website offers “Green Facts,” which communicate surprising facts to the reader in an attempt to raise awareness and refine individual actions. It’s likely many people do not recycle materials or conserve energy because they underestimate their personal impact on the environment. One statement listed under “Green Facts” read, “1 Ton of Recycled paper saves 17 trees, 390 Gallons of oil, 81 cubic feet of landfill space, 4000 Kilowatt hours, and 7000 gallons of water!” (Zero Waste). This is an efficient way of showing individuals how crucial it is to live sustainably because it depicts how much an individual directly affects their surroundings.

EPC and its members promote awareness as the key to attaining sustainability. Zero Waste makes presentations on sustainable topics, such as the “Life of Food” presentation, which highlights the importance of eating sustainably and how to do so (Zero Waste). Firstly, eating lower on the food chain is encouraged because meat production is associated with half the water consumption in the US and 18 percent of greenhouse gasses (Zero Waste). The presentation also evaluates various brands of beer, recognizing New Belgium Beer for being a 100 percent wind powered brewery with 50 percent water conservation in comparison to a typical brewery, while Miller is listed as part of the number two worst companies on earth (Zero Waste). Given the fact that this club is geared towards college students, and college students are known for consuming massive amounts of alcohol, it is a very relevant topic and further empowers students to make environmentally friendly decisions.

Zero Waste’s presentation, “Life of Food,” also includes a “Better World Shopping Guide,” which lists common supermarkets and evaluates them. Local farmer’s markets received the highest grade of an “A+” (Zero Waste). Zero Waste touches on the reasons behind this and provides additional sources of information on the topic. For instance, Rhonda Abrams, the author of numerous books and tools for business plans, observes small business generally have “outstanding customer service,” in comparison to big companies, which have begun to rely primarily on their brand name instead (Abrams). Abrams also observes that when you shop at “a local business, you improve your local economy, create jobs, keep money flowing throughout your community, build your tax base, and support your schools, fire and police departments.” Although some argue prices at local businesses such as farmer’s markets are higher than those at large companies, Abrams argues that it evens out considering less money is spent on transportation. Additionally, less auto pollution is emitted and reliance on foreign oil is reduced, making the choice to shop locally very beneficial (Abrams).

The EPC has grown to find “inherent strength in numbers,” (Eckold) which not only allows them to further implement activities, events, and education, but has also given them political clout within the community. For instance, the EPC “helped to elect two county supervisors, Jim Patterson and Adam Hill, along with two city council members, John Ashbaugh and Jan Marx” (Eckhold). Having a say in the political world is one of EPC’s most crucial accomplishments because it enables the selection of eco-friendly leaders, which have the power to further achieve sustainable practices outside of the community. Ultimately, the EPC is a valuable program at Cal Poly with revolutionary ideas and remarkable success.

Works Cited

Abrams, Rhonda. "When you patronize local businesses, the money stays in your town".

USA Today.<http://www.usatoday.com/money/smallbusiness/ columnist/abrams/2007-01-26-shop-locally_x.htm>.

Cannizzo, Francesca. Empower Poly Coalition: Membership coordinator. 27 May 2009.

Eckhold, Ben. Empower Poly Coalition: Former president. 1 June 2009.

“Empower Poly Coalition.” <http://empowerpoly.calpoly.edu/Empower_

Poly_Coalition.html>

“Focus the Nation.” <www.focusthenationslo.com>

“Green Printing in Southern California.” California Green Solutions. <http://ww

w.californiagreensolutions.com/cgi-bin/gt/tpl.h,content=10>

Hartrich, Tyler. Empower Poly Coalition: Vice President “Grass Roots Organizer.” 27

May 2009.

“Student Community Services Environmental Council.” <http://studentlife.calpoly.edu

/scs/programs/environmental.asp>

“U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.” <http://www.epa.gov/sustainability/

basicinfo.htm#sustainability>

“When you patronize local businesses, the money stays in your town.” USA Today.

“Zero Waste Cal Poly.” <http://www.geocities.com/zero_waste/>