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Write or Call WSU President Elson Floyd Today at:
Washington State University
Office of the President – President Elson Floyd
Phone Number: 509-335-6666
Sample Phone Script:
Please tell WSU President Floyd to:
I'm calling today to ask the President Floyd stand firm on academic freedom and include The Omnivore’s Dilemma in the university’s Common Reading Program.
It’s important that students at land grant universities be exposed to all ideas, especially those that challenge the orthodoxies of our times. Academic freedom at universities and freedom of speech are the foundation of a democracy and I believe that The Omnivore’s Dilemma is a crucial part of the ongoing debate in society about how food is produced in America and its impact on our nation’s citizens.
We encourage all interactions with WSU staff, whether written or spoken to be polite and respectful.
Email: PresidentsOffice@wsu.edu
Sample Letter:
Subject: Support Michael Pollan and Academic Freedom
Dear President Floyd,
I appreciate Washington State University’s original decision to select Michael Pollan’s award-winning book The Omnivore’s Dilemma to be read by all incoming freshman as part of the university’s Common Reading Program.
Pollan’s work is important, not because it takes a critical look at industrial agriculture, as it has been commonly portrayed in the media, but because Pollan gives a rational critique of organic practices and companies as well.
Regretfully, that original decision to include this important book, which was hailed by WSU scholars and students alike, has been reversed because of undue industry pressure. Since 4,000 copies of the book have already been bought, it would not only be a crime against academic freedom, but it would be financially wasteful as well.
Today, I join with thousands of Americans across the country asking that you stand up for intellectual honesty and academic freedom by reinstating the decision to allow all incoming freshman to read this harmless, yet wonderful book so they can make the decision themselves.
It’s a shame that WSU’s freshman may be denied the opportunity to read this important book as a result of industry influence.
We stand behind you to make the right decision and let academic freedom ring, please reinstate Michael Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilemma into the Common Reading Program.
Sincerely,
[Your name here
City, State]
If you like you can:
Invite President Floyd to an event to speak on academic freedom you can contact him here: http://pubforms.wsu.edu/president/renderer.aspx?FormID=1
Phone: 509/335-7932 or
Email: gkdruffel@wsu.edu
Sources:
1. WSU Selects “Omnivore’s Dilemma” as 2009 Common Reading Book for Freshmen – March 26, 2009
http://www.wsunews.wsu.edu/pages/publications.asp?Action=Detail&PublicationID=14154&PageID=&ReferrerCode=uggc%3A%2F%2Fjjj.jfharjf.jfh.rqh%2Fcntrf%2Ffrnepu.nfc%3FCntrVQ%3D%26Xrljbeqf%3Dzvpunry+cbyyna
2. WSU Common Reading Program – Cans Michael Pollan’s The Omnivore’s Dilemma – May 1, 2009
http://commonreading.wsu.edu/
3. WSU’s Book Controversy Shines Light on Big Ag’s Influence on Land Grant Schools – May 23, 2009
http://www.livablefutureblog.com/2009/05/wsus-book-controversy-shines-light-on-big-ags-influence-on-land-grant-schools/
4. Washington State's Dilemma: How to Serve Up a Book Criticizing the Food Industry - May 21, 2009
http://chronicle.com/daily/2009/05/18512n.htm
5. Washington State University - Say It Isn't So. Hey, Michael Pollan, I'll Pay Your Way to Pullman
http://www.marlerblog.com/2009/05/articles/lawyer-oped/washington-state-university-say-it-isnt-so-hey-michael-pollan-ill-pay-your-way-to-pullman/
| What's so Different about Hunters' Greens | | | |
| Written by Jim and Diane Hunter | |
| Thursday, 14 May 2009 14:08 | |
| Now that there are dozens of CSAs in Clark County, Jim and Diane are feeling a little deflated. When we were the only CSA, or one of a handful, we felt pretty special. But now, Well.... not so much. We can still say we are the oldest CSA, and at another level, we should be bursting with pride that the model we introduced to the county is going gang busters, and changing the face of agriculture in our community. But as you might imagine, Jim and Diane have never been content to be one of the crowd, so we find our selves itching to distinguish ourselves. Recently we have begun to understand and feel in our bones a set of values by which we can distinguish ourselves in a new way. This set of values combines good old depression era frugality with a more contemporary sense of conservation. In essence it turns one of the classic premises of economics on its head. Rather than striving to see how much we can make, we find ourselves striving to see how little we can live on. Now, intellectually this idea is not new to us. Jim was reading about it in the seventies. At that time, visionary economists like E.F. Schumacher and Herman Daly were beginning to question the assumptions of classical economic theory. They questioned the value of growth for growth's sake, and whether the size of a country's gross national product and it's rate of growth were meaningful measures of the country's economic, social and environmental health. They made the connection between ever expanding economies and environmental degradation and depletion of finite resources. They asked whether there might be other principals for guiding an economy that would result in healthier outcomes. One notion that Daly focussed on was that rather than simply measuring how much we produce, we should first ask ourselves towards what end or goal are we producing things, and how much of what do we want to produce to achieve our goals. Then we should go about figuring out how to achieve our goals using the least amount of finite resources and creating the least amount of pollution. For our first several years at Hunters' Greens we were at least partially stuck in the old model. We have been chasing a particular amount of gross farm income. We had read that CSA farmers Bob and Bonnie Gregson had achieved this amount, which years ago was the average family income in their region. Later, we chased a similar amount because the U.S.D.A.'s Census of Agriculture found that the top quarter of farms in the country make this amount or more. We felt that surely if we belonged to this group, we would be deemed significant. This magical level of income has always remained just out of reach, but we increasingly find we are managing on less. But our need to feel our work was meaningful and not be written off as a "hobby farm" or "hippy dropouts" continued to drive us to achieve that "magical" income bracket. This drive was fed by remarks by local government officials that farms less than ten acres were not "really" farms, and could not support a family. In terms of land use policy, their judgement matters, and a study they commissioned argued that a farm that did not produce a $40,000 family wage job did not deserve protection as an agricultural resource. But the logic of Daly leads to different conclusions. If we can demonstrate that we can meet our goal of providing an income to support a frugal and sustainable lifestyle using less land, fewer finite resources, and causing less pollution, then the land in Clark County should by extension be able to support more farm families while depleting fewer resources and causing less pollution. In turn, by employing more of our population in an industry that utilizes local resources, we would be able to reduce commuter traffic, and the considerable resources and pollution that represents. We would would need less land for roads. More of the family and business revenue would be spent locally, creating a stronger economic multiplier effect and generating more tax revenue. And if these farms have the infrastructure and markets in place to be successful (by the measure of their own goals and aspirations), then this will reduce the desire for farmers to sell out to developers, and thereby conserve more open space, maintaining a better quality of life in the community. As E.F. Schumacher put it in a nutshell, "Small IS Beautiful!" So if we follow Daly's model of defining success as achieving a set of meaningful goals with the minimum use of resources, the experiment we are living at Hunters' Greens becomes a model crying to be replicated across our community, not only in agriculture, but potentially in a wide variety of local resource based industries, and in every household. DO WE MATTER? YES WE DO! |
There is a revolution happening in the farm fields and on the dinner tables of America -- a revolution that is transforming the very nature of the food we eat.
THE FUTURE OF FOOD offers an in-depth investigation into the disturbing truth behind the unlabeled, patented, genetically engineered foods that have quietly filled U.S. grocery store shelves for the past decade.
From the prairies of Saskatchewan, Canada to the fields of Oaxaca, Mexico, this film gives a voice to farmers whose lives and livelihoods have been negatively impacted by this new technology. The health implications, government policies and push towards globalization are all part of the reason why many people are alarmed by the introduction of genetically altered crops into our food supply.
Shot on location in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, THE FUTURE OF FOOD examines the complex web of market and political forces that are changing what we eat as huge multinational corporations seek to control the world's food system. The film also explores alternatives to large-scale industrial agriculture, placing organic and sustainable agriculture as real solutions to the farm crisis today.
Meet Organic Valley Farmers and See "Good Food" at Cinema 21!
Contact: Mark McCauley, General Services,
Community garden to open at county property in Hazel dell
This community garden program is among several interim uses occurring at the property this summer. A broader community effort is underway to determine long-term future uses for the site. A county-sponsored public workshop April 9 attracted more than 160 people who shared their ideas about future use of the property serving agricultural, historical and community needs.
For more information about potential future uses at the site, go to the project web page at www.clark.wa.gov/78WSU. This web site also offers an online survey to gather additional public feedback about preferred uses to be integrated into a draft concept site plan later this year. A master planning process will follow the concept plan, and provide a more detailed look at opportunities for future uses of the property, according to the county.
Check it out! A new community organized and sponsored event happening first Friday of the month in the evah so chic Uptown Vancouver district on Main Street. Come on out and support Craft in the Village, an Independent Grassroots Community Event. See ya'there!
Here's the details:
Our fair will be located in the parking lot of One World Merchants 2315 Main St. Vancouver, WA. 98660
We will have room for roughly 15 10x10 booths and 4x6 table spaces in the lot and the sidewalks out front. We will have an area set up with music and performers scheduled and are looking for an affordable setup for the summer as well. We are looking to build up our vendor list, we are looking for art, photographers, crafters, knitters, food vendors, and other handmade art, so please contact with any inquiries: craftinthevillage@gmail.com..There will be room for vendors tables on the sidewalks with permission of the store owners. Think Last Thursday style. We are trying to line the streets with artists and a festival type atmosphere. If you are interested in vending contact Chris at: craftinthevillage at gmail dot com
