Objective: To encourage ethical consumerism in the United States.
Ethics
What are they? Who has them and to what extent?
Ethics, viewed differently on an individual basis (as we will see) are the way we conceptualize morality by examining issues such as right and wrong, good from bad, freedom, liberty, and so on. As we live our lives, ethical decisions are made dozens of times throughout each day. We make these decisions when interacting with others, when we make purchasing decisions, and by our deeds.
I put an emphasis on purchasing decisions because this is humanities way of voting. When we spend our money on a product, we support it's maker and with our dollars, keep that business alive. Without our dollars there would be no business.
It dawned on me the other day that the top two things that we consider before we purchase a product are price and quality, but at what price do we sacrifice quality for? Perhaps 10% lower, maybe 20? I then wondered, if many people consider a third option, which would be the products origin. Origin is an all encompassing word for...
- How the product is made
- Where it comes from
- Who makes it
- And how those people, animals, or materials are treated
***There are many establishments that do not consider origin, yet, are still supported by the people because there products are priced slightly lower than the competitions.
The Coffee House Model
Greenville is a medium sized neighborhood with 4 coffee houses owned by 4 different people named Joe, Jack, John, and Jim. On the North side of town, Joe has his jazz inspired coffee house where music advocates convene to talk about music. Jack also has his coffee shop on the same side of town where he specializes in French dessert. John, who's coffee shop is on the southern side of town is near a university which is the local student hang out. Jim's shop is 8 blocks away from Johns and is where Greenville teachers like to grab a coffee and mingle. As you can see, each shop has something unique to offer the community. They all offer premium coffee at 2 dollars a cup. One day a man named Earny decides to open up a coffee shop right in the middle of town and only charges a 1.50 per cup! When the word get's out, everyone from Greenville starts buying coffee from there because it was cheaper and convenient. Earny gets to sell his coffee at 1.50 because the people who grow and ship the coffee to him use children to harvest the beans, and pay them 3 dollars an hour. Joe, Jack, John, and Jim all made sure that their coffee beans come from places where the workers are taken care of and are paying them 5.75 an hour. Joe, Jack, John, and Jim are given the ultimatum to close their business's or find others farmers that use underpaid children as workers, so that they too, can buy cheaper beans and sell coffee at 1.50 per cup just like Earl. One early morning, a stranger came into town and went directly to the University. He spoke to the students about the importance of communal decision making, ethics, and explained how Earny came to selling coffee at such low prices. On the next grim morning Joe, Jack, John, and Jim began hanging their "out of business" signs when shockingly, their doors caved in by hoards of enthusiastic, educated buyers. 5 months later Earny went out of business.
Would you be willing to pay .50 cents more for your cup of coffee?
Hi Folks please take a moment to fill out this survey, Thank You
1) What is the most important deciding factor to you when buying a product? (circle one)
Price------quality------environmental impact
2) As a consumer, do you feel that you have the power to make change by your purchasing decisions? Yes------------No
3) When making a purchasing decision, do you consider the environment? Yes----No
4) When making a purchasing decision do you consider the people who made the product? Yes-------------------------No
5) Do you believe in buying organic products?
Yes---------------No
6) Would you consider buying organically if the prices were the same as non organic products? Yes -------------------No
7) If you had to, could you explain clearly what the term fair trade means? Yes------------------------------No
8) Do you believe that when you buy a product, you are voting? Yes---------No
9) Do you feel that ethics and buying are interrelated? Yes------------No
10) Would you like to learn more about environmental and people friendly buying?
Yes-----------------No
11) In your opinion, were ethics frequently a classroom discussion in High School or College? Yes----------------No
1)Price
ReplyDelete2)No
3)yes
4)No
5)yes
6)yes
7)no
8)yes
9)yes
10)yes
11)Not really
1.) quality
ReplyDelete2.) Yes
3.) Not really
4.) Yes (I don't like to buy products from countries that are not American allies)
5.) No, but I hear the food is healthier for you
...6.) I guess - Although price isn't usually the determining factor in my purchasing decisions7.) Yes
8.) Yes
9.) Yes
10.) No
11.) Yes
1. quality
ReplyDelete2. no
3. yes
4. yes
5. yes
...6. yes
7. yes
8. yes
9. yes
10. yes
11. yes
1) Quality , 2) of course, 3) rarely, 4) yes, if they are anti american i dont buy it....for example france, i never buy bic lighters or grey goose (ketel one all the way), 5) No - too expensive 6) yes 7) yes, a system of trade policy that... allows traders to trade across national boundaries without interference from the respective government, 8) no thats crap, while lobbying is prevalent in politics, lobbying alone is not what gets a politician elected, it may fund his campaign but ultimately I vote based on my feelings about a candidates position not how well articulated their campaigning is, 9) to some extent, for example dont buy products made by 9 year olds in china getting paid 3 cents for a days work, 10) No i understand the concept and its just not economical for a person in my position 11) Not in high school, but a little in college and it is stressed heavily in law school believe it or not
ReplyDeleteQuality
ReplyDeleteYes
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
1. Quality & Environmental Impact - depends on how much of an impact it really is, then the quality wouldn't matter.
ReplyDelete2. Yes
3. Yes
4. Yes
5. Yes
6. Yes - but I buy organic even if it's priced more.
7. Yes
8. YES - 100% - A good example is when BP spilled oil, and when people continue to use BP Gas, your voting for that company to stay in power and continue to make millions.
9. For me, yes. I don't know about most people in this country.
10. Yes
11. Hmm...High school - Yes...College - No