The Cal Poly Initiative for Climate Leadership and Resilience (ICLR) is working to create a Collective Regeneration movement on campus and throughout San Luis Obispo County. Our goal is to mobilize campus and community members around the funding and implementation of climate-smart agricultural practices. Projects could include various resilient working lands treatments from the Cal Poly Ranches Carbon Farm Plan, farms within Cal Poly/Chartwell’s supply chains, or plans developed by local RCDs for farms and ranches in the local region. 

This letter provides a brief overview of the project: the benefits, the approach, and endorsements. We are seeking support from Cal Poly Partners to pursue campus implementation of this plan, which has overwhelming support from students, faculty, and stakeholders.

Launching a Collective Regeneration program could easily generate over $100,000 per year to accelerate regenerative land management and advance natural climate solutions on Cal Poly’s agricultural acreage and within Cal Poly’s supply chain, improving soil water holding capacity, biodiversity, fertility, and resilience. This program will benefit students and support the activities of AFD Facilities by advancing the Cal Poly Climate Action Plan and will distinguish Cal Poly from other major agricultural schools through its direct implementation of climate-smart agriculture projects. As an innovative “Table-to-Farm” program, Collective Regeneration can increase Cal Poly’s AASHE Stars rating, potentially helping Cal Poly reach Platinum status. Its effects will advance sustainability within the campus supply chain and through student-led educational initiatives around the climate and water impacts. 

ICLR has partnered with the nonprofit Zero Foodprint (ZFP) to realize this program. ZFP handles the backend collection and administration of funds, including working with vendors and other participants for point-of-sale collection, validation of agricultural projects.

ZFP is a 501(c)(3) that was recently named the James Beard Humanitarian Organization of the Year and the “Most Innovative Company in Agriculture” by Fast Company. ZFP is leading collaborations with the CA Department of Food and Agriculture and the California Air Resources Board to accelerate the transition to regenerative agriculture (letter attached). They have awarded $2.6 million of private sector funds and $4.9 million of government funds to over 500 farm projects in California, Oregon, and Colorado. 

ZFP can work with campus vendors to implement an optional 1% fee at the retail point of sale or during meal plan purchasing. The funds will be distributed to farmers and ranchers through ZFP’s Restore CA Grants to implement soil regeneration practices, such as compost application, cover crop seeding, rotational grazing, and other regenerative practices, as prescribed by the USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service. ZFP is a crowd-sourcing funding solution for the food system, modeled on renewable energy and recycling collective action programs with proven track records. Participation in ZFP will provide a simple and effective avenue for students to contribute to food security and climate action. 

We presented the ZFP concept in more than 50 Cal Poly lectures to over 1100 students and found overwhelming support for the program among the student body: 

• General Feelings: 87% reported being very concerned about climate change, 74% indicated strong support for local climate action, and only 6% indicated that Cal Poly is currently taking sufficient action on climate change mitigation
• Meal Plan: 84% stated they would opt to spend 1% more on a meal plan to support regenerative agriculture if given the option.
• Retail Sales: 94% support implementing a 1% optional fee at campus markets and restaurants 

The cost to Cal Poly for implementing this program through meal plans or retail sales is essentially $0.00, but it offers profound enhancement of Cal Poly brand value, expands awareness, and creates a direct impact. The Collective Regeneration program at Cal Poly will set a precedent for university-level action on food systems and natural climate solutions, help Cal Poly achieve Platinum STARS status, and meet the needs of thousands of students who experience climate anxiety daily and are seeking options for meaningful community-level action.