The problem facing our world, not just the University of California Educational System, but the entire planet, is the proliferation of plastic materials. Which, inevitably find their way into the ocean and thereby kill our marine life. We need to ban plastics completely from the UC System AND the entire US Educational System. But first, lets start at University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).  

I worked at Bruin Cafe at UCLA, and the levels of plastic straws, lids, and bags that would end up being thrown into a nearby garbage can (later transported to a landfill) was ASTOUNDING. College students should come together to stop plastic materials from entering into our schools and into our oceans. Because if we continue to kill marine life, we will eventually kill off own species. For example, if the fish population significantly decreases, their predators, such as sharks, will begin to die off. We humans, are also fish predators, and if we kill off the fish, we lose our food source. Micro-plastics (which are polyethylene found in many North American face washes) are polluting the Pacific Ocean and clouding the water, making sunlight incapable of reaching plankton and algae (whom are producers that act as a food source for succeeding fish life). So, instead of allowing plastics to seep down to the bottom of the ocean to: a) block sunlight from reaching producers and b) becoming a food source for our crustaceans (whom act as a food source for succeeding predators, themselves and thereby die due to insufficient nutrients from plastic, which, there are none), lets recycle the current plastic we have and convert our present use of materials to a 100% compostable planet.

Compost is an amazing alternative resource, because many items are compostable and can be converted into useful materials for studious college students: textbooks, pencils, backpacks, cups, lids, straws, utensils, plates, containers, student ID cards, bags, and shoes; literally most items that Universities provide for students can be converted to compostable material. Therefore, if the UC System completely converts to compost,  I can say that humanity will be one step closer toward a cleaner, healthier Earth. The aim of this petition is to start in the UC System and make it's way to all schools throughout the US and subsequent countries. Therefore, lets make headway in education by leading by example. The better we conglomerate as a educational system to provide students with invaluable knowledge on how to preserve the earth, the less damage will be inflicted by plastic. Moreover, current and future generations of students will learn how to compost and recycle their materials in a progressive manner that does not deplete the earth's resources, nor harm its' inhabitants (all species; fish, birds, humans, etc).

The only way we can get this to be a true possibility is through the convergence of us, the students! We want educated individuals to prosper throughout the world! We want change! We are the future of OUR earth, so let's spread this petition and vote YES. Yes to cleaner oceans. Yes to cleaner soil. And YES to a better world!