Lecture: "Eco-Labels and Ethical Consumption"
Food labeling is very much in the news: the U.S. House recently passed a bill limiting labels for GMOs (genetically modified organisms), and a companion bill is anticipated to be introduced in the Senate this fall. A New York Times poll has shown that 93 percent of American consumers want their food labeled with GMO information. But what exactly do these food labels mean? As the global marketplace sees an increase in ethical consumption practices, the complexities of environmental food labeling have become more difficult to disentangle and understand. In a September 22 talk --"Eco-Labels and Ethical Consumption" -- Patrick Heidkamp, chair of the SCSU Geography Department, will provide a critical assessment of the value of eco-labels, using the coffee and wine industries as examples. Heidkamp will speak at 5:30 p.m. at Southern on the Green, 900 Chapel St., 10th floor, New Haven.
Heidkamp, whose research focuses on the changing geographies in the agro-food sector, is also co-director of the Connecticut State University System Center for Environmental Literacy and Sustainability Education and an affiliate of the Economic and Social Rights Research Group at the University of Connecticut's Human Rights Research Institute.
His talk is an installment in #SocialSeries, a conversation series on current cultural topics -- global ideas in a local context -- hosted at Southern on the Green. Speakers include faculty and industry guests. Questions can be submitted ahead of time on Twitter to @SouthernOTG #SocialSeries. For more information, contact Alice Selverian at (203) 641-8437. Heidkamp's talk is free and open to the public.