Conflict-Free Minerals Club passes SMMUSD resolution

The Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District (SMMUSD) Board of Education passed a student-proposed conflict-free minerals resolution.The resolution will require SMMUSD to examine the companies it buys electronics from for sound mining practices. The resolution was proposed by Samo’s Conflict-Free Minerals club.According to Club President Emma Gardner (’14), the club’s goal is to help spread awareness of how Americans affect the situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where the acquisition of these minerals leads to war and other conflicts. If consumers avoid buying products from electronics companies that buy and use tin, tantalum, tungsten and gold sourced from the Congo in their products, the consumer’s actions won’t inadvertently contribute to violence in the Congo.SMMUSD Board of Education President Ben Allen said that measures proposed by students are rarely passed.“It doesn’t happen every day, and something like this certainly hasn’t happened in a long time,” Allen said. “We have a tradition of student activists and we embrace it and celebrate it.”According to Gardner, the new measure will affect SMMUSD students.“Students will see a change in the new products that the district will purchase,” Gardner said. “They might never see a Sharp product again, because Sharp is one of the least responsible companies when it comes to [purchasing minerals].”Club member Leo Dastur (’14) said he and the rest of the club are pleased that the measure has been passed.“I believe that this is an important issue that we need to take steps to end, and that the fact that our club was able to have the district recognize this problem and to agree to take part in the fight against it is a major accomplishment,” Dastur said.Dastur has high hopes for the positive influence of the measure.“We hope that this measure will provide the groundwork for further steps to encourage Samo, the rest of the district and other local businesses to becoming responsible purchasers of electronics,” Dastur said. “We are by no means done, but this is undoubtedly an important step.”cdebeus@thesamohi.com