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Tools and Resources

How to Introduce a Green Foods Resolution in Your City or Town

Introducing a Green Foods Resolution in your city is a great way to raise awareness about issues that too often seem disconnected from our everyday lives. Most of us have never seen a factory farm but we are still impacted – every single day – by how these “farms” operate. Industrialized farming is not only detrimental to the health of humans, but also to local and global ecosystems, and even to our economy. The problems range from rising obesity and heart disease rates, pollution of our air and waterways, and the cruel, intensive confinement of billions of farm animals. Many of us address these concerns through our purchasing power — opting out of consuming animal-based products and doing our best to purchase food that is grown locally and responsibly. But there is also another powerful way that we can address these concerns, and that is through the power of local government.

Introducing a local resolution enables you to address global issues in your own community. Though the specifics of each city’s resolution may differ slightly, the general goal behind passing a Green Foods Resolution is to have your city officially recognize the importance of promoting and supporting a sustainable food system and to highlight the need for eating low on the food chain — in other words, eating a plant-based diet and supporting local, organic food production.

A Green Foods Resolution campaign creates an incredible opportunity to connect with fellow activists, build relationships with local government officials, and, most importantly, educate the public on some very important issues. Though the goal is to get your resolution passed, even if that doesn’t happen, your campaign will have made people think about a connection too often overlooked — the connection between farm and plate.

Below, you will find some helpful tips on how to introduce a Green Foods Resolution in your city, as well as a Sample Draft Resolution.

Before you start, there are a few key questions to consider:

• What do you want to accomplish by passing a resolution?

Raise public awareness? Involve other activists? Do you want to use the passage of a local resolution as leverage with your State Legislature or Congressional Representative? Or maybe all of the above? Defining your goals will help shape the type of resolution that you want to introduce and give structure to your campaign.

• How feasible is it that your local resolution will pass?

Speak with fellow activists and community leaders. If there appears to be little hope that the resolution will pass, don’t throw in the towel! Perhaps you could go to a neighborhood association or community board and garner support for the resolution. Or, you might even start with a campaign in a nearby smaller, and hopefully more progressive, suburb or town. Once you have some successes, you can then return to your city with more credibility and leverage.

Plan Your Campaign

• To bind or not to bind? You may decide that you want to pass a binding resolution that will actually affect city policies, or introduce a non-binding resolution that is simply an expression of an opinion. Non-binding resolutions are generally easier to pass.
• Build your coalition. The strongest campaigns are the ones that involve a coalition of groups and individuals. Who else do you know who might be interested in working to help pass the resolution?
• Organize and assign roles. Organizing your campaign effort will make all the difference as the campaign picks up momentum down the road. Host a teach-in to make sure that everyone knows the issues and their assigned tasks. Together, everyone can spread the word and gather endorsements.
• Gather endorsements. By gathering a broad list of endorsements, you are showing the public, the media and your city’s legislators that you have serious support and credibility.
• Create a timeline. Find out when your city’s legislature meets and how long it typically takes for a resolution to be passed.

Identify a Sponsor

• Finding that special someone. Find a person in local government who will take ownership of your issue and introduce your resolution before your city or town council. You can identify a sponsor by investigating officials’ voting records and asking your coalition partners if they have any allies among lawmakers.  
• Frame your resolution. Determine how to pitch the resolution through the filter of the legislature’s interests. Make sure to frame your resolution in a way that leaves no doubt of the resolution’s relevancy to your community.
• Make contact with your sponsor. Have a coalition member living within your chosen official’s district request a meeting with the representative. You can have one or two coalition members attend, or bring together a diverse group to represent your cause. Prepare a strong case for why the resolution is important and why the city should pass it. When you meet with your sponsor, bring her/him a copy of this helpful one-pager that describes the resolution and provides sample language.
• Get out the vote! During the meeting, request that your sponsor introduce the resolution to the legislature for a vote. Bring along sample text to the proposed resolution, discuss its contents, and offer to adjust the language based on the sponsor’s input.

Work with City Staffers

• Create relationships with city and county staff. Whereas elected officials may work part time and hold office temporarily, city and county staff have more permanent positions. These staff members are most keenly aware of existing initiatives that could strengthen your campaign, and which members are already supportive of your interests.

Get the Public Involved!

• Gain public support. A campaign with real public support provides your resolution with the driving force it needs to succeed. There are several ways you can get the public involved.
• Get word out to the media. This step definitely takes some strategizing. Once your resolution is introduced and scheduled for a vote, you may consider contacting local media outlets asking them to do a story about your campaign. But be mindful that in some cases, it might be wiser to fly under the radar and not draw attention to the resolution prior to a vote, so as not to stir up opposition. We encourage you to contact us for suggestions and help with the media. You can reach us by e-mail at activist@farmsanctuary.org or by phone at 607-583-2225 ext. 229.
• Host an event. Consider holding a meeting or event to talk to your fellow residents about the resolution. You can screen a film that addresses your issue or invite an inspiring speaker into the community to talk about why the resolution is important.

Lobby the Council

• Contact each council member. Make sure all of the representatives on the legislature have a packet of information about your resolution. The packet should include the draft resolution, your list of endorsers, a few key statements, and a fact sheet. Make sure members get their packets in plenty of time to review before the day of the vote. Follow up with each member to answer any questions and assess whether he or she will vote in favor of the resolution. Making polite personal contact, either in person or by phone, is important in securing votes.
• Keep the public involved! As the date of the vote approaches, encourage residents across the city to call or write their representatives urging them to support the resolution.
• Committees and subcommittees. Especially in cases involving binding resolutions, committees or subcommittees may consider the resolution before the full legislature does. Make sure you attend these hearings and present the arguments for your resolution during public comments.
• Strength in numbers! On the day your resolution is to be voted on, make sure you have plenty of supporters there. Encourage them to speak in favor of the resolution during the public comments sections, and have a few people ready with prepared remarks.
• Speakers. The day of the vote is your final chance to show that the community really cares about your issue. Gather together a range of speakers from different age groups and professions. Each speech should be unique but stress the ways in which the resolution directly impacts the city and its residents. For more tips on how to speak before a Council check out our Web page, "How to Testify for Farm Animals.”

Follow Up

• If your resolution passes…Congratulations! But your work isn’t done just yet. Publicize your win! Keep in touch with your sponsor and city staff to make sure that what the resolution calls for is actually implemented.
• If your resolution doesn’t pass…you can still turn your collaborative effort into a victory! Whether the resolution passes or not, solidify the contacts you’ve made by writing thank-you letters to everybody who was helpful throughout the process, including members of the city legislature. If you would like to try introducing the resolution again, continue your education of elected officials, build an even stronger base of public pressure, and reword the resolution so it can be reintroduced at a later date.

Either way, be sure to let us know what happens. You can contact us at activist@farmsanctuary.org or 607-583-2225 ext. 229.