University of California, San Diego
Tier2-5: Sustainable Enterprise

UC San Diego is home to various co-operative organizations. According to their website, the UC San Diego Co-ops are not-for-profit organizations that provide students, faculty, and staff with the highest quality merchandise and services at the lowest prices possible. For many, the Co-ops are a place to buy low-priced healthy food and textbooks and provide offbeat alternatives to the items and the atmosphere offered by mainstream merchant at UC San Diego. At US San Diego, there is The Che Cafe, The Food Co-op, The General Store Co-op, and Groundworks Books. Fundamentally, all of the Co-ops are an educational experiment in non-hierarchical organization. All members of the UC San Diego community are invited to participate in this experiment. Membership in a Co-op provides students with a chance to experience a non-hierarchical work environment and collective decision-making. By being a member, students receive discounts at all Co-ops, an equal voice in making decisions in the evolution of their Co-op, and a role in defining the atmosphere of the Co-op. Membership in the co-ops is open to anyone who wishes to continually volunteer about two hours a week at any Co-op.