Procurement Partners with Tenderloin Community
UCSF’s Anchor Institution Initiative Procurement Subcommittee, co-chaired by Supply Chain Management's (SCM) Strategic Procurement Executive Director Andrew Clark and Red Dipper owner Doug Parish, hold monthly meetings to bring together University and community partners to work on improving UCSF’s use of local, small and diverse suppliers.
For the March meeting, SCM's Marliz Copado invited Lorraine Lewis and Helen Bean of the Tenderloin Community Benefit District to talk about their organization and provide an overview of the merchants in the tenderloin.
After reviewing demographic and survey data collected over the past two years, Copado met with Helen and Lorraine to continue their discussion around the pipeline of restaurants they had been working with to go live in SCM's Supplier Diversity Catering Program with America To Go. Copado also will be looking for more opportunities where Tenderloin-based businesses can support University suppliers, as they support us (a strategy generally called Tier II diverse spend).
“When I think of underserved areas of San Francisco, the one I am most familiar with is the Tenderloin. It was home to some cool restaurants and bars when I first moved to San Francisco. Even then, some of the problems in that neighborhood were apparent," said Clark. "It is inspiring to hear Helen and Lorraine talking optimistically about the Tenderloin and see the positive work they are doing in that area with the diverse-owned, small businesses.”
Engaging in the Cool Campus Challenge
The Cool Campus Challenge is a friendly challenge designed to educate and motivate the University of California community to take simple energy-saving, waste reducing and sustainability-focused actions to lower their carbon footprint and help the UC system reach carbon neutrality by 2025. Programs and efforts from our department are being highlighted as pledges for engagement during the challenge. Register here to view the resource links, get points and learn more.
If you would like support in your effort to include diverse, small, and local business in your purchasing or want to join the Anchors Away Team, please contact Marliz Copado.