Reference no: EM132855377
For this assignment, you will write a letter to a business or organization (broadly defined - this could be a non-profit, institution like a school or hospital, or government agency in the United States) suggesting improvements in products or practices that would reduce waste. Your letter will also make a connection between waste and environmental health. Hint: there is often some intermediary factor like greenhouse gases, air pollution, water pollution, resource extraction, food insecurity (regarding food waste), etc. Your job is to make these connections for the reader of your letter.
Optionally, you may write about a product or practice that affects air (module 10).
STEP 1 - Select your business or organization AND product or practice
Examples include:
Products - products made from non-recyclable materials that could be made from recyclable materials, excessive packaging, non-recyclable or compostable packaging
Practices - restaurants or grocery store not composting / recycling, excessive waste from manufacturing practices
STEP 2 - Find the business or organization's "contact us" page to determine how you can submit your written comments (this is typically mail or email). Use this contact information to address your letter / email. You may find contact information in other ways such as print communication from an organization, etc.
STEP 3 - Write your letter, which should be free of spelling and grammatical errors and carry a professional tone.
Structure your letter as follows:
If you are writing a letter to be sent via mail, be sure to format it as a business letter including your return address, the date, and the address of where it will be sent. Emails (including website contact forms that generate an email) essentially have this information built in. Include a professional salutation (e.g., Dear So-and-so, To XYZ Store Manager). Structure your letter into four paragraphs, using the guidance below.
Intro paragraph - Introduce yourself, including your background (e.g., medical student, public health student, nurse, etc) and your relationship to the business or organization (e.g., recently purchased their product, visited their restaurant, etc). State the main purpose of your letter (e.g., feedback on packaging, recycling practices, etc.)
Recommendation - In one paragraph: 1) further expand upon the main purpose of your letter stated in the intro paragraph, and 2) make recommendations for their product or practices that would result in less waste (this is where you could point to another company or institution as a positive example).
Make the connection between waste and public health - This is where your letter really stands out because people don't always make the connection between waste and public health. Describe this relationship and include at least one scientific fact / statistic, siting that within the text of the letter (For example, "According to the EPA, blah, blah, blah" or "According to researchers at XYZ University, blah blah blah". If you are sending an email, you can embed the link to indicate the source for your statistic (if applicable). If you are writing a letter (on paper) or there is no link for the resource, you may footnote your resource at the bottom of the page. Explain this in plain language - don't assume that your reader has a scientific background.
Closing paragraph - Briefly restate your recommendation / suggestion / request. Thank the reader for taking the time to consider your letter, and let the reader know how you can be contacted.
Professionally close out your letter (e.g., Regards, Best, Sincerely) followed by your first and last name and any degrees or professional roles you would like to emphasize.