If you are thinking about going vegetarian, here is a list of things that should help you to actually do it,… and to stick to it once you’ve started.

Read more of this story »

Read more of this story »

Read more of this story »

What is at the root of Christianity, though? Can anti-environmental language and beliefs be found in the Bible?

The Bible seems to proclaim that nature was made as it should be and is something that should be respected and protected. In Psalms 104:25,30, it is written: “In wisdom you made them all, the earth is full of your creatures. There is the sea, vast and spacious, teeming with creatures beyond number - living things both large and small…. When you send your Spirit, they are created and you renew the earth.” The general spirit is one of positivity and love here.

Read more of this story »

For most of our existence, we humans have seen ourselves as superior to animals, as “above” the “lower” creatures. Rene Descartes, for example, in the 17th century argued that animals were mere “machines” incapable even of true feeling, let alone “higher” thinking. Cultures throughout antiquity sacrificed animals by the thousands to their gods, so that their value was in the ends they served rather than in their independent lives.

On the other side, there are some traditions of vegetarianism in our history. Examples include the Pythagoreans in Greece, Hindu yogis, Jains and Buddhists, among others. And other societies (such as the Native Americans) ate and used animals but with a reverence and gratefulness for the lives that they were taking. Overall, though, the predominant notion in the human noggin is one of superiority.

But then Darwin knocked us down a notch…at least some of us. Evolution and the descent of humanity from primates still left wiggle room for us to see ourselves as “thinking, rational animals,” and therefore still better than the lesser beasts. Around that same time, though, something started to shift in the cultural mindset. A cultivated, conscious concern for the welfare of animals began in the late 19th century in England and then spread. (For example, the SPCA has its origins from this era, not to mention the idea of a “vegetarian society.” Ethics entered into the discussion of how humans relate to, and treat, animals. There was a recognition that, however higher or lower we might be, we had some responsibility for animals.

Read more of this story »

Music legend Sir Paul McCartney is seeking to enlist the help of an unlikely candidate in the battle to solve climate change, ex-baywatch starlet Pamela Anderson.

Apparently, his royal beatleness made the plea in a direct two page letter to Anderson, following her ongoing loyal support of animal rights group PETA. McCartney, a staunch advocate of vegetarianism for more than thirty years, was spurred on by a growing awareness that reduced meat consumption or vegetarianism is the “single most effective” way to tackle global warming.

Read more of this story »

A German study found that cows are major contributors to global warming, and it doesn’t matter if they’re raised on a conventional or an organic farm.

[Creative Commons photo by Jelle]

I’m with Stephanie Ernst over at change.org on this one, though: let’s not blame the poor cows. The culprit here is humans’ taste for meat and dairy and the sheer number of cows we have to raise to put beef on all of those plates.

Read more of this story »

Apparently sea lions like salmon a little too much. People in Oregon, Washington, and Idaho are threatened — they want all the tasty salmon for themselves.

Okay, perhaps that’s a bit of an oversimplification. But I have to wonder — if salmon didn’t taste good, would people be going to such great lengths to prevent a natural predator-prey relationship between a sea mammal and a fish?

Read more of this story »

Animal rights activists have filed suit against Washington’s King County to dispute a state-wide law that essentially allows farmers to decide what treatment is humane and what is not.

In a press release, the Northwest Animal Rights Network declared that “Foxes should not be guarding the henhouse” and argued that the law is against the state constitution. The suit focuses on a handful of clauses in a Prevention of Cruelty to Animals law from 1994 that the group believes are particularly vague.

Read more of this story »

“Now should be environmental vegetarianism’s big moment. Global warming is the single biggest threat to the health of the planet, and meat consumption plays a bigger role in greenhouse gas emissions than even many environmentalists realize.” - Ben Adler

This quote above is from an article by Ben Adler in American Prospect, titled “Are Cows Worse Than Cars?”. It really stands out as a reminder of the clearly divided environmental movement. By and large, the movement towards environmental sustainability has just plain ignored the impact that dietary choices have on global warming. Curious, isn’t it?

On the one hand, we can support cleaner energy, buy more efficient cars, and reduce our consumption of products derived from petroleum, and yet with our other hand, eat a burger that has a carbon footprint bigger than most SUVs.

“I think it’s amazing that even the greenest of green liberal environment activists, the vast majority of them tend to consume meat at the same rate as people who think global warming is a hoax. Meat consumption seems to be the last thing that progressive people address in their lifestyle. If I had a nickel for every global warming conference that had roast beef on the menu, I’d be rich.” - Mike Tidwell, director of the Chesapeake Climate Action Network

Read more of this story »

After just a few moments at the Festival, you will be able to understand why it usually draws in about 6,000 visitors, making it one of the largest vegetarian festivals in the United States. In modest Lee Park in downtown Charlottesville, and spilling over into surrounding parking lots, local natural foods stores, organizations of all sorts, restaurants, and other vendors provide an unbelievable variety of goods, information, and entertainment. Add to that live music and animal adoptions, plus free samples and fun activities like face painting, and you can easily spend the entire day with other folks who are interested in livingly compassionately towards animals and the planet.

Just to give you a snapshot: Walk up to the table of the Alliance for Community Choice in Transportation and take part in a poll of transportation methods used by attendees. Depending on your mode of locomotion (biking, driving alone, carpooling, etc.), you will get a colored rock that you then put in a clear tube. As the piles grow and the tubes fill, everyone can see which transportation methods are most popular–though the most popular may not be the most sustainable as well.

Read more of this story »

The good thing about the economy sucking cheese right now is that it’s given me some free time to catch up on my reading. I moderate a discussion forum called “The Green Room” and  while catching up on what people are sniping about I came across an interesting thread that included many questions.

The primary question being, What are we really supposed to do to be more green? My contribution to the group was that I believed people wanted to do the right thing but that it was truly unclear to them exactly what is better.

For example, after reading E the Environmental magazine’s recent issue, I felt ultimately that we should all be vegetarians. I’m not a die-hard meat lover but I’ve read enough credible writing that lead me to believe that it’s impossible for the earth to produce enough veggies to do this. Meanwhile, pondering the question, I still eat Slim Jims and summer sausage.

Read more of this story »

As Albert Einstein said, “Nothing will benefit human health and increase chances of survival for life on earth as much as the evolution to a vegetarian diet.”

The big issue today is global climate change. It is likely to dwarf any environmental issues we faced in the past. As reported by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization:

[T]he livestock sector is a major stressor on many ecosystems and on the planet as a whole. Globally it is one of the largest sources of greenhouse gases…. It currently amounts to about 18 percent of the global warming effect — an even larger contribution than the transportation sector worldwide.

This is a critical issue. This is more critical than our power plants, our industries, the energy efficiency of our homes and appliances, or even transportation.

Read more of this story »

So I suppose it’s not surprising that some people are looking for meat alternatives, and I’m not talking about Tofurkey. I’m talking about real meat, but minus the animal.

Read more of this story »

Having waited all week for a relevant wildlife related idea to pop into my head, I ventured onto Google to look for information on local Swiss animals. I was surprised to learn that the chief animal topic in Switzerland does not relate to rare alpine species becoming endangered due to de-glaciation, or to urban foxes, or squirrels, or other wild animals, or to any thing else I might have guessed, but is principally related to the fair treatment of animals used in meat production.

Read more of this story »