#climatevegan

“The overall conclusion: Without swift action to limit climate change, Canadians in the most populous region of the country (the Windsor to Montreal corridor) will be able to have a tropical summer simply by staying at home. Population centres in other regions of the country, such as in the Prairies, on the west coast and on the east coast, may avoid dipping into the tropics, but their average summer temperatures will still climb significantly (for example, Calgary will feel more like Los Angeles).”

And no, “swift action” does not mean that we all just start taking shorter showers and using our bikes more (something which isn’t even an option for many people). It means that substantial changes must be made at both the commercial and individual levels. And as an individual, the absolute best thing you can do for the environment and our future is live vegan as much as is possible for you. 

Just this last year we tragically passed an extremely crucial tipping point when it comes to how our actions will PERMANENTLY affect the future of our planet, and life on this planet. Although our society often seems to forget/ignore that our lives are inextricably tied to nature, we as humans are not escaping/will not somehow magically escape the absolutely disastrous effects of climate change; lives will be lost and yes, that will include human lives, possibly even the lives of your future children/grand-children. As stated in Rolling Stone magazine, “[now that this tipping point has been surpassed] sea levels could rise 10 times faster than previously predicted: 10 feet by 2065. The [scientists] included this chilling warning: If emissions aren't cut, "We conclude that multi-meter sea-level rise would become practically unavoidable. Social disruption and economic consequences of such large sea-level rise could be devastating. It is not difficult to imagine that conflicts arising from forced migrations and economic collapse might make the planet ungovernable, threatening the fabric of civilization””; so we very literally cannot afford to be taking steps backward. In fact, we cannot even afford to be standing still in one place; it is absolutely essential that, to save the future of everyone and everything that calls earth home, we move forward, and at a fast pace. Do not allow this one person to undo all the progress we as a society have made and you as an individual have made and continue to make with the goal of protecting and healing our one and only home.

Speaking of important ways in which individuals, such as yourself, can help fight climate change, did you know that living vegan is the most effective action you can take to this end? There are a whole host of explanations for why this is the case, but here I will only list a few:

-- A person who follows a vegan diet produces the equivalent of 50% less carbon dioxide, uses 1/11th the oil, 1/13th the water, and 1/18th the land of a meat-lover for their food. Furthermore, a person who eats vegan saves 1,100 gallons of water, 45 pounds of grain, 30 sq ft of forested land, 20 lbs CO2 equivalent, and one animal’s life

-- Animal agriculture is responsible for 18% of all greenhouse gas emissions. This is more than the total combined exhaust from all transportation

-- Farmed animals are responsible for 65% of all human-related emissions of nitrous oxide – a greenhouse gas with 296 times the global warming potential of carbon dioxide, and which stays in the atmosphere for 150 years. Reducing methane emissions would create tangible benefits almost immediately

-- Even without fossil fuels, we will exceed our 565 gigatonnes CO2e limit by 2030, all from raising animals

-- Fracking (hydraulic fracturing) water use (which is of great concern to environmentalists such as yourself) ranges from 70-140 billion gallons annually, while animal agriculture water consumption ranges from 34-76 trillion gallons annually 

-- Only 5% of water consumed in the US is by private homes, whereas 55% of water consumed in the US is for animal agriculture. This means that while doing things such as taking shorter showers does help, it does and will not have nearly the same effect that cutting out animal products (such as milk, which for every 1 gallon produced, requires an input of 1000 gallons of water) does

-- Animal agriculture is responsible for 20%-33% of all fresh water consumption in the world today

-- Farmed animals cover 45% of the earth’s total land

-- Animal agriculture is the leading cause of species extinction (we are currently experiencing the largest mass extinction in 65 million years), ocean dead zones (farming operations on land have created 500 ocean dead-zones around the world), water pollution, and habitat destruction

-- As many as 2.7 trillion animals are pulled from the ocean each year. As a consequence of this, as well as pollution, we could see fishless oceans by 2048 (for every 1 pound of fish caught, up to 5 pounds of unintended marine species are caught and discarded as by-kill -- as many as 650,000 of these species are whales, dolphins and seals and 40-50 million are sharks)

-- Animal agriculture is responsible for up to 91% of Amazon destruction. This equals the loss of 1-2 acres of rainforest every second which results in the extinction of up to 137 plant, animal and insect species every day 

-- 82% of starving children live in countries where much of the country’s cultivated food is fed to farmed animals whose bodies and products are then eaten by western countries. In fact, at least 50% of worldwide grain is fed to farmed animals. Were we to directly consume these grains, we would have enough food to very comfortably feed 10 billion people

Now remember, the above list includes only *some* of the main ways in which animal agriculture severely harms and destroys our planet, as well as the beings who rely on the health of this planet (that includes us - never forget that) to survive!! To learn more about the toxic and terrifying relationship animal agriculture maintains with climate change, check out our website and watch Cowspiracy, an extremely informative, non-graphic, meticulously researched, science-based documentary from which the above facts were obtained (references for each fact can also be found on their website).

Got this cute lil reusable coffee cup from Starbucks for a whopping $2!!!

Lightweight, heat resistant, microwavable etc. etc. 

If the US went vegan 350 MILLION more could be fed (new study)

When we say animal rights are human rights it is not just hyperbole. The welfare of nonhuman animals is intertwined with the welfare of human animals in a great variety of complex ways, with food security being one of them. Animal products are not sustainable for this planet or the number of people living on it. Instead of throwing money at numerous charities to feed those that, for whatever reason, do not have access to healthy food, we could actually fix the problem entirely simply by changing our diets.