Personal Climate Action: How YOU Can Help Save the World, Part 1 of 2

Our dietary choices play a crucial role in shaping our individual carbon footprints. By adopting the vegan lifestyle, we can reduce this environmental impact. An Oxford University study found that going vegan is the most effective way to lower our carbon footprint, potentially reducing it by up to 73%. One study even suggests that replacing 30% of animal-folk meat with vegan protein could save enough water to fill 7.5 million swimming pools. Researchers have found that while animal-people meat and dairy products provide only about 18% of our calories, they occupy a staggering 83% of global farmland. Embracing the vegan diet is one of the most impactful steps we can take to reduce our environmental footprints. It’s a powerful way to combat climate change, which the UN has identified as the “biggest threat modern humans have ever faced.”

Emmy award-winning Meteorologist Steve MacLaughlin (vegan) explains how to start the process. “Let’s say everyone decided to be a vegan; we would have enough food and water for every living human, and we would begin to reverse the effects of climate change.” Numerous ways to promote veganism and raise awareness exist. Beyond adopting the vegan lifestyle, engaging in organic vegetable farming is another impactful way to reduce food-related greenhouse gases. The latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), a Shining World Leadership for Lives-Saving-Hero Award laureate. Highlights the urgent need to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions by 43 percent by 2030 and 60 percent by 2035. This calls for immediate and decisive action ‒ such as transitioning to sustainable, vegan food systems ‒ to avert the worst impacts of the climate crisis.