What does Veganism Have to do with Saving the Environment?

Studies have shown that grass-fed cows generate less greenhouse gas emissions

Jennifer Tehraud

People might think that if you are a vegan, your nutritional philosophy is based on religious, ethical or health-related motives. But actually, people are also turning to veganism because they are aware of the fact that livestock production generates approximately one fifth of the world’s greenhouse gases, with which it outruns transportation. This was discovered by the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organization. In other words, the production of 1kg of beef results in more CO² emissions than driving the car for three hours while leaving all the lights on at home, according to scientists. What kind of influence does livestock production have on the environment?

• Methane is released through the belching of cattle: Methane is the second most important greenhouse gas after carbon dioxide and its capacity to trap heat in the atmosphere is 21 times great than that of CO². 
• Fertilizing compounds such as sulphur dioxide and phosphate destroy ecosystems in rivers and lakes. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, agriculture in the U.S. contributes to approximately ¾ of all water-quality problems in rivers and streams. Farm facilities often resemble prisons and are located hundreds of miles away from major cities. Their manure pollutes rivers and our valuable groundwater. In the state of Iowa, hog factories and farms produce more than 50 million tons of excrement annually. 
• The livestock and the food needs to be transported which causes further emissions.
• The livestock is fed with soy which requires cutting down the rainforest to make room for cultivating it in order to be able to export the demanded quantities to feed the thousands of cows and pigs slaughtered daily.

  

7 Tips on How to Be Green in Your Everyday Life

Tiago Zegur

 

Sometimes people want to do something to save the planet but don`t really know how to start. We are providing you with seven infallible tips of how to find easy ways to lead an eco-friendly and eco-conscious life. We suggest you try one each day of the week and by the end of the week you will have done 7 good things without even making much of an effort. Go for it!

MONDAY: Practice Eco-Mobility: This would be the best way of moving from place to place and especially those among you who drive frequently should start thinking about some alternatives whenever this is possible. However, sometimes we are dependent on our car and we cannot afford a hybrid or an electric car or use any other type of eco-mobile. In those cases, we can still be “green”. You should make sure your car is always in a good condition as this can directly affect the amount of CO² emitted. Don't leave the car running when picking someone up or are waiting for something or someone. The 30 seconds rule applies here. If your car runs more than half a minute without being used, it is already worth stopping the engine. Another option would be making your car fuel-efficient by getting an engine tune-up which can improve your mileage by up to 4%. You might also consider replacing the air filter, aligning your tires, pumping up your tires, checking the condition of your gas cap and if necessary replacing it to avoid the release of smog-causing compounds, driving smoothly and taking any unnecessary load from the car. By doing this, you can additionally reduce fuel costs. Fuel-efficient cars will release less harmful substances and you can travel a greater distance on a tank of gas. When looking to buy a new car, opt for a more fuel-efficient car than your old one. Joining a carpool to go to work, school or somewhere else is also a wise and eco-friendly choice. This will lead to one less polluting car on the roads. 

Stop Deforesting Amazonia

Tiago Zegur

Brazil has the biggest tropical forest in the world.  Amazonia is bigger than Monaco, France and Germany together and features over 30% of the whole biodiversity of the planet. The Amazonia has ten different ecosystems and over twenty eco-regions. Deforestation has been taking place in this precious region of the world for many years. Soy fields are planted to provide feed for livestock production which the meat industry is involved in. This forest needs to be saved.

In Amazonia, the biodiversity is amazing and many species such 

as fish, amphibians and arthropods have not even been discovered yet. This means the Amazonian flora and fauna is even richer than we think and exceeds the numbers that have been documented today. Experts estimate that there are more fish species there than in any other basin of the world.

Brazil does fight against deforestation but it should be in the interest of all of us to preserve natural paradises; we can fight this fight together! That`s why the environmental non-profit organization Greenpeace is getting involved in this cause too. Together with Brazil, they are trying to adopt a law called “END OF DEFORESTATION IN BRAZIL” in order to stop this abuse of nature. A petition initiative was commenced in the country with the aim of collecting over one million signatures. This initiative will also be a valuable contribution in the fight against global warming, since deforestation is part of what is causing it. It is important to help; everybody can and should participate.

If you want to find out how to get involved, you should visit the Greenpeace website.

• How about volunteering at the Greenpeace International Headquarters in Amsterdam?
• Sailing aboard a Greenpeace ship?
• Working for Greenpeace?
• Running your own campaign?