"So, why don't you eat meat?"

Last March when I stopped eating meat, I was so motivated at the thought of doing my part to slow climate change. I had come to realize that a huge portion of pollution came from livestock, 14% of global greenhouse gas emissions to be exact. By not eating meat, I reduce those emissions by 63%. (Worland, p. 4). I love replacing meat with other delicious protein based foods like tofu and soy chicken, or Trader Joe’s plant-based ground beef for tacos! Next time you decide to grab a meal without meat, think about how good the outcome of this decision will be for our environment.

This March on my first Veg-aversary, I decided to research how big of a difference I had really made. I did a little research and went to https://vegetariancalculator.com/, where I was able to calculate that I’ve saved 202 animals and 1,609 pounds of CO2 in the past year! All you have to do is tell them how many years/months you’ve been vegetarian to see the difference you make. If you want to make a difference but aren’t sure if you can stop eating meat entirely, going “weekday veg” is always an option! Over a year ago I saw a Ted Talk, called “Why I’m a weekday vegetarian” by Graham Hill and it changed my perspective completely. With the amount of pollution that eating meat causes, literally every animal matters. This Ted Talk goes on to talk about the astronomical difference it would make if everyone in America ate meat on only Saturday and Sunday, and I highly recommend checking it out below ⬇️

The idea of having to persuade people into even the mere thought that not every meal requires meat to be delicious or healthy has always confused me- it's so beneficial to be open-minded! In the same respect, I want to stress the importance of being respectful of others eating patterns and knowing when advocacy turns into pushiness. I've never been the type of vegetarian to act disgusted when one of my friends eat meat, and I never will be!

I've always thought about how if people were not conditionally trained to eat meat since birth, it wouldn't be so odd to be eating tofu instead of chicken for dinner. Because it is so normalized to be carnivorous, many people cannot imagine how to make a meal without meat as the source of protein- I know my parents can't! I've been so lucky to have people in my life who support my efforts to not eat meat and try to always have an option for me for dinner. And you have no idea how refreshing it is to introduce myself to someone who, for once, doesn't ask "So, why don't you eat meat?"!

Source: https://time.com/4266874/vegetarian-diet-climate-change/