TED

Ever watch TED lectures? I just watched a great TED lecture on food awareness and the ethics (or lack thereof) of factory farming. The president and CEO of The Humane Society Wayne Pacelle nails it.  It's only 15 minutes long and hits so many important points. This is for everyone- because it effects everyone.





If you want to read further, the website is http://tedxmanhattan.org/


They have some great tips for changing the way you eat and why they're important:


1. Educate yourself- Unfortunately, there is no all-encompassing guide that answers all sustainable food questions, so you need to learn what you can about the food industry and decide for yourself who deserves your support. 


2. Shop sustainable-  When buying meat and dairy, look for free-range, pasture-raised, and antibiotic free. Seek out items with less packaging or skip the packaging altogether by buying bulk items with your own bags. To find sustainable farms, restaurants and markets near you, visit Eat Well Guide or Local Harvest.


3. Ask Questions- Check out Huffington Post’s Seven Great Questions to Ask Your Farmer or visit Sustainable Table’s Question Guide.


4. East Less Meat-  Eating lots of meat is not only bad for you, it’s bad for the environment. Eating less meat can reduce your chances of developing chronic conditions like some types of cancer, diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Meat, especially from industrial feedlots, is hugely energy intensive, requiring thousands of gallons of water and approximately 40 fossil-fuel calories for every edible calorie. When you do want to eat meat, make sure you support farms that raise and slaughter their animals in a humane and sustainable way. For recipes and resources for going meatless, visit Meatless Monday.


5. Eat Seasonal- Eating seasonally means buying produce that’s grown locally and eating it right away. Local food has a lesser environmental impact, is fresher, and is produced by your community.


6. Grow Your Own


7. Cook- How and where does the restaurant get its ingredients? How much food do they throw away? What’s their water consumption? 


8. Drink Local- Approximately 33% of the 2.4 million tons of PET plastic discarded every year is from water bottles—that means 800,000 tons of plastic water bottles will sit in a landfill for thousands of years before decomposing. Bottled water is no safer than tap water; in fact most bottled water is tap water! Trash the bottle and drink your local tap instead. To uncover more facts, watch the story of bottled water at Food & Water Watch.


9. Get Involved- Visit non-profits that are fighting for good, clean food like the Environmental Working Group andSlow Food USA to get started.


10. Enjoy!- Eating can and should be the simplest joy we all have. Sharing a meal brings people together in a way that little else does. Knowing that the food you eat is grown with care for the environment, farmers, animals, and your own health will only add to your joyful food experience. 

Farm Sanctuary

Quotes from Farm Sanctuary. Click here to find out more.

Eating Animals

Right now I am applying to graduate schools and having minor anxiety attacks almost every day. I can not.wait.for.it.to.be.over.

I'm currently reading this book and loving it:

Want a well researched objective read about the meat industry? This is it. He also wrote Everything Is Illuminated and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. He talks about how the meat industry is set up, how we rely on it, and what needs to change. You learn about the way your meat is brought from factory farm to your table and the quality of life (or lack thereof) of the animals we eat.

This book is not meant convert it's readers to vegetarianism (even though I've heard the research do that anyways), but gives you something to think about and instead makes a case to change the way the meat industry runs.

Whether you think it's important to do something about world hunger, water and land pollution, nutrition, or exploitation of animals, this is a great book.

When I get bored at work I look at MSNBC's photo gallery. These were my favorite today:

 Yeah, those are bats ^

And of course this would be my favorite (below)

To sum it up:

1. Bat's aren't THAT ugly when they're little and wrapped in blankets

2. I want a dog of my own (it would be great if it could fit 2 balls in it's mouth at the same time, but i'll settle for a walking partner)

3. Komodo Dragons eat chickens, whole (no big deal trying to pass those feet and sharp tallons)

4. One day I'd like to drive a scooter with some animal on my back

5. Monkeys are show offs

6. Who doesn't want to ride that elephant?

7.And pugs are the coolest