Tag Climate Change Action

There are a lot of reasons to switch to a plant-based diet. Today, we’re talking about eggs! You might think that they are tough to switch out, but they are actually really easy to eliminate, with a few simple substitutions.

So, you might be wondering why we are talking about substitutions – people have eaten eggs for a long time. Why switch now?

What changes have you already made? Which are you curious about? What might you be ready to try in the next week or two? Share in the comments and I’ll answer your questions!

It’s true – it’s possible to have a great holiday without turkey, ham, cream, butter and eggs. It’s not only possible – it’s easy, and better for the environment!

Many of our holiday traditions centre around food – and great food is still part of a plant-based holiday, just in a slightly different format. (Plus, if we are lucky, we still get time with loved ones – which is far more important than a turkey! 🌈)

What does that look like? Here are a few simple tips to help get you started. Start with a few easy adjustments – or go all-in, if you are ready for a bigger change.

Instead of dairy cream, mix cashews and water (about equal parts) in the blender. Add salt, pepper, garlic etc as usual. Use in mashed potatoes, or gravy on everything!

Instead of dairy milk in pies and other desserts, use non-dairy milk (homemade is easy) or use a bought alternative. Top with non-dairy ice cream, if desired.

Looking for a main protein dish? Try making a lentil loaf, or buying a ready-made veggie roast or sausage. There are countless options, so try a few until you find your new favourite. Remember that you probably don’t love absolutely every animal product that exists – but you still like some. So if the first veggie sausage you try isn’t your new instant favourite, just keep going and try something different. Be careful not to write off the category (eg “I tried one plant-based sausage and I didn’t like it, so I’m going back to meat”), just because of a few bumps in the road. You have probably been eating animal based products for decades – so don’t be surprised if you don’t find your new favourite lentil loaf on the first try. Give lentils as much time/space to become a staple in your diet as you previously did to meat, dairy and eggs!

What changes have you already made? What would you like to switch but aren’t sure about? Share your questions and wins in the comments and I’ll answer all of your questions!

When it comes to sustainability, one of the big mistakes that people make is treating change as individual OR systemic. Either we change our lifestyle (quit flying, quit eating animal products, quit using single use plastic and so on) OR we elect governments that will enact policies in line with climate science and climate justice. However, it’s not an either/OR – it’s a both/and. We need to radically alter our lifestyle AND elect governments that will radically alter how we operate as a country.

Today, we’re talking about changes that we can make at home – the good news is that these changes are easy to make, can be done today and can be done regardless of what changes your local government is or is not making right now.

So, here are a few ideas to get started. You might have already done and others might not be applicable, so pick and choose the ones that are right for you.

• Instead of single-use zipper bags/wrap, try reusable bags, beeswax wrap or glass/stainless containers
• Instead of single-use water/juice bottles, buy a glass/stainless steel water bottle and refill it. Or, buy juice from concentrate, mix it in a pitcher, and fill from there.
• Switch your bathroom products to zero-waste. Did you know you can get reusable cotton wipes, swabs and more to replace the single use options? Shampoo comes in bars, instead of a plastic bottle!
• Try owning less stuff. Buy a few better quality items and reuse them often – including clothing, footwear, household items and more.
• Want to go one step further? Consider downsizing your living space, if you currently have more than what you need/use. In a larger house, try a smaller house. In a house, try an apartment. Have a long commute to get to most places? Try moving to somewhere closer to public transit.
• Eat fewer (or zero) animal products, and lots more rice, lentils and other plants. It’s better for the environment, healthier, cheaper and easy to stock up in bulk.

What changes have you made? What are you interested in changing but unsure about? Let me know in the comments. I’ll answer your questions, and we’ll celebrate the successes together!

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If you are looking for zero-waste or sustainable items, check the online store at mennoadventures.ca – we have clothing, containers, compostable phone cases and more!

After a quieter than expected spring and summer here, due to some scheduling conflicts and vacation time on my end (sorry about that!), things are back up and running – and there are some big ideas being worked on to build up and improve the website over the fall and winter.

You may have noticed that the online store has been growing slowly and steadily. If you haven’t checked it out recently, I encourage you to do so. One of my favourites, from this summer, is the Lomi home composter – we tested ours on some camping trips this summer, and it performed beautifully!

I also had the privilege of attending my first Toronto Pride Parade this summer, visiting with some family and friends, and finding time for some much needed vacation.

Now, we are into fall, and that means it’s back to work! For the website, fall and winter, this year, means an increased focus on all things sustainable, looking at both individual and systemic changes that we need to make, as well as individual changes that lead to systemic changes.

Looking for things that you can change right now, to help build a better tomorrow? Here’s today’s list:

• Eliminate (or very significantly reduce) consumption of animal products
  • Animal products are a very significant contributor to the climate crisis (plus a Whole Foods Plant-Based diet is far healthier!).
  • Want to go all the way and go into winter plant-based? Use up what you currently have in your fridge or freezer, and don’t by anything else. Instead of adding chicken or other meat to your pasta (for example), add a tin of chickpeas or kidneys – it’s more sustainable, healthier and cheaper. Why pay more to wreck the climate?
• Quit flying
  • If you can’t quit all the way now, cut the worst flights first:
    • short and medium haul flights, as well as any flights for a short trip eg flying to a resort for a week in winter, flying out for a conference/meeting etc. Instead, find somewhere local for a holiday, and join the meeting remotely.
    • If you must fly, limit it to only the absolutely essential trips, and limit yourself to one flight/year or less (as your max – less is much better). Can you challenge yourself (and others in your circles) to reduce yourselves to one flight every 5 years? Every 10 years? Something else?
• Advocate for better choices and policies at the institutional level
  • Ironically, some faith groups (and others) are still acting in a manner that seems completely backwards – actively refusing to do what’s needed to address the climate crisis, while ALSO putting huge amounts of time and energy into things like ensuring that they continue to discriminate against LGBTQ+ people, newcomers, women, minorities and others. It’s wrong, and the only thing that will change it is if we all speak up and demand something better.
  • We need to put all of our time and energy into doing what’s right – saving the planet and ending discrimination.

I saw a quote on social media few days ago, and am sharing it here. While I was searching for that one, I came across a couple of others, that I am sharing as well. Happy Monday!

These quotes are relevant in all of the areas that we talk about here – development, food, sustainability and others. As we all deal with this pandemic, and the climate crisis, our collective failure to listen to experts – who have been calling for massive changes to prevent a climate crisis for decades – can not be ignored. Changes to our choices – individually and collectively – need to be radically rethought, so that we come out of this pandemic with a Green New Deal (in various forms, locally and globally), with related changes to how we live, work, eat, use energy, get from place to place and support each other collectively, among others.

And a couple more…

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Greta Thunberg Shares Op-Ed Calling Out Trudeau’s Climate Hypocrisy – HP

Liberal MPs Urge Trudeau To Reject Massive Alberta Oilsands Mine – HP

Trudeau’s continued failure to act substantively on climate change has to end. While pretending to care about climate action, Trudeau and the Liberals continue to act in ways that can not be justified – and they are rightly being called out, by environmentalists, and even by some of their own MPs.

”If an alcoholic assured you he was taking his condition very seriously, but also laying in a 40-year store of bourbon, you’d be entitled to doubt his sincerity.”

(Bill McKibben, quoted by Greta Thunberg)

HP

So, to hold this government to account, I am suggesting contacting your MP (whether Liberal or other), and the PM’s office, asking for an immediate commitment to the following:

1) Immediate end to all fossil fuel subsidies, no new fossil fuel or nuclear projects and a rapid phase out of existing projects, with all funds put towards clean projects/sustainability.

2) Support for immediate implementation of Proportional Representation, to give the Green Party and others the voice that they rightfully deserve at the table.

3) Substantial climate targets – with annual and 5-year goals – that are in line with the best science. A theoretical aim to be climate neutral by 2050 is meaningless. If they need something easy to grasp, how about this? 1% reduction/month = approx 10% per year, which then leads to carbon neutral in 10 years, and carbon negative after that. 🙂

I have heard, too often, from a few Liberals (those that I have spoken to about this, which is obviously not a representative sample), that anything that they do has to be considered “good enough”, and we shouldn’t complain, because others – parties or provinces or countries or whoever they can find – are doing less. However, doing the right thing is not a race to the bottom, there is a lot of room for improvement, and it needs to start now. 🙂

BBC News: Climate change: Big lifestyle changes are the only answer.

The BBC has further evidence, again, that significant lifestyle changes will be needed for many people – specifically those who are currently living a lifestyle with higher carbon emission activities. The time for incremental changes was decades ago. What is needed now is a rapid transition off of fossil fuels.

As with any major change, there is a mix of both individual and systemic changes needed. Switching significantly towards plant-based eating is relatively easy (and, often, cost-effective) for many people to do. Eliminating fossil fuel subsidies requires enough pressure from civil society to enact government changes, at the federal level, across the globe.

On the flip side, while individuals, alone, do not have the power to create a federal government policy, we do have the power to be strong advocates. We can also make changes that replicate federal policies, and encourage others in our circles to do the same. To be clear, I am not suggesting any bans for anybody – simply encouraging all of us to look at how we can make changes in our circles of influence. 🙂

– Want a carbon tax? Using a reliable carbon calculator, estimate your own carbon footprint, and then tax yourself, by donating to a reputable NGO (or your local Green Party) that is working on sustainability. Adding in Bullfrog Power, or another similar option, is another possibility. Encourage others in your family/friends/circles of influence to do the same.

– Want a reduction in aviation emissions? Consider adjusting your own travel plans. Do you fly to go somewhere warm every winter with friends or family? Lead the way and encourage the group to go somewhere closer, instead. Do you fly to some meetings where you could call in or have someone local work on your behalf?

– Want to reduce emissions from eating animal products? Go plant-based (all or part of the way) and help build excitement with others. Help nudge the transition (politely, of course), and show that your journey is positive and something to embrace, not a negative to be endured. 🙂

This is not an exhaustive list, by any stretch. Simply a starting point for discussion, as we each discern our individual and collective responses to what climate change calls us to do. Let’s embrace the positive aspects that come from change and see where a new path might lead us. 🙂

https://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/climate-change-denial-fossil-fuel-think-tank-sceptic-misinformation-1.5297236
Bottom line: Climate change is an absolutely critical issue, and the time for action (other than starting decades ago), is right now. Misinformation campaigns have no place in this, but they are there, and need to be dealt with, so that they do not impede climate action, at the pace that is needed.
Now is not the time for moderate action, or “let’s try a few things that aren’t too difficult and see how they feel” or anything else. It’s time to throw everything we’ve got at the issue.
For me, in the immediate term, that means electing Green MPs (because I believe that they have the strongest climate action plan.) Also, it means switching to proportional representation – to make it easier for people to vote positively (ie for Greens or whoever), instead of feeling pressured to vote negatively (ie “you have to vote for your second or third choice to make sure someone worse doesn’t get elected.”)
If we, collectively, vote overwhelmingly for candidates that support strong climate action, and PR, we can, in one election, shake up the current, broken system and build something better! (As far as I am aware, Greens and NDP are the only two parties that support both – though the Green climate platform is stronger). This will require massive turnout at the polls – but I believe that it’s doable, if we all work together, and bring others along. 🙂

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/sep/20/climate-change-morally-wrong-carbon-abolition-movement

I love the approach the author is taking here. I agree that there are certainly technical and financial discussions that need to be had, and they have value. However, doing the right thing, is ultimately a moral/faith issue, not a financial issue.

If our primary motivation is financial or technical, lots of the important decisions and changes that we need to make will not happen – since the right thing is (often) not the easiest or the cheapest. A deeper sense that we owe it to others to live sustainably is, in my opinion, critical to grounding ourselves to make the radical changes that creation care calls us to do.

Societies have rallied around war efforts (which I disagree with). This is the time to rally around what is right, and set ourselves on a rapid transition to zero carbon, then to carbon negative. There is no more time to delay. With collective effort, we can move forward, at an incredible pace – towards what’s right, instead of what’s easy. 🙂

Excellent article from The Guardian here:

Totally agree – the endless pursuit of wealth has no upside, for me. This fits in well with the donut economics model by Kate Raworth.

While some parts of the world certainly need an increase in standard of living, much of the world will need to accept a decrease in order to stay within planetary boundaries. (And that does not apply only to the ultra rich with private planes and yachts.) Certainly, many others will need to adjust, if not to an actual decrease, certainly a decrease in what we are striving for in the future – an adjustment of goals and hopes and what we aiming for in life.

Extreme wealth imbalances, in my opinion, have no place in a balanced environment, or in a balanced society.