I have been speaking of late at local groups about Green, Sustainable organizations and what’s going on locally (which is a lot). My philosphy is that we all have to start where we are… whatever brings us to the awareness that we can do something starting from where we are today. We are all in this together, I don’t know of another planet that will support us, so making small changes en masse is a great way to make a difference. Along those lines, my slogan is “to do more tomorrow than I did today”… baby steps. It’s actually kind of fun to look for the next thing you can do that will not change your quality of life drastically but will make a big difference in impact locally and beyond.
As my daughter (Chris) and granddaughter (Rhiannon) are vegetarians, we are familiar with eating meatless, however we tend to fall back on the regular meat meals when we are rushed. Chris introduced us to the Meatless Monday (global movement!), and we have committed to going meatless at least one day a week. It’s really not that hard and it makes a big difference!
Now, does my husband (Bob) want Steak Saturday sometimes? Turkey Thursday? Sure. Are we going Cold Turkey (pun intended). No. We are committing to Meatless Monday. Check out their great website and all the yummy recipes.
A good way to start is to adapt your favorite chili or spaghetti sauce or other recipe and make it without the meat, often you can eat it just like that or add chunky chopped vegetables and/or beans and the taste and texture is not compromised. Let me know if you have any terrific recipes you have tried and liked!
A bit of information from their site:
“WHAT IS MEATLESS MONDAY?
An international movement to help people reduce their meat consumption by 15% to improve personal health and the health of the planet. We are a non-profit initiative of The Monday Campaigns, in association with the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
WHY MEATLESS?
On average, Americans consume 8 ounces of meat per day – 45% more than the USDA recommends. Going meatless once a week can reduce your risk of chronic preventable conditions like cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and obesity. It can also help limit your carbon footprint and save precious resources like fresh water and fossil fuel.
WHY MONDAY?
Multiple studies have shown that periodic health prompts lead to positive behavior change. Monday is the beginning of the week, making it the perfect time to reevaluate our choices and set our intentions for the coming days. With a Meatless Monday, you have a scheduled, recurring reminder to start your week off on a nutritious note. And if this Monday passes you by, next week is another opportunity to focus on health!”
If we can do it, anyone can!
- Terrylynn Fisher
Plush U.S. toilet paper is usually made by chopping down and grinding up trees that were sometimes decades or even a century old. It’s slow going getting Americans and Europeans to make the switch to recycled goods. The largest tissue maker has signed a truce and promises to do better. But the larger battle goes on – the ultimate test is whether Americans and Europeans will go green when nobody is watching. The consumer wants softer paper, the environmentalists say “it’s only toilet paper”.