Food Matters Jim Corcoran The United Nations has recently taken the unprecedented action of issuing a “code red for humanity.” Our planet is heating up much faster than scientists were expecting. It is now predicted to reach an additional 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit by 2040, if we don't make some drastic changes and fast. One of the reasons my wife (Rae) and I moved to northern New Mexico, more than a decade ago, was because there are so many progressive activists here. Progressives are responsible for leading in most of the social justice movements of the past (from child labor laws to women's suffrage to civil rights to gay rights). If not for progressives, none of these and many other important initiatives, would ever have been enacted. Environmental stewardship is one of the causes championed by most progressives. Of all the many serious environmental issues facing us, climate change stands front and center. It is now too obviously real and threatens our very future. The legendary Northwest Passage is now a reality, island nations are disappearing and the warmest year on record is broken nearly every ensuing year. Climate change is THE social justice issue of our time and progressives must be the catalyst for change once again. Of course, we all should switch to LED bulbs, drive less, take public transportation, use clean energy, conserve water and do all the other well-known things to protect the environment. However, many progressives seem oblivious to THE largest contributor to climate change, water depletion, water pollution and species extinction, and that is, without ambiguity, animal agriculture. Reducing and eliminating animal foods from our diet should be the first step in any environmentalist's “To Do” list. A growing list of organizations are calling for a reduction in all animal product consumption; The National Academy of Sciences, American Association for the Advancement of Science, Center for Biological Diversity, Center for Science in the Public Interest, Alliance of World Scientists, Climate Reality Project, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Global Environmental Change, United Nations Environment Programme, Clean Energy, Ecology Center, Worldwatch Institute, Greenpeace USA, Natural Resources Defense Council, Organic Consumers Association, Rainforest Action Network, Sierra Club, Union of Concerned Scientists, Environmental Defense Fund, Center for Climate Change and Health, Center for Science in the Public Interest, Conservation International, World Resources Institute, Earth Day Network, Environmental Working Group, Food and Water Watch, Small Planet Institute, Friends of the Earth U.S., Green America, League of Conservation Voters, Science and Environmental Health Network and the World Wildlife Fund, to name a few.
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