Government advisor: eat less meat to tackle climate change
Reducing energy-intensive foods to minimize global warming. The United Kingdom’s Professor Tim Lang, who formulated the concept of food miles, recently stated the world may be eating its way to starvation through inefficient and energy-intensive ways of producing food.

Saying that food policy can be used to reverse global warming, the City University professor encouraged people to grow their own food and eat using fewer resources, stating, “We need to lobby government for change, eat less meat and fewer dairy products, and garden more.” A big green thank you, Dr. Lang, for alerting the public about the planet-cooling benefits of practices such as the plant-based diet. Blessed be such reminders that lead humanity toward lifestyles that sustain all of God’s creations on our wondrous Earth.

Emissions from burping cows 'higher than family car'
Reducing livestock to counter global warming. Research by Briton Dr. Andy Thorpe of University of Portsmouth has found that methane emissions are playing a more significant role in global warming, as their proportion is on the rise. Compared to CO2, which has increased by 31 percent during the past 250 years, methane has increased by 149 percent during the same period. Moreover, methane is far more potent, trapping 72 times more heat than CO2 over a 20 year period.
 
Dr. Thorpe stated, “Methane emission growth… has been increasing exponentially within the developing world due to rising incomes [causing] increased demand for meat proteins and developed countries sourcing meat from developing markets.” Dr. Thorpe suggested reducing methane emissions via livestock down-sizing and corresponding reduced meat consumption. At the same time, he also warns against shifting from eating meat to fish, saying that this would be devastating to the ocean ecosystems. Our gratefulness for your research, Dr. Thorpe. We pray people across the globe turn more and more to the plant-based diet, which provides abundantly for our health as well as that of the Earth.
 
Sofia Mayor Calls on Children Not to Kill Sparrows with Slings
Mayor of Sofia has a heart for birds. As part of a campaign called "My Green City," Mayor Boyko Borissov of the Bulgarian capital city encouraged the city’s children to treat birds more kindly. His appeal included a call to protect all of the 68 bird species living in Sophia.

Mayor Borissov also participated in placing bird feeders in the city’s central gardens, which will be replenished with grain and other food for the birds. We are touched, Mayor Borissov and Sophia, by your compassionate heart for our feathered friends. Heaven bless your caring example to help the birds flourish in your city.

Polar bears dying out in Russian region: expert
Polar bears declining in the Russian Arctic. The International Fund for Animal Welfare has reported that polar bear populations are disappearing in the Chukotka region of Russia, largely due to the melting ice of global warming that is pushing more and more animals toward the land. There, they find less food and also get closer to humans, which endangers the lives of both people and bears. Unfortunately, polar bear fur has also become more popular even though the animals are protected by law, with only an estimated 22,000 now left in the wild.
 
You have our sincere appreciation, International Fund for Animal Welfare and all others who are raising your voice for the protection of our irreplaceable animal friends. May God bless us all to show more kindness toward our co-inhabitants and ensure a brighter future for all.

Vegetarians in Finland lead by example
Vegetarians in Finland lead by example. Finland has long stood at the forefront of climate change action. The Finnish Climate Change Communications Programme recently reported that awareness of climate change has increased to up to 90% of the population within five years, along with citizens’ readiness to change their lifestyle. Awareness of the need to reduce animal product consumption is also growing.
 
Riina Simonen – Animal protection and environmental activist (Vegan) (F): People should not eat meat and also people should not drink milk, because of methane gas which comes from cattle.

VOICE: Voices of vegetarians such as Riina Simonen’s are active in informing the public of animal agriculture’s huge part in global warming.

Riina Simonen (F): I’m trying to keep this in politics and I’m writing to magazines about this. We have to work hard in environmental organizations and also in politics and in every level.

VOICE: Ms. Simonen’s concern is shared by animal welfare and environment protection advocates, including those in office such as Finnish Parliament Member Paavo Arhinmäki.
 
Paavo Arhinmäki – Finnish Member of Parliament (Vegetarian) (M): People have started to talk about food also as one possibility to stop climate change. We have had ideas that. For example, in schools we have one day every week that there is vegetarian food.

VOICE: Mr. Arhinmäki uses his own life choices to set an example in encouraging co-citizens toward being eco-friendly vegetarians as well.

Paavo Arhinmäki (M): Everybody knows I’m vegetarian. Now we have elections here in Finland. In my advertising, I say that I’m a vegetarian, so it’s little steps. People start to think that “Okay, he’s a vegetarian, probably I could do it also.”

VOICE: We commend Parliament Member Arhinmäki and activists such as Ms. Simonen for their exemplary leadership and dedication to spreading the word about the vegetarian diet. May more and more people join in making this one important lifestyle change to save the planet.