Wildlife cameraman and presenter Gordon Buchanan on getting to know the elusive and mighty Grauer’s gorilla.
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Author: Maia
The Secret Reason We Eat Meat
A Harvard-educated psychologist argues there’s a much darker reason behind people’s taste for meat.
Read more here.
Celebrities try a month without animal products
Veganuary campaign expects 50,000 people to join the likes of Vivienne Westwood, Romesh Ranganathan and Sara Pascoe for a month free of animal products.
Read more here.
UN urges global move to meat and dairy-free diet
Lesser consumption of animal products is necessary to save the world from the worst impacts of climate change, UN report says.
Read more here.
Christmas trees and the environment
Lately there’s been a few of those articles trying to tell the readers what is better for the enviroment, a ‘real’ Christmas tree or a plastic one (plus a few loopholes, at it were).
The main options are
1) Plastic tree
2) A ‘real’ dead tree from the forest
3) A living tree to put in the garden (at least if you live in California, which I don’t and many other people don’t either).
As I have told people in comments on articles over the past few years, we own a number of very old plastic Christmas trees that my parents bought in the 1980’s when no one knew how dangerous they were to the environment. I’m thinking that if you keep one of those toxic trees for 30+ years then maybe their danger has been spread over enough years to be forgiven?
I will never want to kill a real living tree to put in my living room, so since apparently the plastic trees are still out, because no one’s found a way of making them more environmentally friendly, my only option is
4) No tree at all.
Sure it’s a very nice idea to buy a real living tree and put it in one’s garden after Christmas, but I can assure people living in California that it would take dynamite to blast a hole in a Swedish December garden and that probably wouldn’t help a poor tree much. Besides, how many trees can you put in your garden before it turns into a town or city forest?
So that’s my position. Frankly, since this year we (my sister and I) decided not to do Christmas at all, I have felt so liberated. I really don’t want celebrate it again ever. Sure presents are nice, but you can get them at other times as well. Nice food is another thing I don’t object to, but to decorate the whole house for just a week or two – nah. It’s not for me.
I would like to end this post by saying that I don’t judge anyone for their Christmas tree-related choices. Do what you like and what your conscience allows you to do. It’s none of my business. This is my opinion.
Foxhunting should be ‘consigned to history’
Tracey Crouch restates opposition to repealing Hunting Act, as poll shows 83% think ban on hunting with dogs should continue
Read more here.
Vegan Christmas Greeting
We’re not doing Christmas this year, and you have no idea how incredibly liberating that is. It feels great! Despite that, I’d like to wish all our vegan followers and friends a really great Winter Season.
Vegan food in IKEA and the trains
There was so much excitement earlier this year, when IKEA and our rail services announced that they would start serving something vegan. In both cases, that was a big change.
Well, as usual, things tend to turn out a lot less appealing than you first expect.
IKEA’s ‘meat balls’ that are rather basic – ‘vegetable balls’ served with lettuce or some salad. So no protein. They might still taste great but the trouble is, it’s also a quite expensive dish.
On the trains, they have three or four vegan dishes. Sounds good, right? Turns out they all contain garlic – which I’m allergic to. At least one of them contains ginger and I hate that. All dishes are also quite expensive and the portions are rather small. Now I realize that they can’t accommodate everyone. Being allergic to garlic is quite rare. But doesn’t anyone agree with me that it seems rather unimaginative to serve three or even four dishes with the same seasoning?
How We View the Masculinity of Vegan Men is Changing
Currently, there seem to be more vegan men out there than ever before. More guys are being vocal about going plant-based for their health or choosing veganism for its ethics, which means there must be something different about how vegan men are perceived by the general population. Like every other progressive movement, however, things inch along slowly. Although, research is now finding evidence of shifting attitudes toward veg-minded men—especially in younger generations.
Read more here.
Giving Tuesday
Giving Tuesday really makes me sad. At the moment, I can’t even afford to give to one charity, so how can I help up to a hundred, because that’s how many are bombarding me with requests for donations? If I could afford to, I’d give to all of those, but as it is, I can’t. So all I can do is delete all those emails.