Veganism an important remedy to our environmental folly

When my daughter Sara informed me that she had adopted a vegan diet, my first thoughts were of the hippie movement of the 1960s and its members’ psychedelic lifestyle. I rapidly realized of course that I was quite off the mark, but I still think that my mind had seized on something meaningful. The hippie movement was very much a reaction to the frustration and confusion of the world the youth of the 1960s and 70s lived in, to the violence of the Vietnam War and to a loss of spiritual and environmental connections. Vegans have similarly sought an answer to a world gone mad through the reckless destruction of our environment and a concomitant loss of empathy and humanity. Theirs is an important remedy to the ongoing destruction of our environment.

Sometimes important change takes place through governments and institutions, but often it arrives spontaneously as consciences awaken and ideas bubble up, to be shared and adopted by individuals who turn something small into a major global movement. Particularly when there is a realization that our societies are supporting systems and a world order that seem patently wrong, people find ways to adapt their individual behavior, becoming a part of a movement that has a major collective impact. Often the realizations come from our youth and then filter through the rest of society, particularly in the societies of the West.

However, veganism and vegetarianism find their origins in the East, particularly in India and China, where they are linked to Buddhist cultures emphasizing mindfulness, self-restraint and respect for all things living. A great many famous Indian, Chinese, Greek and Roman philosophers, from Umaswati to Empedocles and Ovid, adopted and defended plant-based diets. The early 11th-century Arab poet Al-Ma’arri was one of the earliest known vegans, transmitting his views through his poem “I No Longer Steal From Nature.”

We have long referred to our environment as Mother Nature. Our endless respect for mothers is key in defending the environment. In the Arab world, we say “paradise lies beneath the feet of mothers,” because their care and sacrifices are unbounded. In return, we must give them our utter respect and also be prepared for their firm reactions when their patience and understanding are pushed too far, as we have pushed Mother Nature to the brink over recent decades.

It is in this spirit that vegans seek to protect our environment, the animal world and our health by opting not to consume any animal products, be they meat, eggs or dairy. The term veganism was coined by Donald Watson in 1944 and The Vegan Society describes its principles best itself: “Veganism is a philosophy and way of living which seeks to exclude — as far as is possible and practicable — all forms of exploitation of, and cruelty to, animals for food, clothing or any other purpose; and by extension, promotes the development and use of animal-free alternatives for the benefit of animals, humans and the environment. In dietary terms, it denotes the practice of dispensing with all products derived wholly or partly from animals.”

People find ways to adapt their individual behavior, becoming a part of a movement that has a major collective impact

Hassan bin Youssef Yassin

While every vegan may emphasize the health, ethical and environmental justifications to different extents, the justifications for a vegan diet are quite overwhelming. Global food production is today responsible for some 35 percent of planet-heating emissions. Plant-based foods account for less than a third of those emissions, while the raising of livestock accounts for almost two-thirds, including methane, which is 34 times more damaging than carbon dioxide. To produce 1 kg of wheat, 2.5 kg of greenhouse gases are emitted and a few hundred gallons of water are used, while 1 kg of beef requires a staggering 5,500 gallons of water and produces 70 kg of emissions. One single individual can save about 220,000 gallons of water per year by opting for a plant-based diet.

Our emissions from raising livestock have increased by more than 50 percent since the 1960s. By 2050, the consumption of meat and dairy products is expected to increase by a further 75 percent. Obviously, this is quite unsustainable. Today, 70 billion farm animals already consume more than two-thirds of all crops we grow — using more than a quarter of the world’s land area — while only providing one-third of the calories we consume, even in a meat-eating culture like the US.

Some 10 million hectares of forest are intentionally burned or destroyed every year, in large part to make more space for livestock. Between 2000 and 2014, the Congo Basin has lost an area of forest the size of Bangladesh, while the Brazilian Amazon forest has lost an area the size of the UK in only the past five or so years. Frightfully, the Amazon risks soon becoming a net carbon emitter. When you consider that 75 percent less land would be needed for agriculture if everyone were to choose a plant-based diet, these crucial carbon sinks, the “lungs of the Earth,” could be returned to their original condition.

These are the environmental considerations that enter into veganism, in addition of course to the health and ethical justifications. Clearly, taking inspiration from the vegan diet and at the very least reducing our consumption of meat and animal-based products could make a tremendous difference for our environment. If we consider that today some 10 percent of the world’s population follows a vegan or vegetarian diet, just imagine the difference it could make if even half of us adopted such a diet and the rest of us simply became more aware of the implications every time we consume animal products. I believe we all want to make a difference, to participate in protecting our environment and to ensure that our children have a healthy planet to live on. Here is a way we can contribute immediately and effectively, through simple awareness.

There is a crack today in our societies due to our reckless destruction of the environment. Many of us sense this and are seeking some answers, as well as asking the right questions. There are many ways we can contribute to protecting our environment and vegan or vegetarian diets should be seen as one of the most immediate and effective. I want to thank my daughter for her thoughtfulness and for succeeding in awakening even an old man like me to the many aspects of our diet and our environment. Change can indeed take place through individual actions and reducing our consumption of meat and animal products is a tremendous win for Mother Nature.

• Hassan bin Youssef Yassin worked closely with Saudi petroleum ministers Abdullah Tariki and Ahmed Zaki Yamani from 1959 to 1967. He headed the Saudi Information Office in Washington from 1972 to 1981 and served with the Arab League observer delegation to the UN from 1981 to 1983.