In recent months, national panic over the global climate crisis has spread, leaving many advocating for more sustainable daily practices—use less water, eliminate plastic straws, trade out your traditional vehicle for a hybrid or electric car where possible, the works—and politicians scrambling to legislate an adequate solution. Initially, the answer seemed to come in the form of New York Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's Green New Deal (GND) plan, but under further examination, the GND doesn't just have some weak spots to improve upon or small areas necessary for revision; it entirely misses the target.
As suggested in the opening line of its full language, the GND claims to "convert the decaying fossil fuel economy into a new, green economy that is environmentally sustainable, economically secure and socially just." The text rattles on, explaining by what means this goal will be achieved, including through cutting military spending, transitioning completely to clean energy, and developing jobs, without any regard or reference to how animal agriculture impacts the environment. Truthfully, what a significant number of people "concerned" about the future of our planet don't like to admit—or perhaps just don't realize at all—is that, according to research by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, a third of the planet's ice-free land surface is used for livestock production. Moreover, sixteen percent of global freshwater and a third of international grain production are devoted solely to the same purpose. To top it all off, livestock and their byproducts are responsible for 51 percent of worldwide greenhouse gas emissions. In case you're curious, that's a significantly higher figure than the total impact of transportation exhaust, which amount to only thirteen percent of those same greenhouse gas emissions.
Why aren't we talking about this? Why isn't the United States' toxic obsession with animal products a stronger focal point of these supposedly "green" plans for our nation? And why aren't these "environmentalists", who claim to be so focused on saving our planet before it's too late, eating plant-based diets themselves?
I don't know the answers to these questions with certainty. Perhaps it's easier to point fingers at big corporations, painting them as money hungry and greedy businesses without any regard for our futures, instead of looking in the mirror at our own day-to-day choices. Maybe it's simpler to focus on using reusable straws as the media makes out plastic straws to be the absolute killer of our environment—I'll have you know that they actually account for less than one percent of plastic pollution in our oceans—while pretending like there aren't any bigger issues. I'd even go as far as to suggest that some people just don't quite care enough about climate change (or maybe even straight-up deny that it exists) because it doesn't seem to be that pressing; after all, it's hard to imagine the impact that our actions now will have ten, twenty, or even thirty years down the road. Regardless, I can speculate, but unfortunately, a clear reason for this ignorance doesn't exist.
But what I do know is that it's time for change. You don't have to become a full-fledged vegan tomorrow; this process can consist of a series of small baby steps towards a plant-based diet¸ but it needs to be something. Maybe this means exchanging your hamburger for a vegetarian grilled cheese or even an entirely vegan entrée a couple times a week. Maybe it's looking into alternatives for your typical dairy and meat foods and exploring how delicious they can be. Maybe it's even as simple as being a little bit more conscious about how many animal products you're consuming.
However, no matter what steps you're taking, I can guarantee that they're going to help. Together, through transitioning to plant-based eating, we can develop our own Green New Deal: one that's far more effective than what Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's suggests.
