The Birth of an Environmental DOT
“Earth provides enough to satisfy every man’s needs, but not every man’s greed.”
-Mahatma Gandhi
When people think of climate change and its causes they think of planes, trains and automobiles. But one of the largest causes of climate change is actually sitting right on the tip of your tongue… literally.
Despite what you might believe, the meat that we consume takes a high toll on our planet. To feed an animal born to die, you have to provide it with sufficient land, water and food. Studies have shown that this mass production of meat contributes to deforestation, water pollution, the rising amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, and many other plagues on Earth. A dietary change can have an enormous impact on the condition of this world.
I am an eighth grader at Oyster Adams Bilingual School in Washington, DC. In our science class we are beginning the annual Do One Thing (DOT) Project where each person in the eighth grade changes one thing in their lives to make them more sustainable. For my DOT project I have decided to go vegetarian due to the many negative impacts animal agriculture has on this Earth.
Animal agriculture produces more greenhouse gas emissions than the combined contribution from all of the transportation sectors. The documentary Cowspiracy is a very moving film that teaches you about the damaging effects of meat consumption on our home. This film played a great impact in my decision to become vegetarian for my DOT project.
Sadly, one person going vegetarian for 28 days isn’t going to save the world but if everyone did even just one small thing we could begin to remove the damage that we have implemented on our planet.
