How I Saved The World 2050
I have written this short essay for submission reporting my vegan advocacy work. The nature of the competition was what one did to contribute to saving the world. The prize money (manifesting success, of course) would allow me to purchase copies of my book Go Vegan, for which I do not receive royalties, simply purchasing them at the unit cost from the publisher. The copies will be distributed to all the teachers and kids that Bill and I will have the pleasure teaching in many of the disadvantaged schools. Our first workshop is 21st March. We hope to change many more lives. Life is a gift for every living creature and must be protected.
Selected Diary Entries, 2024 / 2050
2050
Diary Entry February 2nd,
A chilly morning here today. Frost on the grass and a cold wind that stirs the buds on the trees anticipating these early springs we are now having. All the children in town are helping with the community gardens. It’s very quiet. It’s a no cars day, the streets are empty.
The latest International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) issued their long-awaited statement last night. What a lovely moment. They agree that CO2 and methane emissions are holding on the downward trend for the fourth year in a row. We are turning things around.
Africa and South America have collectively agreed to halt anymore land clearing for cattle feed and are creating plans for replanting and new soil and land use. It all has taken time but what seemed impossible is happening.
When combined with the WHO approval of therapeutic applications of healthy vegan diets for diabetes, many cancers and heart disease we seem to be on the steady climb out of the tragedy of animal slaughter, environmental destruction, and preventable disease we seemed to be locked into. There is still so much to be done but the work seems a happier kind of work.
I was inspired this morning to review old diary entries as far back as 2024. To remind myself just how we got here. I just picked pages at random and had a few surprises. I am amazed with the changes that have happened since then. There were times when everything seemed dark even with our persistent commitment to optimism. Sometimes being stubborn pays off.
2024
Diary Entry February 1st
The phone tells me it is going to be a sunny afternoon, good day for a hike in the woods. This morning, we had a great zoom call with one of our advisory board members. There was a new study that showed a significant rise in the number of people eating a vegan diet. Any good news is good news. It helps to balance off those who seem to either be threatened or angry by the prospect of change.
There is a growing tribe of haters that think packs of unruly vegans will be roaming the streets forcing kale smoothies down everyone’s throats. I heard one say that vegans are “stealing our meat”.
This study found that almost 5% of the adult population identified as vegan! 2.5 million vegans, up 1 million from a year ago, that’s impressive. That same survey showed just over 6 million additional vegetarians and pescatarians moving in the right direction.
The brainboxes at Stanford University claim that it takes 25% of a group to create a tipping point for any issue of social change. Gladwell says 10%. Who knows? Who really cares? This is one situation where more is better.
We have always used this quote from Margret Mead in our classes, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed, citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”
Our Human Ecology Project has a big vision and a simple set of tools to build on. We believe that education is the key. With the rapid destruction of the natural world, we look to the wisdom of the ancients and early environmentalists who knew that there is no environment “out there”. The environment exists within us and around us, we are one with the environment. The separations we perceive are illusions that serve to keep us from our true self. The young understand this message.
The education that is needed in connecting the dots. What Gregory Bateson called the Ecology of the Mind. If we don’t think differently, we cannot act differently.
The first Law of Ecology is, Everything is Connected. This simple fact lies at the foundation of what we teach. This is certainly not a new idea but a profound one. If we look at our daily actions, we can track our footprints leading to the tragic and needless killing of millions of land animals and a trillion sea creatures, but they do not stop there. They continue to the land needed and the crops raised to feed those animals. They stay the course to the production of the chemicals used to force more growth that run off into the streams and seas to choke out life there. Those are not negatives to cry over but rather challenges to be engaged with. It is only light that pierces darkness.
These connections can be taught as part of an appreciation of nature’s order as well as the power of personal choice. We curate and communicate ways to create balance through a healthy planet for both human and non-human life.
2025
Diary Entry – November 28th
America celebrates thankfulness on this day. No irony is involved. About 46 million turkeys will be sacrificed to the appreciation of life. The American CDC estimates that one in six people will get sick on the day, with over 100,000 going to the hospital. That means that almost as many people get sick as turkeys killed. The gorging goes on all day.
(I can’t help myself. Fun fact - Thanksgiving was started as a holiday by Abraham Lincoln, it was suggested by the woman who wrote, Mary Had a Little Lamb. Kids love the rhyme about the cute lamb. Not a turkey in sight.)
Here in the UK, we are hosting the first meeting of the Planet Partners meeting. Forty young people showed up. The theme was giving thanks. We had a great dinner that they helped prepare and celebrated different aspects of the natural world.
Some of the kids wrote poems or created skits. There was a good mix of young folks, mostly 16 to 18 years old, some even younger. We want to give them the information they need to make good decisions. We make sure that the parents know what the young are doing, don’t want to create too many family issues. (A few are probably unavoidable.)
We want to make this non-political (with a small p). Get them informed and schooled in non-violent, non-confrontational communication. If they can just share what’s in their heart as well as what’s in their mind, we will be OK. It’s all about modelling. Be the change you want to see.
2026
Diary Entry – September 20th
This has been difficult. What are we all waiting for? Changing the climate means changing the story. If we don’t change the way we purchase things we can’t change anything. We are all creating a new story, one that is hopeful, one that is exciting, one that is life affirming.
Food is the key. Everyone must eat. All food requires resources. Simply look at the resources used for foods and eat the ones that use the least resources with the most nutrition.
The local Planet Partners have tripled in size over the past two years. We now have over 150 active members. They have all taken on the Social Learning approach of modelling a healthy vegan life. The links with the like-minded are growing, everyone from farmers to teen influencers are joining hands in this endeavour. No dues to pay, no pledge to sign, only daily action. The principles are clear. Avoid killing to live, stay healthy so you can be happy, help others along the way.
Getting good feedback. So many say that others around them comment on their health as well as their attitude. They have taken it upon themselves to produce funny clips on social media that celebrate being vegan. One good thing about the internet is that it crosses borders. We are getting new Planet Partners from all over the world.
There is an upswing in teens and young people starting gardens and lobbying for school vegan meals. Some think that we are beginning to experience exponential growth. We now have a huge library of short video’s, workbooks (all filled with reading lists and research references) and both online and regional conferences. Getting increased networks with environmental and health groups. We are focused on how people can benefit from a vegan society.
Our advisory board is growing. More Doctors, Ecologists, Social Activists, Animal rights experts and a few poets and film makers. What a great resource for our young friends.
2035
Diary Entry – November 20th
Happy Birthday!! 60 years old. Surrounded by people half my age. Well, what can I say? The demographics are slowly changing. Health, more advanced age. Animals and Environment hand in hand. From our original group over 100 are still with us and over thousands of new members in the UK over the past six years. We need to keep the good news flowing.
Out of the first-year group, some are now in their late 20’s and even early 30’s. Some are gaining high profiles. We now have even more teachers, more doctors, and a wide range of associates in all walks of life.
Land transition programmes are starting to promote plant-based food products on farmland used for animals. This is needed. Some folks have farms that have been in families for generations. We need to help them create positive change that saves and rebuilds the land while generating income.
If we count the casual members who don’t do much advocacy, we figure 250,000 in the UK alone. That is out of the total of 4 million vegans according to the latest estimates. Our educational videos and workbooks are spreading far and wide. We now have translations in 10 languages. Still keeping simple and positive.
Our network now includes ocean reclamation and fish stock revival, clean river groups, veganic gardeners, natural foods manufacturers, forest renewal groups and several organizations focused on wildlife preservation.
2042
Diary Entry – February 25th
The resistance we were receiving in India and China is slowly ebbing away. The latest papers on health benefits and savings in treatment are having an impact. Some of our affiliates have integrated great programmes to establish vegetable protein plants in Africa. Three factories have started now in Uganda, and they are already employing almost 1000 people. It is important that all projects provide honourable employment to workers.
2050
Diary Entry – September 4th
80 years old! how time flies. Two of our older associates are due to receive honours from the UN this year. Their sustainable land programmes in three continents have successfully flipped almost 1 billion acres of land that was used to grow feed for animals over to organic human food production. Amazing, That’s almost half of the damaged land.
The ban on artificial semination of animals is bringing down the population of the ones that are still under threat. We are not done but we are at the beginning of the end.
There are others that are setting up rewilding projects, forest building projects and river clean-up. We are talking about hundreds of millions of acres of damaged lands and thousands of miles of rivers. This is employing thousands of young people.
All the high-tech solutions for clean power are certainly useful but it is the daily actions of millions of people who stopped supporting the animal industries that have made the greatest impact. The health benefits ripple out as well. There is now general acceptance that a healthy vegan diet is good for all life. It has gone beyond self-interest. When you transform yourself, you transform the world around you.
Marlene Watson-Tara