I like to think that one person can make a world of difference. When you look back through history it’s pretty evident that someone with a cause can influence immense positive change (and negative too, but let’s not go there).
Look at Gandhi and Mandela, even Oprah, as examples. From presidents to protesters, one person’s longing for change started with an inspired thought, an event or even a hardship. It’s what they did with that seed that determined how it would sprout and grow.
It’s when one person understands how to reach out further than themselves that their passion and inspiration spreads to impact great change.
This wee thought about how we can all do our bit, no matter how small, leads me to an invitation I received on Facebook this morning to join a new group: a film fest that’s about educating and spreading awareness. Called The Awareness Film Festival, its aim is to bring awareness to ecological, health, well-being, and political topics (submissions are open now. The fest will be held on May 10 in Los Angeles).
One person acted on their idea. Now, through this film festival, like-minded people will be able to share their message with many others, sparking offshoots of inspired minds all driven to make a difference. Isn’t that grand?
I wanted to do my bit to help spread the word. If you’re an up-and-coming (or working) filmmaker, this could be an opportunity to inspire others, make a difference. Maybe it’s a documentary about veganism, or how climate change is affected greatly by our food choices. Perhaps it’s just a short that gets people thinking.
To celebrate every single person making a change, and inspired by The Awareness Film Festival, I’ve put together a list of film festivals (many of them environmentally-focussed) that were created to help inspire positive change in the world (see below). If you know of others that aren’t listed here, please feel free to add them in the comments.
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2010 has hit full force. You can feel the electricity in the air.
I ended 2009 by cleaning out, dusting, getting rid of all the old, stuck energy in preparation for the new year. And now the start of a new decade has arrived, it’s time to dig even deeper. It’s time to get knee-deep into my wardrobe.
I’ve decided to box up everything I haven’t worn in the past six months, clothes I’m not really sure about, stuff that’s too big, too small, wrong colour. Even the items I don’t wear, but am sentimental about. Yep, they’re going too. My chosen charity awaits.
The year 2010 is about giving back. Living more simply. Thinking of others less fortunate. Giving without expecting anything in return. Just thinking about living that way feels good. So to do it must feel even better—for the giver and receiver.
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When someone becomes vegan, it starts with a decision. Nothing more, nothing less.
This decision can make a huge positive difference to the lives of others, and can turn out to be the most important moment of a person’s life. I know when I became vegan, it changed my life in countless ways (not to mention the lives of animals who were no longer being slaughtered to fill my dinner plate).
Knowing how such a decision can affect humanity, animals and the planet, I was thrilled to be asked to write a passage for a new website, which was born from a desire to help others on their journey from meat eater to vegan.
Called The Vegan Decision, the website is the home of “thoughtful essays from people who made the decision to stop eating animals” and why they made the choice.
Whether you’re vegan, or considering the lifestyle, this website is no doubt going to be a great resource—a place of inspiration, advice and great tips—thanks to those who are sharing their journey. Love it!
It seems this is my week to write about actress Natalie Portman. Since penning the article about the protein myth and how being famous doesn’t make you an expert, I’ve noticed there’s a lot of debate about whether Nat is a vegan or vegetarian.
From here, I got to wondering why we vegans care so deeply about celebrity diet choices, particularly once they’ve mentioned they’re one of “us”. And why we want to let meat eaters know their diet choices aren’t optimal for their own health, the health of animals and the planet.
My reasoning came down to this: it’s because we have learned and lived what it means to be animal-flesh-and-product free. It’s like finding the buried treasure, the golden ring, the never-seen-before episodes of Seinfeld. It’s so damn exciting that we want to let the world know, wake up the sleepy and declare our new found clarity and meaning to anyone who’ll listen. And we also want celebrities on our side. They have a bigger reach, they can influence more people. People actually listen to them.
But I also believe the every day person (like little ol’ me) can reach millions too, through tolerance and understanding, but also more importantly leading by example. Everyday actions that come from a kind place add up to be big actions of positive influence. Look at Oprah. She took one step at a time, doing what she believed in while practicing tolerance and understanding. Her little steps added up to be a worldwide phenomenon. Her success, it seems to me, came out of a deep desire to help others and her willingness to let others see her faults. To show that she is human, just like you and me. Most of us vegans were meat eaters and dairy drinkers too at some point in our lives, unless, of course, we were lucky enough to have vegan parents ourselves.
So that’s just it. Just because I’m vegan doesn’t mean I’m right about everything, or have the answers to the world’s diet woes (although I’m certain I could guide and greatly help those who ask for it). And just because Natalie Portman is on her journey between vegetarianism and veganism doesn’t really matter either. It’s the kind actions we take, every day, that add up to make a big difference. If we all lead by positive example, who knows, eating animals could be a habit of the past sooner than we think.
But for the record, in Natalie’s words herself, and thanks to Jonathan Safran Foer’s book Eating Animals, she is indeed vegan.
As I was pondering what to write about today, I received an email from San Francisco’s Cafe Gratitude, a wonderful little eatery in the city’s Mission District, where being grateful—and expressing it—is as common as their communal tables.
With menu items such as “I am Beautiful”, “I am Eternally Blessed” and “I am Berry Awesome” (with the waiter yelling across the room to you: “Vegan Girl, You are Beautiful” when serving up your order), it’s little wonder this place has become a must-visit, and sanctuary, for raw food vegans and the curious alike.
But just when I thought the cafe’s mission, service and food couldn’t get any better. I just learned it can. Each year, for the past five years, Cafe Gratitude hosts a FREE Thanksgiving dinner for vegans (between 11am and 3pm), with ingredients supplied by local vendors.
It made me think about what I’m doing to give back and how I can do more to brighten someone’s day, even just once a week. So now I’m off to research some volunteer opportunities, and grateful to Cafe Gratitude for giving me the nudge.
Check out some of these volunteer organisations near you:
New Zealand
Volunteer Now
Volunteer Service Abroad
Australia
Volunteering Australia
Australian Volunteer Search
UK
USA
Photo courtesy of Taniamarie.com
