The Hen Report: “Don’t ask me that. You’re not going to like the answer.”

Mariann Sullivan: We're doing it at 5:08 PM, which is really my tip top time of day.

Jasmin Singer: It's your bedtime, basically.

Mariann Sullivan: It's not my bedtime, but I gotta get my energy up. I'm gonna get my energy up.

Jasmin Singer: Yeah, no, I know. I'm sorry about that. Also, you put election stress on the list of things to talk about, but like, we keep

talking about

Mariann Sullivan: about. Yeah.

Jasmin Singer: Yeah.

Mariann Sullivan: And actually I don't have as much election stress. Well, I do in a way, but because I'm not paying attention to the news, there's that, like the immediate, like constant hit of stress has been reduced a lot.

Jasmin Singer: mm hmm,

Mariann Sullivan: I have this awareness that, you know, I'm not paying attention and that's probably irresponsible because, you know, my paying attention, like, is capable of changing the universe.

So I probably should be paying attention. But, um,

Jasmin Singer: That's a lot of pressure.

Mariann Sullivan: It's a lot to carry.

It's a lot. I'm not going to deny it.

Jasmin Singer: I'm not sure why you haven't like ended animal exploitation yet, but

Mariann Sullivan: Yeah, no. Well, I didn't say... I'm carrying and I'm, I didn't say I'm capable of fixing it. It's just like, mostly my fault when I, it's not fixed.

Jasmin Singer: That's okay, I could see that Catholic guilt is really sitting in you.

Mariann Sullivan: It's a powerful force.

Jasmin Singer: So I hear, so is Jewish guilt. I have an interesting story to share with you.

Mariann Sullivan: That's good.

Jasmin Singer: So my play, POTUS, is in the middle of its run right now at Blackfriars Theatre.

Mariann Sullivan: A two week run, right?

Jasmin Singer: Yeah, it's a Two week run and we got a great review

Mariann Sullivan: Yeah. No, I hear nothing but good things. I haven't seen it yet.

Jasmin Singer: Yeah, well, it is super fun. And so I have a couple stories

Mariann Sullivan: Not all the good things I heard were from you. A couple of them were, but they were from other people too.

Jasmin Singer: That's good. So you know how it goes in theater, like you're an instant family with your cast.

Mariann Sullivan: Don't really, but yeah, I take your word for it.

Jasmin Singer: So there is another vegan, as I mentioned in the cast. And so that's been great, but it was difficult because I live in such a vegan bubble and we all went out to eat and I made sure that it was a place that had, you know, legitimate vegan options, which is much better than just getting

Mariann Sullivan: Yeah.

Jasmin Singer: whatever, the fruit cup.

And but I, I was, I couldn't handle it. I couldn't handle the people eating meat around me. Like it was so egregious. It was like chicken bones.

Mariann Sullivan: it like so egregious? Like, are, were they like stuffing it?

Jasmin Singer: well,

Mariann Sullivan: it from their ears or stuffing it down your throat or

Jasmin Singer: there was too much.

Mariann Sullivan: it's just egregious.

Jasmin Singer: was too much exuberance around it. Like I'll order the steak, blah, blah, blah. Oh, yum. Like,

Mariann Sullivan: Oh, yeah, that's

Jasmin Singer: But I will say that a couple of people needed to step out and they're like, if I text you my order, would you order it for me when the waiter comes back? And I said, no.

And she was like, Oh, no. Okay.

I'll text. Like she thought I was kidding. And I said, No, I'm an animal rights vegan. I'm not going to order animal products.

Mariann Sullivan: that was good.

Jasmin Singer: And I said, I'll order it for you if you want the vegan variety of it. And someone else was like, text me. I got you. You know, so then that person said to me, I'm going to be getting meat.

Will that bother you? And I said, don't ask me that. You're not going to like the answer. And I said, just like, Do what you're going to do, but don't ask me. And so that happened and it was weird. And I had some like eyes across the

Mariann Sullivan: do that pledge where we, we never eat. I never, I never go out anyway, so it's fine. It's easy.

Jasmin Singer: Yeah. It would be easy for you.

Mariann Sullivan: No, I have family. I don't see them that often, but like, wow, I mean, I love them so much. They're really nice people. You've met them all. They're just lovely people. I mean, like, you know, sister, nieces, nephews, that sort of thing.

And just Like, I, it's just so weird, never mention it, never, like they're fully aware I'm vegan, they always, you know, make sure I'm accommodated, like, it's crazy.

Jasmin Singer: Well, I, yeah, I love your family, but I haven't, I have kind of a part two of this story. So the next day we're all backstage in the dressing room and someone says something about like honey and someone's like,

Mariann Sullivan: Well, of course. I

Jasmin Singer: do you, eat

Mariann Sullivan: you know, if you're with non vegans, it's absolutely requisite that you discuss honey. They don't want to hear about cow slaughter.

Jasmin Singer: right. So she goes, do you eat honey? And I said, no. And she said, why? And I explained the factory farming of bees.

And they were like, but what if, you know,

Mariann Sullivan: Yeah.

Jasmin Singer: what if someone has the bees? And. And so I was like, I personally don't eat honey. I think that there is a more ethical way of consuming it if you wait until the bees are done with it and they've abandoned the nest. But it's very few people

Mariann Sullivan: I think they call it a

Jasmin Singer: that hive.

And I said, it's very few people who will do that, A. And B, at that point, it becomes philosophical to me. And I don't think animal products are there for our

Mariann Sullivan: have maple syrup. It's really not that burdensome.

Jasmin Singer: So then someone said, okay, wait, I've always wondered this. And itwasn't, it wasn't a desert island thing, but she basically was like, let's say you're, it was more

Mariann Sullivan: I'm already annoyed.

Jasmin Singer: No, but hear me out because it was actually a genuine question. She said, let's say I'm with someone and she says, if I die first, you can eat me. Would that be vegan? And I said, yes, because she gave consent. And the difference between veganism and non veganism is consent. And everyone in the dressing room went, Oh, like something about framing it around consent, which, by the way, is a big topic in my play

Mariann Sullivan: And I'm not even sure everybody would say that wasn't vegan. You know, who knows? Like, the word is not pinned down, like, absolutely. But I think it was a very good way to respond.

Jasmin Singer: And I and then

Mariann Sullivan: It got to the point of it all for you.

Jasmin Singer: Well, right. Yeah, exactly. And then you know, I said something about like, you know, breast milk is vegan unless the woman is like tied down in the basement somewhere being forcibly,

Mariann Sullivan: nice touch.

Jasmin Singer: you know, with her baby being removed from her and the milk being taken. And then, then someone on the other side of the dressing room goes, we'll see what happens after the election. Funny, not Funny,

Mariann Sullivan: Funny, not funny, and also like changing the subject.

Jasmin Singer: Well, yeah, but it,

Mariann Sullivan: Using this joke to change the subject.

Jasmin Singer: And so then someone said, why isn't gelatin vegan? And then someone else who was not vegan said, horse hooves.

Mariann Sullivan: All good. Oh, bones too.

Jasmin Singer: Someone else was like, this is really fascinating to me. Thank you so much. I've like really never known any of this.

And I was like, well, honestly, it's pretty refreshing that you're asking me questions like non defensively because usually when I get asked questions, it's like a gotcha thing. People are trying to play gotcha. So

Mariann Sullivan: What if you were on a desert island, and you were dying, and the only thing to eat was a, was a parrot?

Jasmin Singer: Yeah. I mean, honestly, I don't know. I'm just gonna think that it's one of those things where it's gonna need to hit them like a few other times

Mariann Sullivan: Yeah, no, the number, um, the number is 997. Has to hit them 997 times. So yeah, now you're, you're a two. So

Jasmin Singer: we're at two. Well, let's move on to, bigger and brighter things. The Animal Law Podcast. What's

Mariann Sullivan: Great episode just went up, I interviewed Wayne Hsiung and Justin Marceau. Wayne Hsiung is, of course, formerly of Direct Action Everywhere and is a direct action activist, in general. And lots of legal cases, uh, but in this case he was acting as the lawyer. And Justin Marceau, who runs the Animal Activist Clinic at the University of Denver Law School.

And they were talking about a case that's actually occurred very near to where we live, even though, um, I had not attended any of the events, there, it was maybe 90 minutes away near Buffalo and upstate New York or western New York, as we say. The Asha Sanctuary case, which probably a lot of you have heard of this woman, Tracy Murphy, who has a small sanctuary.

Two cows wandered onto her property and many events ensued, which ended not well for the cows. They ended up dead and she ended up arrested. And, Like in leg irons, it was pretty unbelievable because it's hard to imagine that she did anything that could be conceived of as illegal.

They recently had a successful outcome to that case and they were on the podcast to talk about it and really go into detail. And I was glad we had an opportunity to do that because it kind of got dismissed, not a technicality. I hate that expression because all of The legal principles are important and valid, but they didn't end up going to trial.

It got dismissed on legal grounds. so, you know, when that happens, or as has happened in other cases, like the Ridgland case about the Ridgland dog breeding case, where, The complainant just kind of withdraws right at the last minute. we see this happening over and over again, and these cases just can kind of disappear.

So I really wanted to get into the issues, you know, what really happened here and the issues that were raised and why this egregious behavior occurred. and you know, I think that sometimes they're hoping that the case will just disappear. And, it's important not to let it. So fascinating conversation.

I really enjoyed it. I hope you listen.

Jasmin Singer: That's great. That's super cool. And by the way, speaking of new podcasts that are out, you and I were interviewed on the podcast Vegan Posse and we will link to it in the show notes because it was a great

Mariann Sullivan: Yeah, that was fun. It was a fun conversation.

Jasmin Singer: Yeah. And it's, it's on YouTube and we had a really great time chatting with them, but the incredible

Mariann Sullivan: Why don't we ever do it on YouTube? Because it would be too wearing to have to put makeup on?

Jasmin Singer: I mean, not for me, because I have tattooed makeup on, but, no, because I, you know, the vast majority of our listeners subscribe through Podcatchers

Mariann Sullivan: I don't really understand listening to a podcast on YouTube. Like, because I usually do it when I'm walking or driving or doing something else. But a lot of people do.

Jasmin Singer: also, I just think you have to really devote yourself to doing YouTube, which. Christine Benson, who's the host of Vegan Posse, has done that. But when you don't do that, there are really bad optics. Like, if, like, eight people watch it on YouTube or something, you can see that. And I just, I'm not comfortable with that.

I don't know. I'm probably a little OCD about

Mariann Sullivan: are, are, are, missing out.

Jasmin Singer: Those eight people are missing out, I

Mariann Sullivan: Sorry, eight people.

Jasmin Singer: Well, they're probably not listening, because they're mad that we're not on

Mariann Sullivan: were not on YouTube. Yeah. All right. Let's talk about money.

Jasmin Singer: um, Yeah, so it is my birthday.

Well,

Mariann Sullivan: about your birthday and then talk about money,

Jasmin Singer: my birthday

Mariann Sullivan: I go together every year. Yeah,

Jasmin Singer: At the time that this goes out, my birthday was yesterday.

And so at the time that you're listening to this, I just celebrated my 45th birthday.

Mariann Sullivan: I had no idea you were that old.

Jasmin Singer: Well, do you remember, I know we've told this story.

Mariann Sullivan: it was maybe 44 or 43, like, wow.

Jasmin Singer: You know, it's so funny. Do you remember when we, like, years ago, like, we were with Amy Trukinski, and we were at TAFA, taking action for animals.

Mariann Sullivan: we drove home.

Jasmin Singer: Yeah, we were driving home with them from D. C. to New York City, and I said something about being young. And then I said I was 27 and Amy goes, that's not that young.

Mariann Sullivan: That's really not.

Jasmin Singer: And, uh, I just always thought of it's just very funny. That was, nearly 20 years ago. My God. Okay. Well, anyhow, this is very funny because Jen, our wonderful fundraising person gave me some bullet points for talking about the birthday stuff, because she wanted to make sure that I get the talking points right about the match that we're about to launch.

And she wrote, maybe talk about stuff you did on your birthday. And I'm like, well, it hasn't, I don't, I can't, cause I don't know what happened. But I do know that I have a show

Mariann Sullivan: Oh, yeah, that I that would be very risky

Jasmin Singer: Yeah, and then I'm

Mariann Sullivan: something happened that you're pretty sure is going to happen because then it won't

Jasmin Singer: I'm going gambling. I'm going to a casino that morning because I have a show that night So I'm gonna morning gamble on my birthday,

by the way

Mariann Sullivan: God, that's so sordid.

Jasmin Singer: I know, right? I'm so excited.

I total low life. I'm super stoked. Well, all right. So thank you for the birthday wishes, assuming you're going to give me any, because I don't know, because my birthday hasn't happened yet. You're right. We do launch the end of year fundraising on my birthday. And so, first of all, we do want to thank our listeners immensely for your dedication to Our Hen House and your dedication to animals. We couldn't do it without you. And I mean that. Especially for this year, January, which is coming up quicker than we realized, will mark the 15th anniversary of Our Hen House. So because of you, if you're listening to this, and your continued support, all of you, except for the nine people who are not watching us on YouTube right now,

Mariann Sullivan: eight.

Jasmin Singer: Oh, okay. Eight. This is the 773rd consecutive weekly episode. Holy shit. I'm so tired. of our signature podcast. And as you know, we just released our 113th episode of the monthly Animal Law podcast.

We have more than 2. 8 million listens. As you know, we provide resources and community and inspiration for animal advocates around the globe, newcomers, seasoned activists, everyone in between, and this has been a difficult year. Now, I know that people say that. This has actually been a very difficult year for Our Hen House, and thanks to nothing short of a miracle, we are now on even ground again, because one of our foundations that we've worked with has been able to help us out in a very remarkable way. A non replicable but remarkable way. And the reason that we've been facing some challenges is because there has been shifts in funding in the animal protection movement, and we have been caught in that.

Mariann Sullivan: Yeah, I don't even really understand it, but we're definitely caught in it. And I'm hearing that other organizations are as well. But I don't know the reason for these shifts, but there have definitely happened. And,

and it's, it's means with that, yeah, we have had, I mean, some pretty existential crises about fundraising this year, which right now, if we can pull off our end of year match,

Jasmin Singer: mm hmm.

Mariann Sullivan: We'll be good for, for a while and hopefully then we'll be able to regroup and make it through the year.

Jasmin Singer: And, Another piece of good news is that we were fortunate enough to have secured our matching grant again this year because of our very dedicated Barnyard Benefactors, an amazing group of people who always go above and beyond with their support. They pool their donations to match the support we receive from our listeners, and we, we don't know what we would do without them because they have agreed to match your donations dollar for dollar if we can raise 20, 000 by December 31st and That's not all because we have also secured an anonymous donor to provide an additional match this year, which means that all donations between now and the end of the year will be tripled.

So every single dollar that you donate up to 20, 000 will receive two. So we're hoping to raise 60,

Mariann Sullivan: That's if we, if we make it to 20, 000.

Jasmin Singer: We're hoping to raise 60, 000 by the end of the year so we can make it into next year. This is the lion's share of our annual fundraising. I think we can do it because I know we have such amazing listeners and supporters.

So really, truly, donations of any amount count toward our goal. So if you value our podcasts And you want to see us continue our much needed work to provide community and resources for activists, please consider making a donation of any amount in honor of my birthday or before the end of the year.

All donations are tax deductible. If you're not already part of our wonderful flock community, you can join us, with options starting at $10 a month or 100 a year. 100 a year is really great for us, by the way. So,

Mariann Sullivan: Cause we get to add that, if you pay a hundred dollars for the full year now, we get to use that amount since we're raising it between your birthday and the end of the year, we get to use it to make our match.

Jasmin Singer: By the way, we have not raised our membership fees in years because we want to keep it affordable for activists. and you can also join us as a regular supporter for as little as 5 a month. so if you go to OurHenHouse. org slash support, you could check out our membership options, our fun perks, and you can make a tax deductible donation. If you're financially able to do this year, we'll just be so incredibly grateful. Our Hen House is Such an important part of the animal protection movement for so many people and it would be the best birthday gift ever. So go to OurHenHouse.org/support and really truly thank you from the bottom of my hen heart.

I appreciate you

Mariann Sullivan: Me too.

Jasmin Singer: so much. So let's get to some of these pieces of news that we have

Mariann Sullivan: No, you know, a lot of, I like to look for, for happy news and a lot of the news It's very, a lot of information. Some of it is pretty tough. And one of the reasons for that is that one of the things that we try to cover every week is something that's going on with avian influenza and you know, it's, it's not good.

So there's this story on, Stat News, which is kind of a science y, publication. Um, tracking the U. S. bird flu outbreak has been hard. It's about to get harder. And, this is by Helen Branswell. she starts out by saying, if you can point to anything good about the H5N1 bird flu outbreak in dairy cattle, you know, and as we've been reporting for a while now, it's now really spreading far and fast in dairy cattle. And to be honest, there's nothing good about this situation, she says. It's the timing. Transmission of the virus through U. S. dairy herds took off when last winter's flu season was effectively over, making the job of looking for people infected with H5N1 an easier task in theory.

So, you can see what the problem is. It was easier to track H5N1 when, regular flu wasn't floating around. And now we're heading into winter, in the U S and, and regular flu is going to start, uh, start hanging around and that's going to make everything much, much harder for a few reasons, but both much harder to track and actually more dangerous too.

So far, I think. I think as of today, there have been infections reported in 380 herds in 14 states. So, you know, it's only a few months ago, I feel like they were saying, oh yeah, this isn't going to happen at all. And it's just spreading like wildfire. And so when dairy workers get the flu, you know, or, or something like a cold, or they could think it might be COVID, they're not going to know which it is. And so, so it's much harder for them to, report it. It's much harder for anybody to stop it. And, you know, and the dairy industry is really not interested in finding out that it's there. So it's really pretty scary. And the other thing, I think this is the the scariest part, the worry is, is that they're going to mix, you know, the more regular flu there is, if the same person gets infections with both H5N1 and old school flu, there's a much more likelihood that, you know, whatever it is that viruses do, which is, you know, well beyond my understanding, but they can mix and that can make H5N1 much more dangerous.

So far, it has not been dangerous to humans, but, you know, that's the problem. Like, there's a good chance that it never will be. There's a pretty good chance that it could kill us all. Like, and they don't seem to be doing anything about it. There's wastewater testing. That's one way, um, they keep track of like regular flu and COVID.

That's been really important for COVID. It doesn't work for H5N1 because If it's in the wastewater, there's no way to know whether it came from a human or a cow or milk that was contaminated. So it doesn't, they don't have any way of tracking it with wastewater, which is, you know, a major way of tracking them.

And, and the CDC is now providing 100, 000 doses of some kind of vaccination that they've got. Oh, the vaccination against seasonal flu, so, so to avoid this mixing problem. 100, 000 doses. That, like, that's nothing. Like, if it's useful to provide these doses to farm workers who, chances are, don't have health insurance and don't have, it would have to pay for, for, for vaccination.

So they're providing a hundred thousand doses, which seems to be saying, well, this is important. So we're going to spend this money, but we're not going to spend very much money. So we're going to leave most of them out of this program and not provide them with vaccinations. Like it's, the whole thing is just insane.

Jasmin Singer: Yeah, it is. It's crazy to me how we're still confining animals in these disgusting, crowded, unnatural conditions, and it's basically a breeding ground for disease. You know, I'm also concerned about those farm workers who have limited access to health care and job protections, and they're facing serious health risks.

Many are undocumented. I mean, there's so many issues that point to the ethical failures of a system that just doesn't protect its most vulnerable individuals. And then we get it too, which is just

Mariann Sullivan: Yeah, no, they, they are. They are incredibly vulnerable, they could be the ones in which it becomes a serious disease, which, you know, so far it hasn't been a serious disease in humans, it's an unbelievably serious disease in cows. And you know, six months ago they were saying this will never happen in cows, and it will never be serious in cows because of something to do with the udder or whatever.

It's all bullshit. They don't know what they're talking about.

Jasmin Singer: Yeah.

Mariann Sullivan: Yeah, we actually have another story on bird flu.

Jasmin Singer: Yes.

Mariann Sullivan: if you haven't heard enough yet, because I know you all love hearing this so much, but this one is real. This is from Reuters. Exclusive state and industry input led U. S. Farm Agency to relax bird flu testing order for cows. So this is looking back to April, when everybody was saying, Oh yeah, this is no big deal.

And so the USDA, apparently there were some people there who thought it was a big deal. And they had issued an emergency order last spring, and it was designed to prevent the spread of bird flu among cattle. I guess that's when it first started to show up in cows. And so they wanted to put this rule in, in place, you know, doing a few negative things.

And one of them was that, if they were moving dairy cattle across state lines, you know, that doesn't, it's not everything because. Like viruses can cross state lines and it also matters whether it's within the state, but it's something. They wanted to make it that they had a negative test no more than three days prior to travel.

And then the industry got to them. They had some meetings. They changed three days to seven days. It's unbelievable, like, they're supposed to be protecting us. All they're doing is protecting the industry.

So when the agency issued that order on April 24th, 33 herds had tasted positive. Yeah, I didn't realize it was that long ago. So there had already been 33 and it's now over 330. 14 states and human cases in 17 people. Like I said, none of which have been serious yet, but like, you know, why not create a laboratory where the virus can do its worst?

Jasmin Singer: Cut corners to appease an industry that is just treating these animals as commodities. It's really horrifying. They're being moved across state lines with like just willy

Mariann Sullivan: Seven days, like how much could develop in seven days? No wonder it's everywhere. Well, you know, the proof is in the pudding. It's now everywhere.

Jasmin Singer: Proof is in the burger meat. It's really horrifying. Allright, are we

Mariann Sullivan: flu. It's like, that's, I promise. That's all we're going to talk about flu.

Jasmin Singer: All right.

So

Mariann Sullivan: else do we have?

Jasmin Singer: we have this, oh, oh, this is a bad one too, though. The Vox article about

Mariann Sullivan: Yeah, I don't want to

Jasmin Singer: Why do people listen to Our Hen House? We're so depressing.

All right. Well, the fish farming.

Mariann Sullivan: This is a great article. I want everybody to read it, but I don't want to spend a lot of time on it. But I did want to make a point about it. It's about fish farming. And we all know that fish farming is just horrible. But this is by Kenny Torella, you know, who just is doing such valuable work at Vox. He's really, one of the few reporters in this country that's reporting intensively on what's going on in animal agriculture and he points out that the fish farming is, you know, everybody loves it.

Everybody thinks it's really sustainable. Everybody thinks it's good, you know, saving the oceans, like we're not taking these fish from the oceans. There've been loads of government subsidies, supported by universities, philanthropic foundations, and they're ignoring the fact, and he goes into this in much more detail than I want to, but this is just the piece that really shocked me.

The most valuable farmed species are like salmon and trout. You know, that's what you see in the restaurants. That's the fish that makes them a lot of money. They're carnivorous. They're carnivorous fish. So they have to be fed wild caught fish when they're farmed. And I mean, you know, a lot of people already know that.

The numbers have been so cooked that we're probably taking as much from the ocean to feed the fish that we're farming as we were taking from the ocean, like, to just catch fish.

Jasmin Singer: That's crazy. So basically instead of relieving the ocean pressure, they're contributing to it by removing tons of fish that are a food source for other marine life.

Mariann Sullivan: 17 million of the 91 million metric tons of wild caught fish go into aquaculture. And that is how we measure fish. By the ton, not by the individual, not by the consciousness, not by anything other than, that they're part of a ton.

Jasmin Singer: I can't believe fish farming was supposed to be, like, an eco friendly alternative to overfishing. I mean, this is such a huge environmental toll. It's an

ethical

Mariann Sullivan: that this was all going to go wrong?

Jasmin Singer: You remind me so much of a line from my play, but I can't tell it to you because you haven't seen it yet. But it's really, I mean, it's like, unbelievable to me how fish are just not seen as individuals at all because of how many there are of them. This really is an ethical nightmare. But let's move on to talk about something that's, I would say, a little more interesting, though still very annoying, uh,in a, in a much different way.

Mariann Sullivan: Like I told you, like, I warned everybody.

Jasmin Singer: So, okay, there's, there's this news, I've seen this Absolutely everywhere about Lizzo

Mariann Sullivan: Yeah, I don't want to go into Lizzo too much. I do want to talk about the whole issue though.

Jasmin Singer: Cyrus. Yeah. Like people who are shifting away from veganism because they're citing health benefits like improved energy and mental clarity

Mariann Sullivan: And not just health benefits, but they're saying when they went vegan after a while, you know, at first they all love it because they get like in the papers and they get news out of it. And then after a while, they decide that they don't have any energy.

Jasmin Singer: you know, I mean, like we are a nation that is sleep deprived and overstressed and overtaxed, andmaybe that might be why we don't have.

Mariann Sullivan: really vague, symptoms.

Jasmin Singer: Like all of my blood tests always come back perfect and I also am tired

Mariann Sullivan: but you're vegan, Jasmin, so that's probably why.

Jasmin Singer: I understand that health is personal. I do understand that everyone's body has unique needs, but there are so many misconceptions about veganism in the discussions that are being had around people like Lizzo and Miley Cyrus and, you know, the girl from Wednesday.

Mariann Sullivan: Lizzo is really a disappointment.

Jasmin Singer: I know, I mean, but this, like, obviously we know that veganism has all of the essential

Mariann Sullivan: Was she always just talking about it as a health thing? I mean, did she ever talk about ethics? I don't, you know, I didn't pay that much attention.

Jasmin Singer: Uh, she kind of talked about it in more of a lifestyle way, I would say, more so than like health exactly. It, I'm not, I think it was somewhere between health and ethics.

I would say it was

Mariann Sullivan: the point I wanted to make is, okay, okay, like, if you decide that, you know, it's veganism and you're not getting enough protein or whatever it is, and you're doing your best, you're not eating some, like, stupid, idiotic vegan diet where you're not getting any calories or something, then what you need to do, and you've decided that you have to eat animal products, what you have to do is you have to find the absolute minimal, number of, of animal calories that you can take into your body to make you feel okay.

I am not recommending that anybody do that. That's, don't get me wrong. I'm just saying, if that's your reason that you're tired, then you don't just stop being vegan completely. That belies everything you're saying, because that's not why, like, all you have to do is find the, the number that you that you feel you have to have.

And if you just like, but you know, they don't tend to do that. They just like, you know, reintroduce protein. Like they don't know that there's protein in vegetables. Like, Oh,

Jasmin Singer: I just, I think that you're gonna, I feel like we need to really unpack this for a minute. I know you hate the word unpack, but,

Mariann Sullivan: mental fog, mental fog. That's one of the symptoms. Like, how do you know when you're, you have

Jasmin Singer: I do think, I just want to be clear for anyone who doesn't know Mariann well, that she was not suggesting that you need to ever eat

Mariann Sullivan: No, I thought I made that clear, but let's make it clear 12 times. I'm just saying, if you have that in your head, If you're sure of that, you're wrong.

but the solution is obviously not to just, like, ignore all of the other issues completely.

Then even your solution is to find out the absolute minimum.

Jasmin Singer: Yeah,exactly. but you know,have

Mariann Sullivan: That you can't be clear enough when you're saying that because everybody will get mad at me.

Jasmin Singer: Well, also, you know, that they're just some haters going to like pull that one clip and play it. I just want to say the same point that you made about the last story, which is like, who would have thought this would go wrong? I mean, honestly, whenever we're putting celebrities on a pedestal for being vegan, it's probably not going to end well, in my opinion. Like celebrities are they're kind of trendy, usually.

Mariann Sullivan: Who wrote this article is also an ex vegan,

Jasmin Singer: Oh, great.

Mariann Sullivan: And she mentions You know how much she loved being vegan, and she was clearly, like, allegedly an ethical vegan. And then she experienced low energy, brain fog, muscle pain, and headaches. She bruised easily and was always tired and was very underweight.

Like, if you're very underweight, you're not eating a healthy vegan diet. I can attest to the fact that you can get plenty of calories on a vegan diet.

Jasmin Singer: Yeah.

Mariann Sullivan: Not an issue.

They're just making it up.

Jasmin Singer: Yeah.

Mariann Sullivan: Yeah,

Jasmin Singer: Oh,

Mariann Sullivan: says perhaps I just wasn't doing veganism correctly. Yeah, no shit.

Jasmin Singer: I mean, my guess is there was an eating disorder woven into that for this person who wrote this. And, you know, because it's pretty easy to get your calories.

Mariann Sullivan: And she, I mean, she does say some things that are totally fair. She does point out that celebrities and influencers might be trying very restrictive forms of diets. you know, including, crazy vegan diets. You know, how they always have those articles. I haven't seen one in a while about some kid who was, you know, some three year old who was fed, a quote unquote vegan diet by their parents

and like got very ill or something and and it turns out they were feeding them nothing but you know spinach all day

Jasmin Singer: I hate that. All right, what's next?

Mariann Sullivan: you know I felt like we had to talk about it because it's Lizzo I was just like all over the news, and they know it's going to be all over the news, you know,

Jasmin Singer: Let's talk about seaweed. Do not pin your hopes on Lizzo, and do not pin your hopes for guilt free hamburgers on seaweed.

Mariann Sullivan: This is by one of my favorites who was on the podcast not too long ago, Jan Dutkiewicz.

Jasmin Singer: Yeah. No, I,

Mariann Sullivan: He's great.

Jasmin Singer: So basically this story, which we're going to link to all these stories, this suggests that feeding cows seaweed, which I can't pronounce the name of it. It's like asparagopsis taxiformis.

Mariann Sullivan: they call it red algae

Jasmin Singer: It could drastically reduce methane emissions, but like a deeper analysis revealed that It has very limited effectiveness, and there were some small studies that reported up to 98 percent emissions cut.

Real life impacts likely fall more between 3 and 11%, since most cattle emit only a fraction of their methane in feedlots, where seaweed works best. So scaling seaweed for mass use faces the challenges like invasive species risk and toxic brahma form content. So basically what I'm saying is that this quick fix is, is greenwashing beef and dairy, and it's misleading consumers into thinking that these products are sustainable alternatives to plant based diets, while ignoring, conveniently, the broader environmental harms. Cause obviously we need the true, we need the true reform. We need the policy change, the dietary change. We don't want these like minor emission tweaks. It's some serious bullshit that feeding seaweed to cows can magically make beef and dairy sustainable. It's greenwashing.

Mariann Sullivan: apparently this has been a story that's been all over the place. I mean, it's a story that's been floating around for, for years, like feeding seaweed, but this particular type of seaweed, which I think is from Australia, has been, you know, a hot item in the news. I miss those stories. but yeah, like, It depends on who's doing the counting.

particularly with beef, like they're not in feedlots for most of their lives. And when they're out, you know, you can't like feed them seaweed when they're out on the range eating, eating the grass. Like, what are you going to do? Throw the seaweed out on the grass and hope that they eat it?

It's also, there's like a lot about dosing. Apparently this stuff is, poisonous to humans, which is just bizarre. Um, but even with dairy cows too, like, the numbers just don't add up. I thank God we have these people doing this kind of work cause they just say anything.

They just make this shit up. And, you know, they do a study that doesn't really show the actual life cycle of the animals. And, and it makes it look like if you just feed them the seaweed, it fixes everything, at least the methane. I mean, there's, you know, as, as you pointed out, there's a million other problems with, beef and dairy, environmental problems, not even to mention the animal welfare issues, but, for the methane, it's just a minimal percentage that, that they emit when they're in any place where they can actually be fed this seaweed.

The poor things, like they don't have enough trouble and now they have to eat this. Seaweed. It's probably disgusting.

Jasmin Singer: Yeah. I don't like seaweed either.

Mariann Sullivan: don't, but you know, there's some kinds. I don't mind nori. I

Jasmin Singer: Mm

Mariann Sullivan: think it's hijiki is the one that, oh God, it's gross. And I

know you should eat it. Don't yell at me.

Jasmin Singer: Well, they've already written you hate mail about saying that people shouldn't be vegan, so they might as well add.

Mariann Sullivan: sending me hate

Jasmin Singer: I know

Mariann Sullivan: act, we don't get hate. We, well, I wouldn't say we never have, but it's pretty rare.

Jasmin Singer: All right, let's

Mariann Sullivan: loves us.

Jasmin Singer: Let's

Mariann Sullivan: Even though we tell them all the bad news, like it's all bad news. Like, what can I say?

Jasmin Singer: No, last week it was all good news. This week, it's all

bad

Mariann Sullivan: it's true.

Jasmin Singer: All right. Well, this one's, I wouldn't call the next story like bad or good. This is really about how the Colorado Supreme Court is

Mariann Sullivan: Well, we don't know yet

Jasmin Singer: It's no, it's deliberating. It's deliberating whether five elephants at the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo should be granted personhood and the right to sue for freedom as argued by the Non Human Rights Project, but you're the lawyer. You talk about it.

Mariann Sullivan: Well, I mean, people are probably pretty familiar with the Non Human Rights Project. They brought the case and of course it was led by the wonderful, wonderful, dearly departed Stephen Wise.

Yeah. Hard, hard to believe he's gone, but they are carrying on his work, which really makes me happy. And the latest court that they are in, and they're in the Supreme Court in Colorado.

And they're arguing as they did in New York and in New York, they did not win, but they, they got powerful, powerful dissents. And, they're making it an issue. And obviously the court is taking it very seriously. You can tell that from the kind of questions that were asked. Dealing with these five elephants in a zoo, they want them sent to a sanctuary.

So there's this judge, Melissa Hart, and her question was, how do I know when it stops? And that is the question. That is the question that we have to ask all the time when we're doing any kind of activism. If you start representing animals, do you have to change the entire world?

Um, if elephants should be free, should cows, you know, like she asked the question and it's a hard one to answer, but you know, they do have answers. It's like, habeas corpus is not a policy argument. It's an argument about individuals, these five individuals, and maybe elephants are different, maybe they're not, but all you have to do is decide the case about these five animals.

And, you know, in the New York, Court of Appeals, which is the highest court in New York, it's like the Supreme Court in, in Colorado, there were several judges who said, yeah, the zoo is, is, these animals are unfairly, imprisoned, which is so obviously true.

Jasmin Singer: Yeah. I mean, so, so was habeas corpus, am I right that it was historically used to challenge unlawful detention? Is that basically?

Mariann Sullivan: Yeah, it's a, it's an ancient writ, in ancient British law, or English law, I guess. And, It means that, and from, for time immemorial, if you were imprisoned, not necessarily by the state, by anyone, you could go to court and demand that whoever was imprisoning you, explain to the court why.

And, and would have to justify it. to the court. It's really a remarkable thing that it's existed for as long as it has. And it is still an important part of the law. If somebody is imprisoning you, you have a right to go to court and have them come in and say why, and say it's justified.

And, of course, it's only been applied to people, but for a long time, it wasn't applied to slaves. And then Stephen Wise, who we just mentioned, wrote a book about the, First case in England, where it was applied to somebody who was imprisoned because of slavery. And I called, I said slaves, but I should say enslaved persons.

I know that's, that's a much better way of putting it. Because slavery, is, something that's done to people, not something that they are. And, uh, And, so it was, you know, the law had to develop. It wasn't applied to enslaved persons.

And then the court said it should be, and now they are arguing. There's nothing in the law, absolutely nothing in the law, that says it can only apply to humans. Until, you know, judges decide.

Jasmin Singer: expanding it to animals would be quite the

Mariann Sullivan: And they're not arguing that it should apply to all animals. They're arguing that it should apply to these particular animals. And then, you know, if that creates policy problems in the future, we'll deal with that in the future. That's how the law should grow

Jasmin Singer: I mean, because this case is about these five elephants.

But for us, or for me, it's really just about questioning that very foundation of captivity. And,

Mariann Sullivan: And if you can't justify it, if your whole problem is that you don't have any way to justify it for other animals, that's a problem.

Maybe we're doing something wrong.

Jasmin Singer: Wicked the movie is coming out soon, by the way. Speaking of, imprisoning animals, I'm so excited since it's in animal rights.

Mariann Sullivan: is a totally animal rights movie.

Oh God, I hope they, I shouldn't say movie, it was a total animal rights, uh,

Jasmin Singer: book

and musical, Yeah,

Mariann Sullivan: but I hope it carries on

Jasmin Singer: do too. I'm so excited. I'm going to go see it in the movie. You want to see it? You want

Mariann Sullivan: Oh, totally, yeah. I mean, everybody, I think everybody wants to see it.

Jasmin Singer: And isn't it weird though? It's like a two parter. So this is only the first part. And then I think there's another, I don't know when it comes

Mariann Sullivan: that for the first time with you.

Jasmin Singer: Yeah, me too. And we

Mariann Sullivan: seen, you had already seen, it.

Jasmin Singer: Oh, I had. Okay, I know I've seen it a billion times, but, like, we were like, Oh my God, that's an animal rights play. And now, why is that not like the headline everywhere? So weird. Alright. I I really like this next story and I actually heard, NPR doing a story, like a very big story discussing this.

New York City, uh, the, a New York City Councilman, I think Sean Ebreu, Ebreu, I'm not sure I'm saying his

Mariann Sullivan: I think I looked it up and now I can't remember, but it was odd. It was like a brayoo. I

Jasmin Singer: Okay, well he has introduced a bill that would allow workers to use paid sick leave to care for their pets in New York City. And so it's aiming to support the mental, like, mental health by facilitating pet ownership. And the amendment to the Earned Safe and Sick Time Act would cover both household pets and service animals. And it would basically align with similar policies in a few other cities that some companies offer, calling it paw ternity leave.

Mariann Sullivan: haven't heard that.

Jasmin Singer: The bill is backed by advocacy groups and what I love about it is that it could also ease overcrowding in animal shelters by reducing the financial burden of pet care. So there have been a few naysayers, some business groups raising concerns about added employer costs, but the, uh, The city council member, Abreu, hopefully we're saying right, remains very optimistic and says that there is strong city council support for,

Mariann Sullivan: I don't see why they wouldn't do this. Like, I, at first I thought it was just city workers, but it's everybody. because it's about, you know, there's a law in New York City that requires you to get a certain amount of leave from a job. And, and why not let people use it to take their animal to the vet?

People can lie. About being sick, I guess you have to get a doctor's note at some point or something, but, but if you can lie, why not, like, just make, like, it takes time. It's hard to, it's bad enough that you have to spend, like, half your yearly salary to pay the vet, because vet costs have gotten out of control.

But yeah, I, I love this. It is sad that the reasons that they give have to be about people,

Jasmin Singer: Yeah, of course. I was thinking that.

Mariann Sullivan: and even when talking about, um, keeping animals from the shelter, I, I felt the tone was more like, well, that will save the city money. But you know, that's what you have to do. So good for Sean.

Jasmin Singer: Yeah. Good for Sean. Indeed. I know it's being framed around humans, but it's

Mariann Sullivan: That's what you got to do. I mean, when you're trying to pass legislation, you know, you got to do what you got to do.

Jasmin Singer: yeah, exactly. All right. What's next on our list here? We've

Mariann Sullivan: Is there more?

Jasmin Singer: No, we have more. You put, there's so many things, right? There's this one from the Daily Sentinel. Is that what we have next about Prop 127?

Mariann Sullivan: yeah, yeah. This is another Colorado story. Or that, that we just talked, I should have put them all together. We just talked about how the Supreme Court of Colorado is going to be dealing with that. So much going on in Colorado. Now we've talked before, and had somebody on, Talking about the ballot initiative in Denver, which is in Colorado, I know that,

Jasmin Singer: Good job.

Mariann Sullivan: um, closing down the Lamb Slaughterhouse, I know that the opposition has been vehement to that, but I still have my fingers crossed.

All right, there's an, but there's another ballot initiative, um, On the books in Colorado, in the whole state. And this is about hunting of, big cats. there's,

Jasmin Singer: Mountain lions, bobcats.

No

Mariann Sullivan: lions, but, which, you know, are, are native to, to Colorado. And, and it, would prohibit hunting and trapping them.

And what I liked particularly about this, article, it is written by current and former commissioners on the, Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission. And you just don't see that a whole lot. They are supporting this ban on hunting of these particular animals. And an impassioned, impassioned defense of this proposition.

Prop 127 simply protects Colorado's majestic mountain lions and bobcats from highly unpopular, unscientific and unwarranted abuse and exploitation that in no way contributes to our bright future of ethical outdoor recreation in our great state of Colorado. I just love this, that they, wrote this and came out in support of this.

I think that, you know, it's a real sign of the times that, that people that, you know, I know Colorado, the, the governor or the governor's partner is an animal rights advocate. So, so maybe that has to do with people who are, you know, aren't just totally one sided being appointed. I, that, I don't know. I'm just, I'm just surmising, but, you know, usually the people appointed to Parks and Wildlife Commissions are, you know, hunters and hunting supporters. So, you know, they talk about like awful, awful practices of the stress that the bobcats are bait, bobcats, like, well, they are very violent animals. There's no doubt about it, but they're so beautiful and they're tiny. they're baited with the smell of sardines or oily cat food in cages.

So they're caught in these cages. Then they're left out in, you know, we're talking about Colorado. So it's. Very, very, very cold. and then finally, when the trapper finally arrives after they've been freezing for days, they choke them slowly to death, not to bloody their pelt, prized for spots similar to the leopard.

God, people are hateful. So yeah, let's root for this one. Love

to see, love to see a good ballot initiative put before the voters. I'm really got my fingers crossed on this one.

Jasmin Singer: you know what this reminds me of, or this made me think of that time, like a hundred thousand years ago when we were in Colorado Springs?

And

Mariann Sullivan: being in Colorado

Jasmin Singer: I, I led an activist meeting for animal activists and there were three people who came and, and two of them were like vegan animal rights activists and one of them was a hunter and she was like all about animal rights except for the ones she hunted.

Do you remember that?

Mariann Sullivan: I vaguely yeah, I'm not sure I was there. I might have been doing something else. Maybe you told me about it

Jasmin Singer: maybe I told you about it. It was so funny.

Mariann Sullivan: do remember Colorado Springs, it was, yeah,

Jasmin Singer: So strange. But she all, I mean. Like, obviously I think she's evil,

Mariann Sullivan: That's when we were staying at that, it was a, American Bar Association thing. And we were staying at that hotel that felt like a, we thought it was some, possibly a mental asylum.

Jasmin Singer: was that the, Oh yes, that's right. Cause we would walk around these people with like long white coats would see us who weren't, they worked at the hotel and they would be holding a clipboard with like their arms crossed and they'd be like, hello, Miss Sullivan. Hello, Miss Singer. So

Mariann Sullivan: weird. It was so weird.

Jasmin Singer: We have stayed at some weird places in the, past.

Mariann Sullivan: the ABA history, I mean, I was on the American Bar Association's, Animal Law Committee as part of the Tort Trial Practice, uh, division. It was very bizarre, for, for a while. And, you know, there were these, you know, These meetings in these places all over the country, which for some reason, I don't know why we would go to.

We really saw parts of the country that I don't think I ever would have seen otherwise. They all, virtually all of them had beautiful golf courses, because I think that was the major priority for locating their meetings.

Jasmin Singer: Yeah, totally.

Mariann Sullivan: Not since I didn't play golf, it really didn't.

Jasmin Singer: All right. Well, I think we have one more story to report on here. This is about how the FBI's Weapons of Mass Destruction program has begun targeting animal rights activists as potential bio terror threats, collaborating with the meat industry to monitor groups like Meet the Victims, and Direct Action Everywhere. So, um, Following a 2019 Texas farm entry where activists documented unsanitary conditions and animal cruelty, the FBI considered using this weapons of mass destruction related charges against these activists, claiming that their actions risked spreading disease. So, I mean, wow.

Critics argue that this approach scapegoats the activists to shield factory farms from scrutiny.

And obviously that's what I think. It frames civil disobedience as domestic terrorism. I think that's dangerous. I think that's terrible. The FBI meat industry collaboration signals like a real crackdown on animal rights activism and it's, I don't know, it's prioritizing industry protection over activist rights.

And that's terrifying and terrible.

Mariann Sullivan: I actually interviewed Will Lowry from Animal Partisan about his attempts to get some of this information because he had heard about the FBI had showed up at a meat industry meeting and was talking about this kind of stuff. And that was a while back. And this is, I think this article, which is by one Gray Moran.

Gray is a good name, isn't it?

Um, It's kind of one of the results of some of the stuff that they found out about what's going on between the FBI and the meat industry. And it's really, really scary stuff. the plan is, it's just so evil because the plan is to blame activists for things like bird flu and all of the horrible, horrible, like, you know, potential for diseases that is occurring on factory farms because of the monsters who are running these factory farms, and to blame the activists who might get in there and who use as much or more, probably far more sanitation protocols than the people who work there.

and charge them with these laws that have been passed to ban weapons of mass destruction as if they're deliberately trying to spread viruses. This is among the most evil things I've heard of in a while.

Jasmin Singer: I mean, seriously, like, who's benefiting here? The FBI's surveillance. It's just disgusting. It's protecting an industry with a vested interest in keeping the public in the dark. It's not talking about public health or safety. It's a crackdown on activists and it's stifling. It's stifling dissent. I'm grossed out by this.

I wish we were

Mariann Sullivan: I think beyond grossed out, I think it's terrifying.

Jasmin Singer: Yeah, it is. It is. It is. But you know what? We can't let these scare tactics

Mariann Sullivan: No,

well, you know, it's not like we're like Zoe Rosenberg who's in this article she doesn't let them scare her, but she could end up in prison for a long time

Jasmin Singer: Yeah,

Mariann Sullivan: I mean for a long time

Jasmin Singer: yeah.

Mariann Sullivan: these people are terrifying.

Jasmin Singer: Alright, so let's move on. I was recently given the distinct honor of delivering a keynote address for an organization locally here in Rochester. It's the UN of Rochester and they decided to make the theme of their conference this year climate change.

And so because of my role at WXXI hosting Environmental Connections on both the radio and TV. I was, asked to deliver a keynote, which I could not make in person because my show was opening that night. And so, they asked me to pre record it. So I pre recorded it at the WXXI TV studios and I, Delivered it and obviously made it about veganism.

Now, the cool thing is that I was told that all of the breakout sessions referred back to it, which I love because I was terrified putting animal advocacy as like, kind of the key topic here, like animal, Exploitation, I should say, and the connections between that and climate change. And Mariann, I just want to say you were very helpful to me when I was writing this, so thank you for that.

And we decided to play it for you. It's a, it's like a little less than 20 minutes long, so you will hear my keynote address right after this. —

​Good morning, everyone. Thank you for being here today and for allowing me to share this critical moment with you. We are living in a time of profound transformation. Climate change is not some abstract threat. It's right here, right now, and it's already reshaping the world as we know it. We are seeing fires in places that have never burned before, floods sweeping through towns and cities, droughts turning fertile land into deserts, and rising seas swallowing entire communities.

This is the reality we face, and it is terrifying. We have constant evidence of a once in a lifetime storm happening pretty much every year now. In the news right now, right now, is the unbelievable devastation in Western North Carolina, where entire communities have been all but wiped out by the flooding resulting from Hurricane Helene.

And hurricane season is not by any means over. Or look at what happened in Pakistan in 2022. An unprecedented monsoon season led to some of the worst flooding in the country's history. Flooding that killed more than 1, 700 people and displaced millions. The floodwaters destroyed homes, wiped out crops, and left a third of the country underwater.

A third of the entire country. And yet Pakistan is responsible for less than 1 percent of the world's carbon emissions. It's heartbreaking. And the reality is, events like this are becoming more common around the world. And more common right here at home. Around the globe and here in the U. S., it's not just bigger storms we're dealing with.

Aside from the incredible damage from more frequent and more severe hurricanes, in places like Miami, the rise in sea levels is already forcing some residents to move and you don't have to be on the coast to be at risk. There's no place to hide. These disasters may seem like they're happening somewhere else, but climate change is hitting us all just in different ways.

And while some of us here in Western New York may feel that this is one of the safest places to be vis a vis climate change. And, in fact, that's one of the reasons I moved here. No place is truly exempt from the reach of climate change. I recently saw a tweet from someone who lived in Florida, who in the past told her family, we can never give up our other home in western North Carolina because its climate change predictions are good, unlike Florida.

And now she still has her home in Florida, but the one in North Carolina is, it's gone. It's a sobering reminder that even when we think we're making smart decisions based on climate predictions, no place is entirely safe. Rochester, too, faces its own risks as climate patterns continue to change. Even right here in Western New York, we've seen an increase in extreme weather events, heavier rainfalls, even tornadoes leading to flooding and damage to homes and infrastructure.

Who knows what will come next? All of this feels out of our control. It can. What can I do to stop a hurricane? But I would submit it is not out of our control. Not yet. In our hands, we at least hold the power to confront it. In our hands, we carry the responsibility for what happens next. David Attenborough once said, The fact is that no species has ever had such wholesale control over everything on Earth, living or dead, as we have now.

That lays upon us, whether we like it or not, an awesome responsibility. In our hands now lies not only our future, but that of all other living creatures with whom we share the earth. But there is no question that time is running short, and this is a fight we can't afford to lose. The urgency is blaring, and while we've spent decades watching our politicians play hot potato with the future of the planet, the truth is the fate of the earth rests not only in their hands, but in ours too.

And at the core of this crisis are the most vulnerable among us. Both human and non human. Whether it's the marginalized communities who bear the brunt of climate disasters, or the animals whose habitats are being destroyed by deforestation and pollution, climate change affects those with the least power most severely.

You may be thinking that individual choices and decisions cannot make a difference when the whole world needs to change. And you have a point. On your own, your choices can't have much influence on the fate of the world. But you are not on your own. If you choose, you can be part of a movement. If you choose, you can lead.

And if all the people in the world who care about the future of our planet, the only home we've got, decide to be a part of this movement, we can turn this around. Change begins in the small, everyday decisions we make, and in the powerful movements we support. This isn't just a global crisis, it is deeply personal, deeply local, and deeply human.

Maybe you're thinking about the changes you could make in your life or changes you're already making and maybe you're sighing You can't afford a new car yet. You're a renter So, how are you going to switch to a more climate friendly heating system? You try to buy local when you can but it's hard to know how sometimes or maybe you're doing all those things But you want to do more.

Okay, so let's talk about the elephant in the room The elephant being the cow. I'm referring to animal agriculture, and I'm not here to sugarcoat it. Animal agriculture is one of the leading contributors to climate change, alongside transportation and energy production. Raising animals for food contributes significantly to the greenhouse gas emissions, and in some estimates, even more than all cars and planes and ships combined.

If we're serious about tackling climate change, we must consider this issue directly. But animal agriculture's impact goes far, far beyond just emissions. It's deforestation, it's water use, it's pollution, it's habitat destruction, it's animal cruelty. Let's talk about Brazil, where the Amazon rainforest is being destroyed at an alarming rate, largely to make room for cattle ranching and soybean plantations, the vast, vast majority of which are used not to make tofu for vegans, but to feed livestock.

According to the World Wildlife Fund, over 17 percent of the Amazon has already been lost. And deforestation is accelerating, releasing massive amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and pushing us closer to the brink. Or think of the growing water crisis in California, where the agricultural industry uses 80 percent of the state's water.

It takes nearly 1, 800 gallons of water to produce just One pound of beef, while millions of people face water shortages. California dairy farms alone use billions of gallons of water each year. And with ongoing droughts, the pressure on our water systems, it's unsustainable. Meanwhile, plant based alternatives, like growing lentils or beans, use a fraction of that water and can feed more people using fewer resources.

And the waste, we're talking about something like 1. 5 billion tons of animal waste being produced by U. S. livestock each year. This waste doesn't just disappear, it ends up in our rivers and our oceans, creating dead zones, like the one in the Gulf of Mexico, which now spans over 6, 000 square miles due to runoff from livestock farms.

These dead zones are lifeless areas where nothing can survive. Devastating marine ecosystems. What makes this all the more disheartening is that it's unnecessary. We don't need to destroy the planet to feed ourselves. We have alternatives. Foods that not only lighten our footprint on the planet, but also promote health and longevity.

Foods that are, I can personally assure you, entirely delicious and satisfying. From where I stand, this is where individual action can be utterly transformative. The idea that changing what's on our plates can have a profound impact on the world might seem unrealistic at first, but It's actually incredibly empowering.

It's not just what you personally are eating, no. Crucially, more than any other change you can make, eating is one thing that you do with other people. So one person's choices can inspire those around them, family, friends, colleagues, to reflect on their own habits. And this ripple effect is how movements grow.

We've seen it before with recycling initiatives and anti plastic campaigns and now with plant based eating. By reducing or eliminating animal products from our diets, we have the power to significantly lower our carbon footprint and reduce deforestation and preserve precious water resources. And the best part is, it's a choice we can make today.

Right now. It's a shift that's already happening. Look at the rise of plant based companies like Impossible Foods and Beyond Meat, which have exploded onto the global market, showing that there's demand for sustainable options. In fact, in 2020, sales of plant based foods in the U. S. grew twice as fast. As total food sales.

The plant based movement is growing exponentially, proof that when enough individuals act, the collective impact can be enormous. This leads me to an important point. Individual actions and collective action are not mutually exclusive. Yes, climate change is a systemic problem that requires sweeping policy changes, but that doesn't mean our personal choices don't matter.

Individual action isn't just about the impact of a single person's choice. It's about Throwing everything we've got at a problem that feels overwhelming. It's about creating a social contagion, inspiring others to make sustainable choices as well. Each small step, whether it's biking instead of driving, installing rooftop solar, or switching to plant based foods even part of the time, helps shift the cultural landscape, altering what's seen as normal.

and pushing us toward a more sustainable future. These choices aren't a replacement for political action, but they contribute to the larger fight. Because we are all part of the same movement. We are all residents of planet Earth. Each step matters. And remember, it's not just about us. Just as vulnerable animals are suffering, so are marginalized human communities.

The harshest impacts of climate change, whether it's extreme heat, flooding, or pollution, disproportionately hits those with the fewest resources to adapt and recover. Climate change is devastating the most vulnerable among us. Not just the animals we eat, but human animals too. Low income families, communities of color, and indigenous peoples.

Those who have contributed the least to this crisis, but suffer its worst effects. This is why our fight for climate action must also be a fight for justice. We cannot talk about climate change without acknowledging the inequities it amplifies. Protecting our planet means protecting those who are the most at risk, human and non human alike.

It's not just an environmental issue, it's a moral imperative. So what do we do with this knowledge? We think globally, yes, but we act locally. We need to understand that while the climate crisis is a planetary problem, the solutions often begin in our own backyards. We have to work within our communities to make plant based foods available to all, but also to plant more trees, to push for policies that reduce emissions, stop subsidies for destructive industries, and demand that our leaders take immediate action.

And, importantly, we have to support the voices of those on the front lines. The activists and the communities already suffering the worst effects of this crisis. And for those who can't speak for themselves, like the animals, we have to be their voice of reason. Acting locally means understanding the unique challenges that your community faces, whether it's extreme heat due to lack of tree cover, flooding because of outdated infrastructure, or pollution from nearby industries.

www. HenHouse. com And addressing those issues head on. It means joining climate protests, voting for candidates who prioritize the environment, and having difficult conversations about how we, as individuals and communities, can do better. This is where our power lies. Not in waiting for a miracle from above, but in the everyday actions that we take, in the conversations that we start, the choices we make about what we consume, what we advocate for, and how we engage with others.

Whether it's reducing our reliance on fossil fuels, cutting back on single use plastics, or yes, rethinking what's on our plates. These are the small, significant steps that will shape our future. And when people see us taking action, they may be inspired to do the same. I know that it can feel overwhelming.

How do we as individuals solve something as big as climate change? But here's the thing, we don't have to solve it alone. We can solve it together. It's about building movements and spreading awareness, emboldening each other to act. And when enough of us act, locally, globally, the tide will turn. And here's the other thing.

What choice do we have? Speaking of acting locally, here in Rochester, there's so much we can do. We can address the legacy of environmental harm by planting trees, pushing for more green spaces, and working to reduce energy poverty. We can encourage our city leaders to invest in renewable energy, to make healthy plant based food the default choice in schools and hospitals, as they are doing in New York City.

And to put climate justice at the forefront of their policies. And on an individual level, we can make better choices every single day about how we live on this planet. Yes, the problem is big, but it's not too big for us. In fact, it's precisely because the problem is so big that we must act. Every movement starts with a few people saying enough is enough.

We don't have to wait for someone else to fix it. It's in our hands. Now, I know I've spent a lot of time talking about the urgency and the weight of what we face, but I want to leave you with something else. Hope. Because there is hope. We are already seeing the change. Look at the growth of renewable energy around the world.

In 2022, wind and solar made up 13 percent of global electricity generation, a figure that will only rise. And look at the extraordinary advances in the availability of plant based foods, the conversations around environmental justice that are happening in mainstream media. The tide is turning, and while we don't have much time, we still have enough if we act now.

The actions we take starting today will define the future of this planet. Let's make sure we are remembered, assuming there is anyone to remember, as the generation that didn't just stand by while the earth burned, but as the generation that rose to the occasion, took bold steps. And fought for a livable future, because in our hands lies the power to change the course of history.

For ourselves, for future generations, and for every living being on this earth. Thank you.