By Marysol Varela
November 14, 2009
Orlando Vegetarian Restaurants Examiner
Humanity’s Leap to the Golden Era was the theme for the Washington D.C. climate change conference this past Sunday, November 8th, 2009. The event, which was hosted by The Supreme Master Ching Hai International Association, was a delightful success due to the meticulous collaboration of hundreds of members who traveled into the DC area from many different countries for this specific reason. They arrived with one goal in mind, and that was to inform the public of the devastating perils faced by our planet if immediate action against global warming is not taken. During the hours that followed the opening words of the conference’s hosts, the audience was given staggering facts about the harm that is being done to the world’s environment with our current destructive practices. Seven world-renowned speakers, including the Supreme Master herself, presented each issue from their own professional and humanitarian perspective. While the conference revolved around the dangers that CO2 emissions and livestock raising bring to our delicate environment, not everything was somber during the event; enchantment filled the room as musicians and dancers manifested their artistic talent to the classical melodies of Beethoven and Pachebel among many others.
Dr. Stephen H. Schneider was the first speaker of the day. He is a Stanford University Professor of Environmental Biology and Global Change as well as a Team Member of United Nations IPCC - Nobel Peace Prize 2007. Furthermore, Dr. Schneider is internationally recognized for his outreach and research in climate change issues. Throughout his speech, Dr. Schneider informed the audience about the rates of increase of global warming. He also confirmed a known statement that, “ Human activity is widely responsible for the climate change we are experiencing.”
Ms. Maneka Gandhi, Indian politician, animal rights activist, and environmentalist gave a powerful address about the devastating impact that meat consumption has had in her country. She clearly points to meat as the culprit of our environmental problems. Her strong words pierced through an aghast audience as she considered the possibility that it may be too late to take action tomorrow, which is why we must take action now, today; “We are so close to the red line that perhaps we may wake up tomorrow and find that there is nothing to save after all”.
As the conference unfolded, several other speakers took the stage and addressed their own concerns and their own scientific findings in the realm of climate change. Among them was Dr. Ruby Lathon, who is a nutrition policy manager with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. A vegan herself, Dr. Lathon dedicates her efforts to a Healthy School Lunch Campaign, one that supports the implementation of more vegetables in the country’s school lunches as a way to fight the elevated rates of childhood obesity seen in the past decade.
Dr. Michael Greger and Dr. Noam Mohr, both concerned with livestock farm conditions and the ethical treatment of animals, delivered an excellent recount of the health issues associated with our high demand for meat products. Dr. Greger emphasized the dangerous pandemics we face if we do not stop the industrialized animal raising tactics that have been employed in the past decades, “The conditions in which a chicken farm is kept are perfect breeding grounds for virus mutations”.
The most anticipated speaker of the evening was The Supreme Master Ching Hai. Her words of wisdom reached across the audience spreading hope and solutions to this impending global disaster. Supreme Master suggested that by simply adopting a vegan diet, we can dramatically reduce our carbon footprint. Because meat eating is a major contributor of global warming, vegetarianism will reduce the demand for livestock. She also speaks up for those animals which suffer and die every day in the hands of farmers by promoting a peaceful coexistence between all beings in the animal kingdom.
Supreme Master has been doing this for the sake of a cleaner and more peaceful future for humanity and everything else living on Earth. However, this is not the first time that she speaks up for a good cause. As a humanitarian, Supreme Master and her international organization, The Supreme Master Ching Hai International Association, has provided thousands of dollars in aid and assistance to victims of natural disasters such as those suffered by the victims of Katrina among many others. Her organization travels worldwide to help build homes for the needy and helps those in need of food and water.
Her noble help towards humanity has earned her many notable international peace awards including the International Humanitarian Award and the 2008 Presidential Active Lifestyle Award, which was presented by George W. Bush.
The Supreme Master Ching Hai is not only a humanitarian, she is also a world renowned artist and spiritual teacher. She undertook a journey to the Himalayas in search of spiritual enlightenment. Once she reached enlightenment she began to share with her students the Quan Yin Method of meditation. She has touched so many people, that she was soon invited to different countries from around the world to give lectures.
The Supreme Master International Association hosted this event as a way to inform society about the dangers we face if we do not act immediately and fix our global climate emergency. Once humanity has learned to work together to save our planet, then we will have advanced a step closer to the Golden Era.