Hi Everyone,

Happy New Year!

I feel optimistic as we enter this new decade with a greater awareness that the Connection Between Our Food and Climate Change is Real. I see signs everywhere that the science is sinking in, and people are starting to make a change in their diets. The Golden Globe Awards Dinner went plant based this year, fast food restaurants are offering plant based burgers, supermarkets are carrying more and more meat alternative products, and newspaper articles are writing about the impact that meat production has on the environment. Even if you are a meat lover, making the sacrifice to eat less meat to help save the planet from sure destruction, is the right thing to do. Melissa Clark wrote a great article this week in the New York Times Food Section about Mindful Meat Eating,  and I think it will inspire a lot of people to cut down on their meat consumption, and help them appreciate meat more, when they do have it.

Another issue that I like to make people aware of, is the fact that most of our processed foods have some genetically modified ingredients in them (GMO’s), and these GMO’s are negatively impacting our health. Jeffrey Smith, author of Seeds of Deception, and producer of the film, Genetic Roulette, has a new film called, Secret Ingredients, which Slow Food North Shore will be bringing to The Landmark on Main Street, on Sunday, January 26th at 3pm. Jeffrey Smith will be there in person, to answer any questions, following the film. I hope you can join us for this free community event!!

My guest this week on the Progressive Radio Network is Sara Porter, the Vice President of External Affairs for Healthy School Campaign (HSC), a non profit organization out of Chicago, whose mission is to ensure that all children have access to healthy school environments where they can learn and thrive. In this role, Sara focuses on building and maintaining relationships with non-profit organizations, corporate partners, government agencies and many others. Her past experience in food service, retail management and event planning served her well when she came to HSC to assist with the second annual Cooking up Change contest more than 11 years ago. Sara took on both the contest (including rules, logistics, coordinating teams, etc.) and the corporate fundraising program for the event. With Sara’s leadership, Cooking up Change has grown into a national program. Since 2007, the program has featured more than 2,200 students and more than 4.7 million Cooking up Change meals have been served in schools across the country. In addition to overseeing Cooking up Change, Sara also works on HSC’s Green Clean Schools program and is a member of the HSC management team. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from DePaul University and lives in Wheaton, Ill. with her husband and three children.

I hope you can join us on Thursday to learn more about what the Healthy School Campaign is doing to improve the school environment, in Chicago and around the country.

My radio show, iEat Green with Bhavani on the Progressive Radio Network is live, every Thursday, from 10-11 am, EST.  To tune in to the live show, just navigate to PRN.fm and listen in!

If you miss our live show please listen on iTunes by downloading the Podcast App.

If you want to call in during the show with any questions for me or my guest, the call-in number is 888-874-4888. If you are listening to the podcast after the live broadcast, you can still ask me a question by leaving me a voicemail message at 862-800-6805. Just remember to say your name, what show you’re calling about (iEat Green with Bhavani), and your question. The message will be passed on to me, and I will get back to you.

With Love and Gratitude,

Bhavani 

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