Hi Everyone,

For those of you who don’t know my history, it was the reading of Frances Moore Lappe‘s book, Diet for a Small Planet, that changed my life’s trajectory. It was the first time I had ever heard about the environmental impact that the production of meat had on the planet, and how it contributed to the global food scarcity problem. That was in 1973, and I never ate meat again. Prior to that, I had never met a vegetarian, or even knew of the concept, so going cold turkey was a big step for me. My mother told me ‘I was on my own’, and that I would have to cook for myself.  I went out and bought a wok, opened a few cans of vegetables, and cooked my dinner. That’s all I knew. Other than iceberg lettuce, cucumbers, carrots and cherry tomatoes for salad, almost all of our vegetables were canned, except for a few frozen varieties. I had a lot to learn. It was a journey that I not only embraced, but it shaped my life. Cooking became my art form, my passion that connected me to everything that was important to me, my family, my family’s health, my community, the environment, the farmers, sustainability, hunger, poverty, global warming, and animals. However, it took me another 46 years before I took the plunge, and became completely plant based. I can now say I honestly feel in total alignment with my ethos, not to mention how good I feel.

I still follow the work of Frances Moore Lappe, and her organization, Small Planet Institute, which she founded with her daughter, Anna Lappe. Frances recently wrote an article for the Boston Globe, that was straight from the heart, laying out the global crisis in front of us, while at the same time sharing the advances cities have made in transitioning to cleaner energy. She is hopeful that we can rise to the occasion and push our government to support a Green New Deal, while becoming more conscious of our own personal global footprint, in order to save our planet. Please take a moment to read the article and pass it around.

Jennifer Molidor, Senior Food Campaigner at the Center for Biological Diversity Joins Bhavani on the Progressive Radio Network!

My guest this week is Jennifer Molidor. Jennifer is the senior food campaigner at the international conservation nonprofit, Center for Biological Diversity, where she runs sustainable food campaigns, including Take Extinction Off Your Plate campaign. She drives the Population and Sustainability Program’s Earth-friendly Diet initiatives related to industrial animal agriculture, overpopulation and over consumption, and the impact of our food systems on wildlife and the planet. Before joining the Center in 2015, she worked on a number of food, wildlife and environmental campaigns as the staff writer for the Animal Legal Defense Fund; she holds a PhD from the University of Notre Dame and taught for many years as a professor at Kansas State University and San Francisco State University. I hope you can join us for an inspirational conversation!

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! Or, if you prefer, listen on the phone by calling 712-775-6850.

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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