Raising Awareness of the Vegan Solution During The People’s Climate March and United Nations Climate Summit

With our Master’s grace and blessings, 40 of our Association’s members gathered in New York City, USA during the last two weeks of September 2014. On Sunday, September 21 at the People’s Climate March and later beginning on September 23 at the United Nations (UN) Climate Summit, we worked to help raise awareness about the importance of embracing a vegan diet as the single greatest action to reverse climate change.

Our Association members came from nine US states (Arizona, California, Hawaii, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Texas, Pennsylvania and Virginia) and three other countries (Canada, Formosa and South Korea).

 

People’s Climate March, September 21, 2014

At the People’s Climate March, our Association members set up a booth at a busy corner on the March’s route and handed out thousands of Master’s publications including From Crisis to Peace – The Organic Vegan Way is the Answer. The Survival of the World is in Our Hands recipe booklet and DVD, and Alternative Living flyers, along with more than 6,000 complimentary vegan sandwiches, cookies and water were also distributed.

The response was overwhelmingly positive, with some participants commenting, “I am a vegan too!” Others returned to our booth with their family and friends to taste our vegan food.

Many other groups were also at the event promoting the importance of a vegan diet to address climate change, including CollectivelyFree.org, Vegan Shift, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM), Healthy Planet, A Well-Fed World, Mercy for Animals, Lantern Books and Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary.

 

United Nations Climate Change Summit, September 23, 2014 and Beyond

As part of a global effort to drive greater action on reversing climate change, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon invited Heads of State and Government along with business, finance, civil society and local leaders to a UN Climate Summit, which was held on September 23, 2014 at the UN Headquarters in New York City.

In order to encourage these esteemed leaders to adopt and promote a vegan diet as the best solution to address climate change and other environmental challenges, we delivered plant-based food as well as materials with information on mitigating global warming to the UN missions of 160 countries over seven days. We divided into two groups, the first of which was positioned on every corner near the UN Headquarters, in an effort to give every UN staff member and each person who attended the summit the opportunity to receive the vegan information and complementary food. Many of the UN officials were happy to accept our climate change materials.

Although there was tight security, with Master’s love, the police officers allowed us to stay around the main entrance points where we could greet the UN staff and hand out our materials.  Some of them also came to get the gift bags we were freely distributing.

The second group delivered gift bags to the UN mission offices of the various countries:

• About 200 bags for Presidents/Prime Ministers. Each bag contained five items: the Organic Vegan Diet recipe booklet, From Crisis to Peace – The Organic Vegan Way is the Answer, The Real Love, The Survival of the World is in Our Hands recipe booklet and DVD, and the Celestial Art
• About 500 bags for Ambassadors/Ministers. Each bag contained four items: the Organic Vegan Diet recipe booklet, From Crisis to Peace – The Organic Vegan Way is the Answer, The Real Love, and The Survival of the World is in Our Hands recipe booklet and DVD.
• About 2,000 bags for journalists and UN staff and officials. Each bag contained the book From Crisis to Peace – The Organic Vegan Way is the Answer and the Organic Vegan Diet recipe booklet.

In addition to the gifts bags from our beloved Master, we offered free vegan lunches to all the embassies. On the first day, 50 lunch boxes were ordered, and by the last day, the order went up to 370. The recipients were delightfully surprised to receive the gift bags.

We were also glad to make vegan sandwiches for the homeless people in New York, and sent more than a thousand each of sandwiches, cookies and bottles of water to Bowery Missions and other shelters.

A week after the summit, we received an email from the UN Mission of Trinidad and Tobago, thanking us on behalf of all their staff for the food and stating that they would like to order vegan food from us in the future.

Our deep thanks United Nations, all international leaders and groups working to halt the disastrous effects of climate change and raising awareness about the vegan solution. May Heaven bless our world with a peaceful and compassionate future.