This Weekend: Largest Climate Change Rally in History – What about the Carbon Footprint of the Ralliers?

People are catching buses from all over the country to come to the nation’s capital this weekend for the largest climate change rally in history — a rally against the construction of the Keystone XL Pipeline. This pipeline, which has been called a “game over for the environment,” would connect the tar sands extraction project in Alberta, Canada with various points across the US, allowing Alberta to ramp up oil extraction. It’s widely considered a major threat to our environment — but what about the carbon footprint of the rally?

More specifically, how will the food choices of these thousands of ralliers impact the planet?

If you’re one of the thousands coming to the nation’s capital this weekend to stand up for the environment, you can make your actions even greener by eating vegan while you’re in town! Check out VegDC.com and you’ll be blown away by how many veg-friendly restaurants there are.

Raising animals for food is a significant contributor to climate change.

At Compassion Over Killing, our years of undercover investigations make it clear that raising animals for food is a dirty business (you won’t believe what our investigator found at the Central Valley slaughter plant in California.) Beyond the animal cruelty that we’ve documented, there’s a significant environmental cost associated with eating animals. In fact, raising animals for food accounts for almost one fifth (18%) of greenhouse gas emissions, according to the United Nations.

You don’t need to engage in civil disobedience to help stop climate change.

On Thursday, in the lead-up to this weekend’s rally, 48 celebrities and high-profile figures were arrested while participating in an act of civil disobedience. Environmental activist Bill McKibben, actress Daryl Hannah, NASA climate scientist James Hansen, and Conor Kennedy and his father, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. were all arrested after they locked themselves to the fence in front of the White House. And their action will be followed by thousands of people marching this weekend. You don’t have to risk arrest and lock yourself to the White House fence to make a big impact for the environment. Your everyday food choices can have a big impact on climate change.

Take a stand against climate change at every meal: choose vegan.

Eating vegan is easy, especially in Washington, DC. So if you’re coming to DC this weekend, be sure to use a four-pronged approach to protecting the planet: your fork.  There are more than two dozen all-vegetarian restaurants in the DC area and hundreds of other great veg-friendly menus. When you’re looking for somewhere to eat in DC, just pull up VegDC.com on your smartphone, and use it to find an eco-friendly meal near you.

After the rally, when you get home, you can even order a free vegetarian starter guide with recipes and other info to help you choose more vegan foods — for the planet, for your health, and for animals.