-By Lauren Balotin, ’19C, Environmental Sciences and Media Studies, and Meggie Stewart, ’18C, Environmental Sciences with an Arabic minor
When most people think about greenhouse gases, they usually imagine cars and factories burning fossil fuels for energy. And this makes sense; after all, fossil fuels contribute to 14.5 percent of anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization reports.
However, this picture is limited. Why have efforts to reduce it been so limited if meat production causes such a large portion of greenhouse gas emissions? Why aren’t we, as a planet, recognizing the ways in which we can change our diets to control our climate? Past research has focused primarily on the science behind meat and climate, but has paid little attention to how we can fix the problem.
Sources
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Bryngelsson, David, et al. “How Do Dietary Choices Influence the Energy-System Cost of Stabilizing the Climate?.” Energies, vol. 10, no. 2, Feb. 2017, pp. 1-13.
“Climate Change and Culture in the United States: Effects and Adaptation.” USDA, Feb. 2013.
“Global Greenhouse Gas Emissions Data.” EPA, Environmental Protection Agency, 13 Apr. 2017.
Graham, Thomas, & Wokje, Abrahamse. “Communicating the Climate Impacts of Meat Consumption: The Effect of Values and Message Framing.” Global Environmental Change, Pergamon, 20 Apr. 2017.
Harwatt, Helen, et al. “Substituting Beans for Beef as a Contribution toward US Climate Change Targets.” Climatic Change, vol. 143, no. 1/2, July 2017, pp. 261-270.
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Milman, Oliver, & Leavenworth, Stuart. “China’s Plan to Cut Meat Consumption by 50% Cheered by Climate Campaigners.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 20 June 2016.
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Stoll-Kleemann, Susanne, & Schmidt, Uta Johanna. “Reducing Meat Consumption in Developed and Transition Countries to Counter Climate Change and Biodiversity Loss: a Review of Influence Factors.” SpringerLink. 2016.
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