Julia Butterfly Hill lived a fast-paced lifestyle until surviving a severe car crash at the age of twenty-two. Hill has said that the accident and subsequent year-long road to recovery awakened her desire to begin a spiritual quest. She ended up 180 feet above ground, living in a California Redwood Tree named Luna that was over 1,000 years old to keep it from being cut down. Hill lived in the tree for 738 days without ever touching the ground on two 4’x6’ platforms. Her dedication protected the tree from destruction, sparked a movement, and transformed her life. Today, Hill travels the world sharing her knowledge of environmental conservation and inspiring others to believe in their power to create serious change.

1. During your two-year stay in Luna, how did you cope with feelings of isolation and confinement? How has this aspect of the experience influenced your daily life?

My time in Luna taught me so much about myself, the world, and what it means to be fully present and alive through every experience—whether we perceive it as positive or negative. The isolation and confinement I sometimes felt while living in Luna taught me how powerful, and even important, it is to source from within ourselves our connection to the Divine (however we relate to or define its meaning) and to the Natural World of which we are a part. We so often look outside of ourselves for things like joy, peace, love, or power. Yet, when I had what felt like nothing is when I found out how much I truly have, just by being connected to Source. Prayer, meditation, and gratitude exercises were and still are vital in my finding freedom, joy, and power even in the most challenging of moments.

2. How did you maintain physical health during your stay in Luna? Could you tell us about your diet and physical activities?

What we eat, what we think, and what we do with our bodies and our choices all play an important role in the health of our bodies, our communities, and our world. I am a Joyous Vegan (meaning I joyfully refrain from eating animals, including fish, chicken, cows, sheep, goats, or pigs; nor do I eat anything that comes from them.) When the weather permitted, I climbed in the tree for exercise—which was like partner yoga with a tree! My favorite yoga ever! I, also, have found that prayer and commitment to living spiritually and mentally healthy also plays an important role in my physical well-being. So, too, with what we do to the planet. It is all connected. It is all one. What we do to the Earth, we do to ourselves.

3. How would you describe the force that guides your activism? What advice do you have for those yearning to change the world for the better but feeling like they cannot make a difference as an individual?

Because no choice happens in a vacuum, every single choice changes the world. It is actually scientifically, physically, and spiritually IMPOSSIBLE to not make a difference! Therefore, the question is not, can one person make a difference? Each and every one of us absolutely does make a difference! Once we realize this, we stop believing in the myth and asking ourselves, “Can I make a difference?” We awaken and recognize and step into the truth of our power, and ask ourselves instead, “What KIND of a difference do I want to make?”

The force that guides my activism is my commitment to living a life that (to the best of my ability) models the world in which I want to live. These are my choices. I am human, so I make many mistakes, but my commitment is to live Love in Action with every thought, word, and action. For me, my life and my choices are a Spiritual practice in every moment.

4. What is a typical day in the life of Julia Butterfly Hill? Are there a few simple habits that you integrate into your daily life that our readers can adopt to care more for the earth on a daily basis?

Although there is no such thing as a typical day in my life, I do have everyday mindfulness practices. The guiding principle for me is an idea of true “Ahimsa,” or non-violence. My understanding of this movement is a deeper definition than I normally hear articulated. For me to live this commitment is “to live so fully and presently in Love, that there is no room for anything else to exist.” This is a much bigger calling than to just live as a non-violent person. This commitment calls me to be so committed to being a full and living embodiment of love consciousness that I fill a space until all else falls away. I look at every thought, word, and action through this lens and do my best to live up to this calling.

There is no such thing as a perfect choice, but there is always a best choice for any given moment. This can be as simple as selecting reusables instead of disposables. When we say we are going to throw something away—where is “away?” There is no such thing or place. “Away” always has a face and a place. I do not feel that Love would guide us to trash the Earth and livelihood of others. So Love guides me to bring my own reusable mug, utensils, napkin, and container with me everywhere I go. I love this Earth and her species and future generations far too much to trash and waste them. I am a joyous vegan because how we decide to eat can be tools of mass compassion or weapons of mass destruction. Love guides me to choose to joyously eat as simply as I can to honor all life and to live as lightly on this Sacred Earth as I can.

I have chosen to not birth another human into this world because Mother Earth has 6.9 BILLION children and can not care for the children already here. Love guides me to know that the most conscious choice I can make is to redirect the energy of birth into birthing a more healthy, loving, and thriving planet for the children who are already here. These are just some of the ways I do my best to follow what Love would do moment to moment. It is actually very empowering and joyful to ask myself, moment to moment, “What would Love do?” Then, I do my best to live in a way that honors the answer of Love.

Donald Watson, Vegan Activist

“Honey, be careful with that orange juice, but why not have some of this chicken soup? I left out the noodles just for you.”

My grandmother’s confused. Nestled in a dimly lit dining room somewhere in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida sits my father, ex-girlfriend and myself. Grandma Helen is jogging back and forth from the kitchen with a schmorgesborg of food she’s prepared just for our visit. Somehow she missed the memo about the whole “I’m a vegan” thing. Correction: the memo was received — just read backwards.

You see, my eighty-five year old grandmother was/is under the impression that veganism (or as she pronounces it: vay-gun-ism) is some kind of twisted spin-off of the Atkins Diet. I’m not exactly sure where she got this idea, but I suspect it has something to do with a faulty hearing aid, her posse of misinformed yentes and a mahjong game that went terribly, terribly wrong.

For those who don’t know, the word vegan (actually pronounced vee-gan) is defined by Webster as: “a strict vegetarian who consumes no animal food or dairy products; also: one who abstains from using animal products.” And it just so happens to be one of the world’s fastest growing movements.

November is Vegan Awareness Month and I believe it deserves – if only for the confused Jewish grandmothers out there – a moment of a silence and a big nod to the man who started it all.

Donald Watson – a British woodworker – recognized the cruelty involved in raising animals for both meat and dairy and desired to create a movement of like-minded people who abstained from consuming all animal products – not just flesh. Watson believed that vegetarianism was “only a stepping stone between meat eating and veganism” and wanted to invent a new word that would properly define this comprehensive approach to compassionate living. But what should this motley crew of plant-eaters be called? The word “vegetarian” already existed, and “non-dairy vegetarian” just didn’t have that new word smell to it.

Watson reached out to his fellow supporters who offered suggestions like “dairyban, vitan, benevore, sanivoreand beaumangeur,” but in November of 1944, Watson composed the word himself: “vegan” – a marriage of the first three and last two letters of the already established term, “vegetarian.”

Shortly after, Watson formed the Vegan Society to help spread his message of peace, and began publishing the Vegan News, a “quarterly magazine of non-dairy vegetarians.” Its circulation was humble – the first issue had a mere 25 subscribers – but its content was revolutionary and is now considered a legitimate piece of history. In the first issue, he writes:

“The unquestionable cruelty associated with the production of dairy produce has made it clear that lacto-vegetarianism is but a half-way house between flesh-eating and a truly humane, civilised diet, and we think, therefore, that during our life on earth we should try to evolve sufficiently to make the ‘full journey’.”

Watson spent the remainder of his life helping others make that journey, working with the Cumbrian Vegetarian Society in his home of Keswick, Cumbria. For sixty-one years, the man who christened the vegan movement saw it blossom and grow into a vibrant pack of dedicated citizens.

On November 16, 2005, Donald Watson passed away at the ripe old age of ninety-five. His longevity bewildered naysaying critics and proved that one can not only survive on a plant-based diet, but thrive with brilliance and vitality. During one of Watson’s last interviews, he took a moment to share a message with today’s vegans.

“Take the broad view of what veganism stands for,” Watson said. “Realise that you’re on to something really big, something that hadn’t been tried until sixty years ago, and something which is meeting every reasonable criticism that anyone can level against it. And this doesn’t involve weeks or months of studying diet charts or reading books by so-called experts – it means grasping a few simple facts and applying them.”

So during Vegan Awareness Month let us all remember the man who possessed the courage to stand when others remained seated, the compassion to speak for those with no voice, and the foresight and dedication to help birth a movement of peace and kindness. In loving memory of the man with the plan, I wish you all a very happy and healthy Vegan Awareness Month.

We hear it all the time, “Oh, I want to do more to help the animals, but I simply don’t have the time” or “I give a few hundred bucks a year to my favorite charity, but can’t commit to more.” What if I told you activism doesn’t have to be exclusively about offering clean water to children in Africa? What if we told you there are tangible and easy peasy ways to save the world? Though this list of ideas (below) is primarily animal focused, you could really use the sentiment to inspire any of your activism or promoting anything you care about; from children’s charities or cancer research fund raising to supporting your local church group.

Facebook, Twitter, and Myspace are gold for the animals. I’ve placed countless animals in loving homes by posting them on Facebook. Remember, sitting in shelters animals get virtually no exposure to the outside world. You may think you know that nobody in your network is looking to adopt, but one person re-posts, then the next re-posts, and next thing you know – a dog on the kill list just got seen by 10,000 people and rescued! Use your network for good, what else is the point? Mafia Wars? Seriously? Have your “top friends” be your favorite animal protection organization, become a “fan” of groups you love, add videos that have moved you, quotes, and links. Don’t be afraid to use your voice, if you don’t speak up for the fuzzy and incarcerated, who will? “Take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.” – Elie Wiesel

Use your skill set to help. Are you a graphic designer? Design a flyer for an organization you love from the comfort of your laptop. Assess and then volunteer your skills. Do you do hair? Offer to free hair cuts once a month for shelter workers. Anything you can do can be directly put to use for the animals. My friend Alex owns a tattoo shop and he donates gift certificates to raffles for benefits. I donate listings on girliegirlarmy.com to bring attention to the plight of farm animals in factory farms. Every little bit helps!

Attend Parties. Yep, parties! Benefits are a great way to meet people you can take home to Mom. Not only will you meet the finest quality folk with huge hearts, your ticket price will go towards helping those in need. It’s a win-win!

Contact companies that conduct cruel experiments on animals. www.caringconsumer.com will give you that list. And (obviously) only buy natural, vegan, and animal-testing free products. You’ll not only be avoiding supporting companies that pump toxins into our environment and hurt animals, you’ll be avoiding nasty chemicals on your own epidermis.

Foster a cat or dog, or volunteer at your local shelter. A bit more work than sitting at the computer or partying, but by taking a dog from the local shelter for a run, you are getting them seen by hundreds of eyes on the street or in the park. I’ve seen it happen a million times; Random on the street: “Oh, your dog is SO cute.” My response: “Why thank you, but she isn’t my dog, she’s from the CACC and she’s desperate to be adopted.” Random: “Really? Let me call my Husband!” These pets are ten times more likely to get adopted if you simply get their shayna punims seen!

Do not buy an animal. Do adopt and foster. This may seem like a serious DUH to you.. but not everyone knows that over 800 cats and dogs get put down PER STATE in our country per day. Trust us, you can find any breed you like on www.petfinder.com (though our mutts are quite gorgeous) without directly supporting hideous breeding practices. You can also join our list to receive our adoption network updates, which is nationwide. Crazy Sexy Life’s newsletter also features animal adoptions every week.

Hold a screening. Tribe of Heart makes eye opening films on animal issues. And of course, Earthlings and Raw for 30 are both films that are must-sees for everyone. Invite friends over for cocktails n’ (vegan) cupcakes and watch a film together. Allow for open dialoguing after. I’ve seen many a heart be opened after seeing footage of what’s really going on in Factory Farms. If you are interested in hosting a larger film screening at your church, synagogue, work place, house, bar, or local knitting group – email beautiful, wonderful, articulate Marisa Miller from Kind Green Planet – she has a projector and will travel!

Put stickers on your bills. You can buy just about any kind here. Be a voice for the animals. Letters pass many hands before ending up on a desk. Let your platform be known, even via the mailman.

Buy and Eat Cruelty-Free. You already know this if you read Crazy Sexy Life, but it never hurts to remind you to buy and eat organic, local, and cruelty-free. “It’s too expensive” isn’t an excuse, we know plenty of folks on the poverty line who eat raw and vegan. Where there is a will, there is a way. Search recipe sites, support raw and vegan restaurants, and hit up your local health food store. It’s as easy as making the conscious choice to not support suffering. You’ve had your aha eating moment, help a friend have his or hers. Make animal-free food for friends and show them just how delish and gourmet vegan eating can be. And don’t think your fashion sense isn’t going to change too, Sister. From what you put in your tummy to what you wear on your body, you are making a statement on being intolerant to cruelty. Going entirely cruelty-free means eschewing wool, silk, leather, and fur. Thinks it’s hard to find eco fabulous stilettos that are made without the use of toxically treated, tortured animal skins? Girlll… you haven’t discovered my site yet. www.GirlieGirlArmy.com is a site devoted to keeping you looking glam without so much as hurting a fly. Remember; “All the arguments to prove human superiority cannot shatter this hard fact: in suffering, animals are our equals.”- Peter Singer

Become a member or volunteer at the non-profit that protects animals that speaks to you most. We love www.hsus.org, www.farmsanctuary.org, www.cok.net, www.woodstockfas.org, www.savethechimps.org, www.seashepherd.org, www.bestfriends.org, www.humaneusa.org, www.peta.org, www.aldf.org, www.humanemyth.com and www.pcrm.org. Join them all.

Whatever your cause, keep remembering why it is you care, and it will translate to direct action and results! Your voice MATTERS, it is strong, and it is fabulous.

Continued from WARM Memories Part I by Andy Glick…

In 1991, my dream was realized, and I opened The WARM (Woodstock Animal Rights Movement) Store here in Woodstock. To the best of my knowledge, this was one of the very first “Cruelty-free, Vegan, Socially Conscious, Environmentally Friendly” store in the United States. At first we relied heavily on PETA’s Cruelty-Free shopping guide to help us find products for the store. We also attended trade shows and picked up things that were appropriate to sell. The term “cruelty-free” was quite new back then, and even health food stores were not featuring or promoting cruelty-free products. Most personal care items were not yet labeled to show if they were tested on animals or if they contained animal ingredients.

In the book/library section of the store, we had a TV and video running all day of John Robbins’ video “Diet for a New America” alternating with Dr. Michael Klaper’s video entitled “Vegan Nutrition”. I received permission from Dr. Klaper to give out audio cassette copies of three or four of his great “bootleg” lectures at the time. Eventually we must have given out over a thousand copies of the “Vegan Nutrition” lecture and hundreds of copies of his other lectures about Veganism and ethics and the environment. He was certainly one of the most passionate, inspiring, and compassionate speakers of all time, and he was the prime reason I became so interested in the nutritional importance of veganism, not for just ethical or animal reasons, and this has remained with me ever since.

We finally have so much medical and nutritional data proving the benefits of a plant-based diet. And, of course, there is a “new” awareness of the effects of animal agriculture on climate and global warming. I say “new” in quotes because much of this was written about in the mid 80’s by John Robbins in his prophetic book, “Diet for a New America“. I’m sure that many of you have heard facts like:

*2500 -5000 gallons of water to produce one pound of beef

*15 pounds of grain is fed to a cow to get one pound of beef

*50% of all the water used in the US goes to animal agriculture

*50% of all antibiotics and pesticides are used for animal agriculture

*70%+ of all grains grown in the US goes to cattle

*5000 gallons of water a day is used up by a person on a meat centered diet

* 300-500 gallons of water a day is used up by a person on a Vegan diet

All of the above facts were disclosed by John Robbins in “Diet For A New America” twenty-five years ago. The only thing missing then was the specific connection to greenhouse gases, an idea that is finally getting the public’s attention.

After a few years in our first location, the very small WARM Store needed a new home and we moved to a larger building close to the center of town. The store remained open until 1999. Later, I was asked to serve on the newly revised and energized national board of Earth Save. During the first few months, the board members were asked to come up with ideas that would help Earth Save gain more national recognition. I brought up the idea of the “MeatFreeZone”. This was something I had been thinking about for a few years and was saving up for the right moment. The Earth Save board liked the idea but decided not go ahead with it. So, with the help of my then partner Jerry Cook, we proceeded with the campaign on our own. Part of our mission was to offer MeatFreeZone signs to people for their homes and workplaces and to have the logo be a symbol of their lifestyle and movement to be identified with. We also aimed to have the signs be displayed in the windows and interiors of all Vegetarian and Vegan restaurants. Again, to be a recognizable symbol of this lifestyle and all it represents.

The MeatFreeZone website was meant to be more of a nutritional site as opposed to an Animal Rights site. I compiled a very comprehensive list of articles called “Health and Nutrition” for the site. It goes from A-Z and includes tons of articles about Vegan diets, heart disease, cancer, diabetes, dairy, fats, and most major diseases and health issues I could find. Most of the articles were written by plant-based medical doctors (such as Dr. John McDougall, Dr. Joel Fuhrman, Dr. Michael Klaper, Dr. Esselstyne, and Dr. Barnard) and many plant based nutritionists such as Brenda Davis. I’ve been told that the site has become an invaluable resource of information for many people.

A few years ago, I attended a school for Holistic Health Counseling in NYC. Even though the school wasn’t Vegan, my goal was to become a Vegan Lifestyle Coach and focus on that aspect with people…keeping this somewhat separate from the animal and environmental aspects of Veganism (at least on the surface). This has been a slow start but I’m optimistic and hopeful to see Veganism increasing. It’s obvious that it has become much more mainstream than when I first got involved over 20 years ago. To learn more about what I’m up to these days as a Vegan Lifestyle Coach and Animal Rights Activist, you can check out VeganLifestyleCoach.com.

Once again, it’s a glorious Meatless Monday! Today, Andy Glick is here to share the first part of his experiences in the animal rights movement in Woodstock, NY…

Ingrid Newkirk, PETA

I feel very fortunate to have been involved in the Animal Rights (AR) movement since the early days. In 1989, I formed a group in Woodstock, NY, called WARM (Woodstock Animal Rights Movement). For a few years prior to starting WARM, I had been an avid follower and contributor to PETA and other national groups that were gaining popularity at that time. Some of the many inspirational leaders and organizations at the time included: Ingrid Newkirk and Alex Pacheco (PETA), the Fund for Animals with Cleveland Amory, Friends of Animals, Neal Barnard (PCRM), Gary Francione (professor of AR Law at Rutgers and director of the first AR legal clinic at his school), and Dr Michael Klaper (medical doctor, author of “Vegan Nutrition” and “Pregnancy, Children and the Vegan Diet”, lecturer, and one of the very few ethical Vegan doctors at the time).

To add some perspective to all this, “Animal Liberation” (by Peter Singer) was published in 1975. PETA was formed in 1980 and a year later, PETA conducted an undercover investigation inside a primate research lab at the Institute of Behavioral Research in Silver Spring Maryland. Alex Pacheco took photos of the chimps and monkeys that were at the lab and turned them over to the police. The researcher, Dr. Edward Taub, was arrested and the lab was shut down. Eventually, this became the first animal-testing case to be heard by the United States Supreme Court. PETA gained national attention (and notoriety) and the AR movement took off in earnest from that point on.

The decade of the 60’s and all that it stood for was still very much alive when the Animal Rights movement was formed. Many people of the 60’s generation were involved in AR…it became their next big cause to fight for. It was a time of discovery in a sense. The curtains were being pulled aside for the first time on nightmares that had long existed for animals. We started to see what was going on behind the scenes in animal laboratories. We learned of the horrors of the fur trade, animals used in entertainment, hunting (and canned hunts), puppy mills and kill shelters, animals used for food, the dairy industry, the effects of eating animals on our health, animals and the legal system, animals used for clothing, dissection…and on and on.

We felt that since we had documentation, videos and testimonies to “prove” it, that all we had to do was go public and present all this newly uncovered information and everyone would be appalled and irate. Finally, great changes would start to occur right away. We had the drive and the passion and the intellect to affect the sorely needed change. It was even said that after Civil Rights and Women’s Rights, it was now time for Animal Rights, and this could quite possibly be the greatest upheaval of all, since so much of society was built upon the backs of animals. But, things didn’t go quite so smoothly, or quite as fast as we would have liked.

On a personal level, I felt I needed to be more involved in Animal Rights on a daily basis and so, in 1989, I decided to start WARM (Woodstock Animal Rights Movement). I placed my first graphic photo ad in the Woodstock Times (a picture of two terrified monkeys in a tight embrace, huddling in the back of a small cage with terror and fear in their eyes) and announced the first meeting of WARM. To my surprise, about thirty people showed up, and we were off to a good start!

I began to hold monthly meetings at the Woodstock Town Hall. Attendance varied from ten to thirty people. I used to bring in photocopies to hand out of recent Animal Rights news, local topics of interest, and suggestions and ideas for campaigns that we could do as a group. We also formed a smaller core group that met separately. This core group broke off into special interest areas: lab testing and cruelty free products, companion animals, hunting, food, entertainment, etc. Each group was to be self directed and come up with its own campaigns.

At the time, there was a feeling of unity within the grassroots community. Perhaps it was because the movement was so new and we were all running full steam ahead for the same goals. And there was also a sense of these groups “belonging” to the larger picture and agendas of the national groups. We were their helpers in a sense. They had the larger memberships and the funds and the exposure, and came up with many of the ideas for campaigns. We would then join in and do our part, along with our own separate issues.

River Phoenix

As a grassroots group, we were involved in many exciting pursuits and projects. From the start, we began to publish and mail out a newsletter (no email back then) telling of our local campaigns and projects and showing what people could do and how to help. We held public lectures on Animal Rights at our local Town Hall. We were honored to have Ingrid Newkirk visit us and give a presentation to a standing room only crowd (hecklers and all). In 1990, Howard Lyman came to Woodstock and spoke about the Beyond Beef campaign. He warned us of a disease we had never heard of called “Mad Cow”, or CJD. Other WARM activities included holding hunting demos every year, hosting local Thanksgiving dinners, organizing a Spay/Neuter benefit, and exposing the cruelty involved in school dissection. One of the special highlights for us was meeting River Phoenix when he was visiting Woodstock with his band. He agreed to do a benefit for WARM at a local night-club!

WARM was very active in pushing for change in legislation. We worked on an anti leg-hold trap legislation and collected petitions for our local legislatures to ban the current leg trap bills that were coming up in session. We were also helpful in assisting other groups in persuading former Governor Mario Cuomo to veto the “Hunting Bear with Dogs” bill. Some members of WARM went to Hegins Pennsylvania to protest and disrupt the infamous yearly gruesome Hegins Pigeon Shoot. A few of our members were arrested there but we put up bail and they all returned home safely. Many of us also went to Washington, DC for the great 1990 March for Animals (and then the follow up and lesser March in 1996). The first march drew about 50,000 people and was a great show of strength. I attended all of the national Animal Rights conferences that I could get to and was thrilled to meet all the other activists and leaders and was inspired beyond my wildest dreams.

While all this was going on, I was formulating an idea for a Cruelty-Free store…Part II tomorrow!