You may have seen that I have been doing a 7 month experiment changing my lifestyle into one aspiring for zero waste, making small changes on a month by month basis, until I have completely changed my habits using the ‘We Hate To Waste’ 7 steps to create a no waste mindset.

This month I am looking at spreading the word. To do that I am teaming up with DoNation and pledging to become a vegan for a week. DoNation have created a platform to help people commit to make small behaviour changes that add up to a better world, like cycling to work, driving more efficiently, eating less meat or turning the thermostat down a notch. So rather than sponsoring me to complete this challenge, you can go to the DoNation campaign and pledge to make a behavior change in support of the environment.

Being vegan for a week might not sound like much, but it will be a significant challenge for me (particularly as I live in Budapest and some vegan options are hard to find) and I am hoping it will help me learn how to make a longer term change.

I would love all Bestselfology readers to go to my DoNation Campaign and make a pledge.

Why vegan?

The production of meat and other animal products places a heavy burden on the environment. This is due to the vast amount of crops and water required to feed the animals as well as the transport and other processes involved getting the meat from the farm to your dinner table. The Union of Concerned Scientists lists meat-eating as the second-biggest environmental hazard facing the Earth. (Number one is fossil-fuel vehicles)

The amount of grain feed required for meat production is a significant contributor to deforestation, habitat loss and species extinction. The land used to grow food for the animals contributes to developing world malnutrition by driving impoverished populations to grow crops for animal feed, rather than food for themselves. Considerably lower quantities of crops and water are required to sustain a vegan diet. This makes switching to veganism one of the easiest and effective ways to reduce our impact on the environment.

The Vegan Society have lots of information on their website about why eating meat is bad for the environment.

Of course, the other benefit is preventing cruelty to animals for the production of meat.

If anyone is a vegan, or has any vegan recipes, all tips would be appreciated to help me through my challenge. I’d love you to sign up for the DoNation Campaign to contribute yourself, show your support and help to spread the word on what things you can do to make a difference. My aim is to get 25 pledges of support for this campaign, I’d love it if you were one of them. I’ll let you know how I got on next month.