Summer of Love Revisited – 1st “Annual?” Vegan Earth Day!!

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Posted by dancingvegan (All posts by dancingvegan) | Posted in Animal Rights, Environment, Events, General, Health, Veganism | Posted on 03-07-2009

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Once upon a time… a long long time ago, there were humans known as hippies. Flowers in their long flowing hair. Women dressed in long flowing skirts. Music in their heads. On June 21, 2009 the hippies made a comeback… to Woodland Hills!
Harmony - in harmony with the music!!

Harmony - in harmony with the music!!

Just Chillin' on a Sunday Afternoon

Just Chillin' on a Sunday Afternoon

I will set the scene for you:  Pierce College campus. Huge shade trees on a sunny day. Music by a myriad of bands (my favorite being The Luminaries – so much soul!!). Yummy vegan food. Yummy vegan products for sale. A variety of films showing all day (I watched ‘Simply Raw’). Thought-provoking speakers, including Bob Linden – creator of the event.

There were children and adults of all ages with one commonality:  the healthy vegan lifestyle.

Just a few of the vendors!!

Just a few of the vendors!!

Kudos to Bob and all that helped coordinate this event. A lot of hard work and time went into it and they all deserve a huge round of applause.

Will this become an annual event? Only time will tell. If there is one next year I hope to see more of you at the Summer of Love Revisited!!

Ciao Bello/Bella,

Dancing Vegan & the Animals

The Reason We Are VEGANS!!

The Reason We Are VEGANS!!

Edible Centerpieces

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Posted by rgraham33 (All posts by rgraham33) | Posted in Environment, General, Recipes | Posted on 14-06-2009

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edible-flowers1
Edible centerpieces? Why not? When we make dinner for our friends and family we like to have a centerpiece on the table that is edible. A nice small bouquet of flowers is fun but an “edible” centerpiece is novel, unexpected and can generate interesting discussions while eating.
One time we had a small bouquet of nasturtiums in the middle of the table. Our friend, Lol, asked if they were edible. I didn’t answer him verbally but plucked a flower out of the centerpiece and held it out to him to try. Lol and I used to pick wild edible weeds in the Berkeley Hills so I knew he’d go for it.
After taking a bite, he finished the rest of the flower and asked if the leaves were edible. Again, I plucked a leaf out of the centerpiece and handed it to him. He pronounced it “peppery” and smiled. It was one of the most fun dinners we’ve shared.
Some of the other centerpieces we’ve shared with friends include flowering kale:
Edible Centerpieces - Kale
Brussel sprouts; and
Edible Centerpieces
Pineapple. I use the top as a simple centerpiece after I’ve cut and trimmed pineapple rings for grilling. This centerpiece is not edible but when put on the table along with barbecued pineapple rings, it works! Here’s a vegan recipe I use for barbecuing the pineapple rings.
Ingredients:
1 fresh pineapple (peeled, cored and cut into 1/2 inch rings)
1/2 cup Tamari sauce
2 teaspoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 green onion (chopped)
Juice of 2 oranges
Directions:
Combine Tamari, sesame oil, maple syrup, green onion and orange juice to create marinade. Marinate pineapple rings for 30 minutes. Barbecue marinated rings over medium heat on grill. Brush with additional sauce while barbecuing. May be served hot from the grill or made ahead of time, refrigerated and served cold.
Next time you set the table and include a centerpiece: go wild, go edible!

Ojai Center for Regenerative Agriculture

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Posted by rgraham33 (All posts by rgraham33) | Posted in Environment, General, Organic | Posted on 02-06-2009

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Ojai Center for Regenerative Agriculture
by Randy Graham
http://valleyvegetarian.blogspot.com/
How do David White (Farmer Dave) and Katy Overstreet (Farmer Katy) have fun on  Wednesday mornings? This is not a trick question. If you know anything about the Ojai Center for Regenerative Agriculture (CRA) you know it is educating children at Rio Gozo Organic Farm in Ojai.

The CRA was formed as a California Nonprofit Corporation in 2002 by David White and Steve Sprinkel (Owner – Rio Gozo Organic Farm). The CRA mission statement reads in part: “Our mission is to promote all aspects of organic farming which build soils, limit synthetic pesticide release and curtail pollution and degradation of arable lands. We use model projects to educate students, homeowners, ranchers and farmers about sustainable food growing strategies…”

Educating students is, perhaps, what they do best. During this school year alone, over 650 students attended the “Students on the Farm” program. On the Wednesday morning I attended, 25 children, a few parents and Kindergarten teacher Angie Genasci from Topa Topa Elementary School were treated to an hour-long program. The program was not only educational but interactive and highly entertaining.
One of the highlights of the program was when Farmer John (John Fonteyn) drove a tractor onto the farm. When he hopped off the tractor, one of the children ran up to him and gave him a big hug. David asked the children what Farmer John was driving. One of the children raised his hand and replied not with “a tractor” but with “a John Deer”. The rest of the children clapped and cheered. You could feel the love and respect they have for John and the Rio Gozo Farm.
Another highlight was getting to sample fresh organic produce. While David talked about the type of crops that grow on the farm, Katy picked carrots, dill weed, cilantro, chard and beets from the field. She and David passed them out for eating to delight of everyone including me.

When not volunteering his time as the Executive Director of the Center for Regenerative Agriculture, David is the garden coordinator for Food for Thought Ojai and the environmental coordinator and life skills teacher at Ojai Valley School, lower campus. Katy can be seen locally helping out at The Farmer & The Cook restaurant in Meiners Oaks and at the Ojai Certified Farmers Market.

The Center for Regenerative Agriculture collaborates with Food for Thought Ojai – the Ojai Healthy Schools Program. For more information visit about the CRA visit their website at http://www.ojaicra.org. If your child’s class would like to arrange a field trip to the farm contact David White at david@ojaicra.org.

Very Impressive Films on the Future of Society

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Posted by webmaster (All posts by webmaster) | Posted in Economy, Environment, Veganism | Posted on 27-12-2008

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The following 4 films, taken together, whether you agree or disagree with any of the details, make an incredibly strong overall argument for immediate present-time action. They provide the “detailed proof” of the potentially hard times ahead and what we can possibly do about them.

Here are the links:

1. A Delicate Balance

https://rcpt.yousendit.com/636000832/188d769e2e6daac0c0206c0da1c7148e

This documentary basically advocates a vegan diet and describes how the health of our bodies and of our global environments would be totally transformed if the consumption of animal protein were minimized or completely eliminated.

Through a series of conversions A Delicate Balance is now a Real Player file that you can watch privately or with others via computer. Real Player 11 is the most recent version and is a free online download.

To obtain the film, cut and paste the above link into the address field of your browser and press Enter. Follow the prompts. It will take an hour or two to download. The link will expire in 12 days! (shades of Mission Impossible).

2. Zeitgeist Addendum

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=7065205277695921912

Zeitgeist is a German language expression literally translated: Zeit, time; Geist, spirit, meaning “the spirit of the age and its society”. The word zeitgeist describes the intellectual, cultural, ethical and political climate, ambience, and morality of an era; also a trend. In German, the word has more layers of meaning than the English translation, including the fact that Zeitgeist can only be observed for past events.
Zeitgeist refers to the ethos of an identified group of people, that expresses a particular world view which is prevalent at a particular period of socio-cultural progression.

Zeitgeist: Addendum, a 2008 documentary film produced by Peter Joseph, is a continuation of the film Zeitgeist, the Movie . The film discusses many of the institutions we have grown up with and have learned to take for granted.
The film premiered at the 5th Annual Artivist Film Festival in Los Angeles, California on October 2, 2008 , and was released free, online, on October 4, 2008 . Millions of people downloaded or watched it online in the first days of release. The above link will take you to a Google video page where you can watch the film online.

3. Aaron Russo Interview

http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=aaron+russo&emb=0#

Hollywood director and documentary film maker, Aaron Russo, gives an in-depth and somewhat shocking 30 minute interview on the astounding activities and intentions of the global elite — information directly conveyed to Russo by  Nick Rockefeller during their many conversations. Russo is perhaps best known for producing Trading Places (Eddie Murphy), The Rose (Bette Midler) and a documentary on the Federal Reserve System and personal income tax.

4. Crash Course Slide Show – Chris Martenson

http://www.chrismartenson.com/crashcourse

Crash Course is a 3-hour slide show that presents the results of 4 years of data collection and analysis on the part of Chris Martenson, scientist and former corporate executive. In this course he shows us the astonishing long range trends in finance, environment, energy, and world population, how they interrelate, and how they define the future of our society. It is an amazing and thought-provoking presentation.

From the Crash Course Web site:

Chris Martenson: “The most important thing for you to know is the impact that the information that I’ve now placed on this site had on me. Let’s do this as a Before and After.”

Before: “I am a 40-year-old professional who has worked his way up to Vice President of a large, international Fortune 300 company and is living in a waterfront, 5 bathroom house in Mystic, CT, which is mostly paid off. My three young children are either in or about to enter public school, and my portfolio of investments is being managed by a broker at a large institution. I do not really know any of my neighbors, and many of my local connections are superficial at best.

After: I am a 45-year-old who has willingly terminated his former high-paying, high-status position because it seemed like an unnecessary diversion from the real tasks at hand. My children are now homeschooled, and the big house in Mystic was sold in July of 2003 in preference for a 1.5 bathroom rental in rural western Massachusetts .
I grow a garden every year; preserve food, know how to brew beer & wine, and raise chickens. I’ve carefully examined each support system (food, energy, security, etc), and for each of them I’ve figured out either a means of being more self-sufficient or a way to do without. But, most importantly, I now know that the most important descriptor of wealth is not my dollar holdings, but the depth and richness of my community. I hope you find what I have to offer here useful.”

Algae can save life on earth from human destruction!

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Posted by webmaster (All posts by webmaster) | Posted in Economy, Environment, General | Posted on 01-10-2008

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Watch this 2 minute video to see one way that we could exist peacefully IF heartless gangsters didn’t rule the world:

Algae as Fuel
http://www.valcent.net/i/misc/Vertigro/index.html

Climate Change and Meat Consumption

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Posted by webmaster (All posts by webmaster) | Posted in Environment | Posted on 10-09-2008

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Eat less meat to fight climate change: UN expert

LONDON (AFP) – People should cut their consumption of meat to help combat climate change, a top United Nations expert told a British Sunday newspaper.

Rajendra Pachauri, chair of the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), told The Observer that people should start by having one meat-free day per week then cut back further.

The 68-year-old Indian economist, who is a vegetarian, said diet change was important in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and environmental problems associated with rearing cattle and other animals.

“Give up meat for one day (per week) initially, and decrease it from there,” he said.

“In terms of immediacy of action and the feasibility of bringing about reductions in a short period of time, it clearly is the most attractive opportunity.”

Other small-scale lifestyle changes would also help to combat climate change, he said without elaborating.

“That’s what I want to emphasise: we really have to bring about reductions in every sector of the economy.”

Pachauri is due to give a speech in London on Monday under the title: “Global Warning: the impact of meat production and consumption on climate change”.

Pachauri, who was re-elected for a second term six-year term as IPCC chairman last week, has headed the organisation since 2002 and oversaw its seminal assessment report in 2007 which gave graphic forecasts of the risks posed by global warming.

The IPCC warned then that without action the planet’s rising temperatures could unleash potentially catastrophic change to earth’s climate system, leading to hunger, drought, storms and massive species loss.

The organisation also won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007 along with former US vice president Al Gore.

Article Source:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080907/sc_afp/unfoodclimatewarmingindia_080907031653
Sat Sep 6, 11:16 PM ET

On the topic of Al Gore, not once did he mention the vegetarian diet in his film, nor is he willing to even discuss it publicly.  Someone needs to get on his case about this!