We eat too much. We eat the wrong things. According to Jamie Oliver, “Obesity is one of the three biggest social burdens created by human beings alongside smoking, and armed violence, war, and terrorism. Obesity costs $2 trillion dollars globally each year.” #FoodRevolutionDay is May 15th, a day Oliver wants us to join him in kicking off a campaign to change the way we eat at home, at school, and out. He’s got some highly talented help from Ed Sheeran, Hugh Jackman and Paul McCartney with this music video.
We’ve been buying into the corporate model since the advent of industrialism. Crops are modified; hormones and antibiotics are given to animals as routine business; pesticides flow freely; forests are cleared for immediate pay back; and the list grows. We’ve become robots of digestion and consumption.
The World Health Organization compiled this data on obesity:
– Worldwide obesity has more than doubled since 1980.
– In 2014, more than 1.9 billion adults, 18 years and older, were overweight. Of these over 600 million were obese.
– 39% of adults aged 18 years and over were overweight in 2014, and 13% were obese.
– Most of the world’s population lives in countries where overweight and obesity kills more people than underweight.
– 42 million children under the age of 5 were overweight or obese in 2013.
– Obesity is preventable.
Time to connect the dots. A revolution doesn’t “just happen.” The consciousness for changing how we eat comes from the work of individuals, groups, and organizations like the Organic Consumer’s Association, The Cornucopia Institute, and The Food Tank, to name a few.
McDonald’s growth isn’t declining because society wants “to speed up customer service,” as reported by Business Insider. Steve Easterbrook, the new CEO, says he’s going to turn McDonald’s around by introducing a better burger and removing antibiotics and “hard to pronounce ingredients” from its chicken in the US. Not enough. What about the beef? Consumers want healthy food – simple food – that fulfills its mission: Nutrition, health, and energy, which give back to life rather than take from it. The mighty Mac food conglomerate began a slow descent when its ingredients went public. As consumers, we’re becoming smart.
Jamie Oliver takes on the tough subjects. His goal is to implement food education in the school system. Not easy. I’ve worked in schools, and I’ve owned my own restaurant where I’ve watched this organic, eat-better/grow-better food movement on a national and international level. From Central America to Europe to the US, organic food and better eating practices are shaking up the way tradition has boxed in food. Oliver also aims to pave a path towards better eating at home. Also not an easy task. Even for me, an organic girl from way back, I struggle to feed my family with organic food and as little sugar and fats as possible. Challenging? Yes. Impossible? No. We can’t continue stuffing ourselves as the conventional model wants us to do. The more we demand higher quality, the more we’ll get it – and at a better price.
Back up to the World Health Organization’s last point about obesity: It is preventable. Our health reflects the health of our planet. If we’re sick, so is our food system. #FoodRevolutionDay is more than signing a petition. It’s a movement in awareness reflecting a change we not only need to happen, but also want to succeed.
Take some action: Sign the petition; buy something organic; make a salad; take a walk with someone you love. We can do this. Our lives depend on it.
Nick Gutfreund, founder of Long Run Media, is my guest this week, and we discuss how film is a powerful tool to educate and communicate messages, to help promote participation in the eco-movement. He is currently working on a documentary entitled “Local Action,” which focuses on grassroots community groups, and how those groups move to build awareness of environmental and social issues. Local organizations are the change agents who help create solutions for a more sustainable planet. Please visit 
Be Kind to Animals, Don’t Be Cruel, Eat Your Veggies. All these phrases come together on this week’s program, as we celebrate vegetarian cuisine and cruelty free living at the New York City Vegetarian Food Festival. We spoke with Zoe Weil, Co-founder and president of the Institute for Humane Education, Nora Kramer, Founder and Executive Director of YEA (Youth Empowerment Action) Camp, Annie Hauck Lawson, Founder of Brooklyn Mompost, Susan Hargreaves, Founder of Animal Hero Kids, and Isis Phillips, Executive Director of Indy Kids. It was a pleasure speaking with all this dynamic and amazing women, who do so much to make the world a better place. For more information on these organizations go to 
The First Earth Day took place on April 22,1970 and on this week’s episode, we celebrate the 45th Anniversary of Earth Day, as well as the 45th year of the EPA, with special guest, Dr. Joel Scheraga, Senior Advisor for Climate Adaptation at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The climate is changing, and we have to adapt to the results of those changes, which are coming in the form of more intense weather, super storms, droughts, pollution, and an increase in greenhouse gas emissions. The change in climate is causing the oceans to get warmer, and
“We are keepers of the planet, we are protectors of the water, the land, the air.” Join me and my guest Don Raskopf, a member of the Board of Directors for Clearwater, and co-founder of Ban Fracking Now, as we delve into topics of fracking, train transportation of bakken crude oil, green building and the musical connection to Clearwater via one its founders, Pete Seeger. Music continues to be the message, as it is the force behind social movement and activism. For more information about Clearwater and the upcoming Clearwater Festival go to 
This week’s program takes place at the Bedford 2020 Summit and Solar Action Day. We spoke to Andrew Revkin, writer of the Dot Earth Blog for the New York Times, as well as Peter Olmsted, East Coast Regional Director for Vote Solar. We also spoke to Mayor Michael Cindrich of Mt. Kisco, NY about the solar projects on his agenda. Keynote Speaker Amory Lovins, of The Rocky Mountain Institute, spoke about new energy technologies that are on the horizon for the future of electricity. It was a gathering of innovators, educators and community, all working to promote solar and other renewable energy, in an effort to help create actionable solutions to green house gas emissions. A special thank you to Heather Flournoy for her hard work and hospitality. For more information go to 
We are all interconnected to one another, yet the cultural mindset continues to focus on the me, rather than the we. My guest this week, Rick Ulfik, founder of We the World, is moving to change the paradigm by promoting awareness of the need for creating a more humane spirit, by enlisting change agents from around the globe, to build a more peaceful, sustainable and empathetic world. We the World works to develop global networks of collaboration via the 11 Days of Global Unity, and 11 Ways to Change the World. It’s time for the collective will of the citizenry to use the power of WE! For more information go to 
We welcome back friend of the show, and a super green human, Eva Radke, founder of Film Biz Recycling, an organization that diverts set materials from film, television and theatre, and recycles, reuses, redistributes and re-purposes those items. “Not in a Dumpster” is the mantra of Film Biz Recycling, and there are exciting new projects which are on the horizon for the coming year. The prop shop is a great place to find clothes, furniture and collectibles that have been used to dress sets such as 30 Rock, Gossip Girls, The Amazing Spiderman 2 and many more. To find out all the great things 
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Long story short, America’s reckless agricultural techniques and lack of quality governmental oversight has created a situation in which Americans are falsely assured by their own government about the safety of their food. It is a situation that still has its solutions though. What we need is mass education which will contribute to a snowballing in consumer awareness about the importance of the local and sustainable food movement. It has started to take hold around the world but with EVERONE’S help, we will begin to change. Their have been sparks of change so far, but we need to keep the passion strong to get the fire roaring. As we eat locally and buy from small farms, food becomes much healthier, less mysterious, and more tasty. While food transportation costs and emissions are reduced, air becomes cleaner in cities and communities become stronger through community farms and other 
What connection does Star Trek have to humane education? What needs to be done to our education system to foster creativity, compassion, ethics, empathy and critical thinking? Students need to be better prepared to be problem solvers and thinkers. Our guest this week is Zoe Weil, co-founder and president of the Institute for Humane Education (IHE). Zoe and I discuss the importance of transforming education, via concepts that teach children to be more caring, nurturing, and curious. While teaching the three R’s is important, humane education will lead to a more peaceful an