Call to Action – Sustainability and moo

For this project we were heavily focused on the environment and environmental goals for keeping the planet clean, and finding new ways of thinking and obtaining clean energy that does not affect the planet. A lot of our research and discussions were centered around the Paris agreement, where there was an international meeting about how there could be a global commitment to improving the world’s environment.

We watched two documentaries: Before the Flood by Leonardo Di Caprio that follows him around the world as he explores what other countries are doing to reduce global warming, and Damnation sponsored by Patagonia, an outdoor clothing company, which goes around the world investigation the effects of unused hydroelectric dams and their effect on the environment. We then had class discussions about the films, which I really enjoyed. This gave me a good perspective on what other people thought about the issues when based on the same information and watching the same documentaries and I got to see where I fit in in the spectrum of responses.

Another aspect of the group discussions that I really enjoyed was exploring one of the core competencies for this project: How do we decide if the actions and decisions in the past were fair or unjust, or should or shouldn’t have happened. We talked a lot about what we should have done when logging was started in BC. I believe that while logging was a decision that should have happened, I also believe that it could have been done better. We should have been more resourceful and not as wasteful, which is harder to do when you think you have a never-ending supply of something like trees. I still think that the economic benefits to many if not all Canadians was worth it though. I find I relate best to texts that I watch or listen to by placing myself in the shoes of the people living out their life in the text and it helps me to understand a different perspective, which I could then bring to our group discussions.

After the documentaries, we go right into our project. We had to come up with a presentation of a Call to Action about a chosen topic. My project was about cows and agriculture, which I am really interested in as I have a lot of friends who are ranchers or dairy farmers who know a lot about cows and farming and I have had lots of conversations with them about it. I was particularly interested in the common misconception that a vegan diet or a plant-based diet is way better than a beef diet for people and the planet, and that cows are killing the earth with methane gas. I wanted to prove that this was false using scientific information and studies that I researched.

I produced a podcast with my Dad, Brian Erb, who is a certified Primal Coach, because I felt this was the best way to get a great deal of information and data across in a format where it would be accessible to my target audience – people my own age. It’s a pretty long podcast, the longest podcast that I’ve ever done and it is in two parts, but I do really like it and I think it turned out pretty well. It’s called “It’s not the cow, it’s the how”, which is a common expression but I really like it. The podcast is very in-depth and goes into a lot of detail about scientific studies that have proven there are ways to raise cattle that not only improve the earth and provide new land for agriculture, but also make a healthier cow for people to eat.  I used my Dad as an expert in the podcast because of his knowledge about the Primal Diet, which is a diet that focuses on returning to the food our ancestors used to eat before there was mass agriculture and food manufacturing. He was able to present a lot of facts about why eating beef is really important for people to be healthy.

I hope you will check out my podcast for more details: