Conscious Evolution? What are we talking
about?
It is believed that with natural selection, traits that aid survival flourish, while traits that hinder survival
eventually die off. Since consciousness is something we are said to have evolved, for the very purpose of
aiding us in our survival, then we can say that some of us are now consciously choosing to evolve by
changing a behaviour that is damaging to us.
Diabetes, cancer, heart disease, obesity and depression are directly related to our growing
consumption of over-processed, chemically doused food and animal products (read Plant Based
Nutrition and Health, by Stephen Walsh, PhD.), so we can see that our standard western diet is clearly
affecting our chances of survival. These diseases are skyrocketing and there is no sign of slowing down.
Because of this, and for many other reasons, a growing number of people are moving in the direction of plant-based
diets. If I consciously choose to increase my chances of survival and productivity by giving
myself an advantage that helps me thrive, then this is what I term ‘consciously evolving’.
If I raise my
son this way I am passing this advantage down to him, (in this case, consciously, not genetically). But if, on
the other hand, I am doing something over and over again that decreases my chances for maintaining good
health and a thriving living environment then I am harming myself, and not consciously evolving.
The Earth is dwindling as we pollute our environment recklessly. One of the top causes of this pollution is
factory farming, which is where almost all of our meat, dairy, eggs and animal by-products come from. The
excrement of billions of animals, bred for us to eat, leaches into our water systems and causes more harmful
greenhouse gas emissions than all industry combined (now believed by WorldWatch.org and other researchers, to be more than 51% of all human-caused
greenhouse gas emissions).
Our precious topsoil is depleted as forests are cleared for grazing, and
more than 70% of grains in the U.S. are fed to livestock, instead of people. It’s illogical, at best. (Stats taken
from Livestock and Climate Change Report, by Robert Goodland and Jeff Anhang. World Watch, Nov. Dec. 2009, www.worldwatch.org).
Animals in the wild know not to soil their nest because it’s bad for them. We humans behave more like
parasites, consuming and destroying our host as we grow in numbers. Because of our careless actions, our
environment has become toxic, and survival of the fittest, or survival of the most cooperative with nature, will
be the result. Evolutionary impulse is a term used to describe a change in the environment that triggers a
change within an organism in order to increase its chances of survival. And adaptation is a term that
describes the process whereby an organism becomes better suited to its habitat. We are connected to the
Earth in ways we can’t fully understand, and we have to work together to co-exist.
(Photo below taken by James Toth, all right reserved)
So should we continue in the direction we are headed, or take the path of sustaining ourselves on plant-based
diets? No doctor who is properly educated in nutrition (and yes, there are uneducated doctors, especially in
nutrition) will advise us to increase our intake of meat and cheese to become healthier; so the answer seems
clear.
We don’t want to start a war between vegans and non-vegans. We simply want to open up a dialogue about
the problems we are all facing, and use logic instead of fanaticism to create change. If something is truly
better for us, and our environment, then we should pursue it with the same enthusiasm that brought us to this
tipping point in the first place. No one likes change, but it’s unavoidable and, right now, mandatory.
"Vegetarian food leaves a deep impression on our nature. If the whole world adopts vegetarianism, it can
change the destiny of humankind."
-Albert Einstein.
XOXO
Lyn
