There are some problems we face as a
world community that are simultaneously very simple and very complex. For
example, climate scientists have recommended that plant-based diets are one of
the best ways for human communities to slow climate change. The rationale has
been that feeding animals, especially cattle, requires enormous amounts of
energy in order to produce beef. Beyond that, cows produce a lot of methane, which
is one gas that is causing our planet to warm.1
However, there are other scientists
that say plant-based diets are not enough to slow or reverse climate change.2
Some even warn that plant based diets can have dangerous health consequences.3
I recently overheard friends at a dinner party ponder how plant-based diets
would impact soil content, if we were forced to grow more crops to feed more
people. There is also the cultural problem of all the meat-based meals and
products we have come to enjoy. How does one effect cultural change on such a
large scale?
While the advice of scientists to
adopt a more plant-based diet seems simple enough, and even soundly logical and
well-reasoned, it’s actually very complex advice. The problem of climate change
is complex. Human communities are complex. Cultural norms are complex. Food
culture is complex. Even our trust of scientists and our relationship to
science is complex.
The fact is, there are very few
problems that have crystal-clear solutions. Binaries are often false, and there
are shades of grey all around us. When an issue is presented as having clear
right or wrong properties, we should slow down and ask questions.
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