Known as the movie capital of the world, Hollywood has long brought stories to audiences that entertain, inspire, and sometimes provoke deep reflection. Yet on July 26, 2008, the spotlight in Hollywood shifted to a different kind of media— one not for the silver screen, but for the future of our planet. Broadcast live worldwide on Supreme Master Television, the Climate Change International Conference was held at the Pacific Design Center in West Hollywood, California, USA. Organized by the Supreme Master Ching Hai International Association, the conference brought together environmentally conscious Hollywood celebrities, distinguished speakers, scientists, and advocates for an inspiring and solution-focused dialogue. Guiding the event was Emmy Award–winning television journalist and vegan Jane Velez-Mitchell, whose enthusiasm and dedication helped facilitate meaningful discussions.
Jane Velez-Mitchell: Through this global event, the world is coming together to take immediate action on runaway climate change and the food crisis. Together we can do something to avert a real catastrophe in the making, right now.
Among the distinguished participants was well-known speaker and author Howard Lyman (vegan). Once a fourth-generation cattle rancher, Mr. Lyman later became a passionate advocate for a compassionate and sustainable vegan lifestyle.
Howard Lyman: I do what I do today as a hardcore vegan, for the love of the animals. I know that no animals has to die for me to live. If we are going to survive as a species, we have to understand that our job is not to do everything, our job is to do everything that we can do. And I charge you today with a very simple, straightforward charge: All you have to do is what you can do. Go Veg! Go Green! Save the Planet! Thank you very much.
The conference featured three engaging panels exploring key aspects of the climate crisis: the urgent scientific facts surrounding global warming, the spiritual perspectives illuminating humanity’s relationship with nature, and the powerful role of media in shaping awareness and inspiring action.
Supreme Master Ching Hai (vegan), invited as a special guest speaker, graciously participated remotely in the event to answer questions from the panelists and audience.
Master: I would like to thank the new vegan comers who joined the circle of the noble elite, who live without blood on their hands, who live as an example of peace that begins with themselves and begins on their dinner tables. […] Because once they turn their heart in this compassionate direction, the compassionate and loving energy that generates is enormous. That’s why we can combat the negative power that wants to destroy our planet before we can even have a chance to be awakened spiritually. […] We have hope. And we’re working. You are working. We are working together, and perhaps we still can make it. […] Miracles can always happen.
In this episode, the conference begins with welcoming remarks, a Native American prayer for Mother Earth, and messages emphasizing the urgency of tackling climate change.
MC: Jane Velez-Mitchell: Welcome everyone! From the heart of Hollywood, California, I want to welcome you to this historic live broadcast. We’re talking SOS Climate Change. I’m investigative journalist Jane Velez-Mitchell, and this is truly a first. Right now, this program is going into millions of households worldwide on 14 television satellite platforms, as well as on the internet. This is a special broadcast from Supreme Master Television. Let’s hear it for this effort!
Are we going to change the world? Are we going to get people to start eating their fruits and vegetables and stop eating so many hamburgers? (Yes.) We are! That’s for sure! Through this global event, the world is coming together to take immediate action on runaway climate change and the food crisis. Together we can do something to avert a real catastrophe in the making, right now. From Iceland to the Bahamas, from the Amazon to Stonehenge, the world is watching, and what do we want? We want action, don’t we? (Yeah!) Action! (Yeah!)
Alright. We’re going change the world today. Let’s begin with a prayer. It is my pleasure to introduce Joanelle Romero, the founder of Red Nation Television, to lead us in a Native American Lakota prayer for, who else, Mother Earth. (Yeah!)
Romero: I stand before you on the shoulders of my ancestors, the bloodline of Geronimo. We received a call this morning from the Hopi, asking us all to listen carefully, as this is an important day. My Indian name is Oyate Wayanka Po Win – “People see this woman” – was given to me by Chief Leonard Crow Dog from the Lakota Nation. I’m going to open with a prayer song. It’s the “Thunder Being Song” from our Lakota people. It’s a very ancient, ancient song, and it’s very auspicious to have this song for this day because it will bring the water that we desperately need – the Mini Wakan, the sacred water. There’s only one Earth, one sky, one Sun, one Moon, one water, one you, and one me. And we’re all here together. We are all related.
Over here Friend call me Over here Friend call me From the west The Thunder Nation Friend call me
I pray for peace and health to all of you. We are all related.
MC: Jane Velez-Mitchell: Thank you for that. Wow. What a beautiful prayer, and I also prayed for all the animals trapped on factory farms across the world, as we pray for our fellow human beings.
Now we have a passionate message, sent all the way from Delhi, India, from one of the world’s leading experts on the environment. A former director of the UN Environment Program, Dr. Ashok Khosla was awarded what is considered the Nobel Prize of the environmental world and is president of the prestigious “Club of Rome.” He now offers an effective solution to global warming.
Dr. Khosla: Hi, I’m Ashok Khosla, and I bring greetings to you all the way from Development Alternatives in New Delhi, India. My greetings particularly to those among you who have dedicated yourselves to making the world a better place for all. Climate change is one of the biggest threats faced by humankind since the beginning of history. And so is the massive extinction of species that is going on right now, and the disappearance of our forests and fish stocks, and the depletion of our energy and mineral resources. In fact, over the past few months, the biggest issues have been the prices of oil for our cars and food for our stomachs. Things seem to be coming all of a sudden to a head.
Our past actions and behavior may already be catching up with us. Your meeting today is about the role of meat in our diets and its impact on the world around us. Let me begin by admitting a bias. I have been a vegetarian for a very long time. In fact, all my life; I was born a vegetarian. This was an individual, personal decision, not imposed by a religious family or other obligations. But until recently, I’ve never felt the need to preach or proselytize vegetarianism to others. But now, I’m beginning to wonder whether that is right or fair to my fellow humans. You see, eating meat has become very dangerous. It can even kill. It can kill other people, for example, by taking away the resources needed to produce food for them. More than half of US farmland is devoted to beef production.
You know, it takes one acre to produce 250 pounds of beef. That same acre can produce 40,000 pounds of potatoes, 160 times as much.
Meat can kill you. The risk of various types of cancer increases by three to four times for people who eat meat. If an American has a heart attack, the risk of death is something like 50% for an average person. The risk comes down to 15% if he eats no meat. And it comes down to some 4% if he eats no meat, dairy or eggs. And meat can kill all of us, our planet, and all life on it.
As you all know, the cause of global warming is greenhouse effect from greenhouse gases, carbon dioxide mainly, and methane emissions from fossil fuels, and these are increased greatly in the production of meat. Three times more fossil fuels are needed to produce meat-centered diets than a meat-free diet. Livestock production uses more than half of all the water used for all purposes in the US. In fact, “producing” one cow needs enough water to float a small ship.
It would take 260 years to use up the world’s oil resources if people gave up eating meat today. It would take 13 years to exhaust the same world’s known oil reserves if every human being started eating meat in the same manner as the US today. This is not a minor issue.
Vegetarians can be healthy and strong. There are well known sports persons who have done extremely well on vegetarian diets. And I am still here after 68 years of eating no meat. All in all, I can strongly recommend a meat-free diet. The less demand there is for meat and dairy, the fewer the animals we will produce, the less of the greenhouse gases we will emit; global warming and climate change will come down, and it is now up to each one of us to take responsibility for our future. Thank you. Have a very good meeting.
MC: Jane Velez-Mitchell: Very well put. Meat kills, especially the animal who is killed for the meat. That’s why we like to say, “Peace begins on your plate.” So all of you out there who say you’re peaceful and you want world peace, start it right on your plate. You know, this movement is really being embraced by Hollywood. A lot of Hollywood celebrities have gone vegan, and some of them are in this room right now. And now we would like to introduce the Mayor of West Hollywood, Jeffrey Prang. Jeffrey!
Jeffrey: Good afternoon. Thank you very much for the invitation to be here this afternoon. I’m Jeffrey Prang, I’m the Mayor of West Hollywood, and proud to say that I’m a progressive mayor of one of the nation’s most progressive cities.
We’re really proud to be able to play host to today’s conference. West Hollywood has been a leader on a number of progressive issues over the years. In fact, we like to pride ourselves on being first on a lot of the most important issues of the day. We were the first city in the country to pass a ban on Saturday Night Specials, and a leader on gun control. We are a leader in the animal welfare community. (Whoo!) We’re a dense urban city, but at the same time we have been one of the foremost leaders on environmental policy. And that’s why it’s particularly important as we’re discussing climate change, that for me this conference is hosted here in the city of West Hollywood. (Yeah!) But preparing today, being together today to talk about these important issues about our environment, about climate change, is essential. We’re building public education amongst members throughout the country and throughout the world, as well as our elected leaders. And come January, we have a tremendous amount of work to do, and I am optimistic. I am optimistic about the goals of today’s conference, and conferences like this taking place all over this nation. So on behalf of my colleagues and the city council and the entire city of West Hollywood, I want to welcome you here to our community and thank you for the leadership that you’re providing. West Hollywood, as always, is eager and prepared to stand with you in this fight. Thank you so much.
