Would PETA miss the chance to educate nearly 1 million people about the benefits of vegan eating? Kale no!

Attendees of President Barack Obama's inauguration were so smitten by Chris P. Carrot, Celery Stalk, and Mother Earth that they actually lined up to have their pictures taken with the patriotic trio and snatched up vegetarian/vegan starter kits and copies of "Glass Walls"—a video narrated by Paul McCartney—while they were at it.

The vociferous vegetables even managed to win over a woman who was willing to consider eating fewer animals than she was wearing:

In his inaugural speech, President Obama promised to "respond to the threat of climate change." We can't think of an easier—or tastier—way to do that than by going vegan.

Are you still trying to cool off from the scorcher that was 2012? Scientists report that it was the hottest year on record for the U.S.—but instead of blaming Mother Nature, we can point the finger at ourselves. "It is abundantly clear that we are seeing [human-caused] climate change in action," according to Kevin Trenberth, a senior scientist at the National Center for Atmospheric Research.

So PETA sent the greenest gals we know on a jaunt across Canada to show people how easy it is to go green—no bodypaint required. Since carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide together are the biggest contributors to climate change and raising animals for food is one of the largest sources of carbon dioxide emissions and the single largest source of both methane and nitrous oxide emissions, going vegan has been called the "single most effective thing you can do" to combat climate change. 

People eagerly posed for pictures with the lime ladies, and they took home PETA's "Meat's Not Green" leaflets and copies of legendary animal and environmental advocate Paul McCartney's meat industry exposé, "Glass Walls." 

By simply opting for faux meats and dairy products over animal-based ones, we can make 2013 a lucky year for animals and help reduce climate change. And that's pretty cool.

What a rooty-tooty bunch of hooey. IHOP is using the eco-friendly message of The Lorax to lure families in for Dr. Seuss–themed meals that are chock-full of factory-farmed meat, eggs, and dairy products. The restaurant couldn't serve anything less environmentally friendly than if it put centuries-old Amazon trees on a plate.

How IHOP Is Hurting the Planet

While the tree seed–encrusted bookmarks the restaurant is handing out to kids are a nice touch, IHOP would be doing a lot more good for the planet if it offered dishes that weren't concocted out of meat and dairy products that obliterate natural resources and are a major cause of climate change.

What You Can Do

I'm pretty sure the Lorax would rather take a boot to the back than chomp down on Truffula-Killing Surprise.

For Green 'Eggs' and 'Ham' that are truly green, check out our recipe.

If your tofu has turned green, you'll probably want to toss it. But the results of a recent study show that our tofu is so green that it's a cause for celebration!

The findings of this new study reveal how vegan foods, such as veggie dogs, tofu, and seitan, contribute little to climate change compared to meat. For example, only 350 grams of carbon dioxide are released for each kilogram of soy "meat" produced, while an equivalent amount of ground meat is responsible for around 7,200 grams of carbon dioxide. If my math is correct, that means a hamburger patty causes more than 20 times more harmful greenhouse gasses to be released than does a veggie burger of the same size.

PETA's always said that "meat's not green" because of the severe environmental damage caused by factory farming—which releases massive amounts of the greenhouse gasses that cause climate change.

With a growing focus on our responsibility for maintaining our planet, there's still no better way to go green than by going vegan.

If you're one of those people who need a deadline to take action, here's one for you: five years. That's how long analysts with the International Energy Agency give the world's governments to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions and reverse climate change "before it's too late." Governments have their role, but there's an important lifestyle change that every individual can make to ensure that our planet doesn't become a giant sauna: Go vegan.

A plant-based diet is not only healthier for you but also better for the entire planet. Consider the following statistics:

• Producing a single pound of meat emits the same amount of greenhouse gasses as driving 40 miles in an SUV.
• It takes 10 times as much fossil fuel to produce one calorie from animal protein as it does to produce one calorie from plant protein.
• If every American skipped one meal of chicken per week and opted for plant-based foods instead, the carbon-dioxide savings would be the same as taking more than a half-million cars off U.S. roads.

In addition, raising animals for food in the U.S. alone produces 89,000 pounds of waste per second. Much of that untreated waste ends up polluting our land and waterways. 

There's no time to delay switching to a healthy, vegan diet. Check out PETA's vegetarian/vegan starter kit, and share it with friends and family. On behalf of everyone who's become rather fond of Earth's inhabitable qualities, thank you.

Written by Heather Faraid Drennan

This might make you blue, but red and white meat isn't green.

That's just as true halfway around the Earth as it is here. That's why these members of PETA Asia-Pacific went earthy from head to toe: to ask the folks in that part of the world to dump their Earth-wrecking addictions to meat.

A leading contributor to climate change is the emission of greenhouse gasses such as carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide. Raising animals for food is one of the largest sources of carbon-dioxide emissions and the single largest source of both methane and nitrous-oxide emissions. We now use 30 percent of the Earth's land to raise animals for food. And the excrement-riddled runoff from factory farms pollutes our waterways more than all other industrial sources combined.  

Now it's your turn. You know what I'm about to say: Go blue, go green, go vegan!

Written by Michelle Sherrow

A PETA member found a fun way for her little car to send a big message in the Big Apple.

New York resident Emily McCoy wants NYC to go v-e-g to save animals and the planet. Switching to a vegan diet is easier than navigating bridge-and-tunnel traffic and more effective in preventing climate change than switching to a hybrid car. So we can have our vegan cake and our classic cars too.

Written by Michelle Sherrow

PETA is helping mass-transit passengers go even greener. When Norfolk, Virginia's new light-rail train made its maiden voyage past our headquarters, the Lettuce Ladies were on hand—and on the balcony—to make the inaugural run memorable.

With their cabbage couture and "Climeat Change" sign, the ladies showed passengers (and enthusiastic construction workers) that dumping meat, the number one cause of climate change, does even more good for the planet than taking public transportation. Riders were waving, snapping pictures, and giving thumbs-up signs—and, we hope, they were keener to be greener at their next meal as well.

It is easy being green—we'll help get you started with a free vegetarian/vegan starter kit.

Written by Michelle Sherrow

We know that there are two certainties in life: death and taxes. What if you could cheat both? In an opinion piece he wrote for The Huffington Post, PETA Vice President Bruce Friedrich proposes that we can do just that by imposing a "sin tax" on meat and dairy products, much like the ones currently levied on products that harm our health and the environment, like cigarettes, alcohol, and gasoline.
 

Cows mired in mud and feces at a Pennsylvania dairy farm investigated by PETA that supplies Land O’Lakes

 
It makes sense, considering that raising animals for food is the number one cause of climate change and that eating meat increases people's chances of heart disease, cancer, strokes, and obesity. Vegetarians and vegans also live an average of six to 10 years longer than meat-eaters do. So not only might you cheat death for nearly a decade by ditching meat, you might also get out of paying taxes on it. Now maybe the only "certainty" is that it's time to order a free vegetarian/vegan starter kit.

Read Bruce's complete column here.
 
 

Written by Michelle Sherrow

Potty-training factory-farmed animals in an effort to curb pollution? That's what Taiwan's Environmental Protection Administration is proposing. Last week, the government agency said that it wants to train free-range pigs to urinate and defecate in certain areas in order to prevent them from relieving themselves in (and thereby polluting) rivers and streams.

The problem is, the tremendous amount of waste produced by the 6 million pigs raised and killed annually in Taiwan still must be disposed of somehow. And this measure doesn't even begin to address pigs' carbon emissions. According to the United Nations, raising animals for food is a leading contributor to climate change. 
 

Joost J Bakker IJmuiden/cc by 2.0

Maybe the Taiwanese government should take the lead globally and say, "Enough is enough." The best way to curb waste and pollution and slow climate change is to say bye-bye to factory farms. 

Written by Joseph Mayton