The Meatless Monday Sri Lanka team took part in the Youth4Youth Southern Symposium that was held from the 3rd to 6th May at Embilipitiya. The Symposium brought together more than 100 youth participants from the Southern Province who are active members in the community.
Ms. Buddhika Ranadheera, Deputy Director (Programmes) of SLYCAN Trust and a member of Meatless Monday Sri Lanka team conducted a session during the Symposium on why adopting sustainable lifestyles is important to mitigate climate change and protect the environment. The audience was introduced to the Meatless Monday Campaign which focuses on creating awareness on the impacts of meat consumption on the planet.
Ms. Buddhika noted that, “the animal agriculture industry is one of the main global emitters of GHG emissions, representing 14.5 percent of human-induced Green-House Gas emissions and in Sri Lanka, chicken meat dominates the meat industry as it covers 70 percent of the market demand. If we are environment and climate-conscious individuals, it is important to cut down on our meat consumption and shift to healthier and sustainable food choices.”
At first most of the audience was amazed to hear of the link between the livestock industry and climate change impacts but soon they were determined to do their part individually and change their dietary patterns shifting to more sustainable food choices.Knowledge and promotional material regarding the Meatless Monday campaign and its objectives were also distributed among the youth participants with guidance on how they could be shared as tools in the adoption of their community projects on sustainable lifestyles.