III.Noble Education Teaches the Healthy Green Lifestyle
Our house is on fire. Our planet is in peril. You [the educators] have to inform them. You have to take immediate action. Tell them what to do. Lead them into a better life. They look upon you, they will be grateful.
Inform the Children
We must tell them. We must be direct and tell them honestly about what’s happening to our planet in regards to global warming and let them know all the methods to prepare for it so we can reduce global warming and possibly halt it altogether.
Children’s hearts are very innocent and pure; they can easily accept the guidance from the elders. Therefore, we must carefully explain to them about what is good for the planet.
After the explanation, they will understand right away and will take immediate action on what you would like them to do. It’s because children have respect for the elders. But we must be a role model first.
Vegan children enjoy a happy meal of fruits, vegetables and vegan apple pie.
We are the elders; we must make an example of ourselves first, and then we can educate them because children learn from examples; they learn from shining examples more than from talking. Therefore, as adults we must be a shining example; we must do our best.
We do what is good for the planet so that the children can inherit a beautiful legacy that we leave for them. We must do whatever is necessary even if that is a huge sacrifice; but actually, we don’t really need to sacrifice anything. We just need to put down that piece of meat and replace it with a piece of tofu.
Mobilize the Younger Generation
It seems that teenagers are more interested in fashion and other things rather than the urgent situation right now. But they are also often the most open-minded people. They are intelligent; they are easy; they are an impressionable and honest group of people. Once they make a connection of global warming to their lives, they may really decide to do something. You will be surprised, especially if they understand what they do can truly make a difference, they may be the first ones to take action. They just need a good leader like you.
Two very recent studies found young persons to be the ones most likely to volunteer and give of themselves.139 This is just saying that the young persons of this age have a lot of energy and can be some of the most caring people.
So you can encourage them by helping them find active ways to show their care and love. You can also help them see how urgent global warming really is. Show them the human side of global warming, the true stories of people and animals who suffer because of this, for example, the families in island nations who have to move or plan to move, because they see the water coming to submerge their houses—or, in some cases, already did—due to the rising sea level.
Or, the inhumane treatment of animals in slaughterhouse or in cosmetic experiments—there are many films about this. We have shown them every Tuesday on the show on Supreme Master Television called “Stop Animal Cruelty.” This is unimaginable cruelty. This is beyond human, moral standards. It is below our dignity to treat animals this way. So, if you show them some of this truth about how animals suffer for humans’ palate, you will awaken in the students their compassionate nature, and they will decide to do something about it.
Or, you can show also how the migrating birds have to fly farther and farther to find a place to nest, and the polar bears swim longer and longer now because there is no more ice until sometimes they drown of exhaustion, or why the neighboring country has so many floods in recent years, so many disasters, etc., etc.
Tell them how climate change is affecting real lives, real animals, real people and their own lives as well. Then, the young ones will realize that halting climate change comes before all else, everything that is important to them in this world, even before job, before money, and even before having fun, because without a stable climate and a living planet, no one would be able to enjoy the things that we want to enjoy or get to do the things that we want to do.
But it’s also important to show the young people that there is still hope; we can still save the planet. You can tell them this: It’s a chance that they can be true heroes, by being vegan and spread the news of this solution. They can save lives, including their own, and also of people all over the world and countless animal lives around the world.
If you explain all the benefits of being vegan—for personal, for the animals, for the hungry people, for the starving children—they will love it and they will be so excited because they know they can really make a difference.
The young people are oftentimes the most ready to change their lifestyle if they see a reason for it. Their age group is also, in many cases, the first one to see that vegetarianism is good, is correct. So, I think if we explain to them logically how it is the most important action to solve global warming, they will be motivated. They will support you. They will be behind you. They will do it.
Help to Initiate Vegan School Lunches
There are many studies now that show the benefits of a healthy school lunch and snacks program. Children are even known to concentrate better when they are eating more fresh fruits and vegetables.
The Americans’ First Lady now always introduces fresh fruits and vegetables to the children of America. And if we help the school to understand these benefits, they may also adopt them more widely themselves. Nowadays, many schools and parents even plant vegetables in the school or in the home gardens with the children, and the children love these activities as well, as they’re eating more vegetables—which they grew themselves!
We can also tell our children that by being vegan, they are directly helping to heal and save our planet, helping the parents, and helping themselves and all the lives in this world. Children are very loving at heart. So, if they know that by being vegan they can save many lives, they would be very, very willing to do it. We want to be able to leave a world for the children, a world of green and lush beauty, a world of humans and animals peacefully coexisting together. They will love to help to make this happen.
