1
00:00:06,049 --> 00:00:09,498
I'm confident that the Earth
revolves around the Sun

2
00:00:09,498 --> 00:00:11,058
and not the other way around.

3
00:00:12,039 --> 00:00:15,769
Who else in this room thinks the same way?
Let's show a raise of hands.

4
00:00:16,500 --> 00:00:18,940
OK, that's pretty much all of you.

5
00:00:19,929 --> 00:00:21,609
I am equally confident

6
00:00:21,609 --> 00:00:24,959
that keeping the human diet
practically void of animals

7
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is the right thing to do.

8
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It was not always so, though.

9
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Just as there was a time

10
00:00:31,238 --> 00:00:34,832
when people tried to undermine
the Sun-centered view of the solar system,

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there was a time when I
didn't quite like vegetarians.

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At best, I thought
vegetarians were tolerable,

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and at worst, they were
just plain annoying.

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And it is strange that this
was my impression of vegetarians

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since until recently,

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I have only known one person 
who was a vegetarian,

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one person who decided not to eat animals.

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And she was fun and not annoying at all.

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So I wondered why she was a vegetarian,

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and it turned out that in the country
where she is from,

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animals raised for food have to endure
horrid conditions and suffering.

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So, I kind of understood
why she was a vegetarian,

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but it felt strangely comforting

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that I did not have to resort
to any such measures

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since where I come from,
animals are treated nicely.

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Also, I had heard one time on the radio

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that domesticated animals
could not survive without us,

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just as we could not survive without them.

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From that perspective,

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the human-animal relationship
was a win-win situation.

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However, since about five years ago,

32
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I have reduced my amount
of animal intake to such an extent

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that today, it is practically zero.

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Now, why would I do that?

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Well, inspection shows that, frequently,

36
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animals raised for food have to endure 
horrid conditions and suffering,

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not just in my friends country,
but in every country across the globe.

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And there is more.

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Raising animals for food
is destructive to the environment,

40
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and the leading cause of human death

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are diseases which are associated
with a poor diet, rich in animal products.

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So the human-animal relationship
is not a win-win situation,

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it is a lose-lose-lose situation.

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We are losing,

45
00:02:31,383 --> 00:02:32,834
the animals are losing,

46
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and the environment is losing.

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These are the three pillars
advocating the shift

48
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from an animal-based diet
towards a plant-based diet.

49
00:02:43,583 --> 00:02:45,633
The first pillar: human health.

50
00:02:46,839 --> 00:02:49,229
Current research strongly suggests

51
00:02:49,229 --> 00:02:52,229
that if humans would shift 
towards a plant-based diet,

52
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they would live longer,

53
00:02:53,854 --> 00:02:56,944
and healthcare systems
across the globe could be streamlined.

54
00:02:57,660 --> 00:03:02,870
This is related to reduction in deadly,
difficult and expensive diseases,

55
00:03:03,178 --> 00:03:07,178
such as heart disease, diabetes
and certain forms of cancer.

56
00:03:08,611 --> 00:03:12,071
Given the likelihood of a better health 
on a plant-based diet,

57
00:03:12,261 --> 00:03:16,471
it is an option that people should be
encouraged to exercise more often.

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Compared to eating animals,

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eating plants is not only
more likely to be more healthy,

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it also has a much stronger
ethical standpoint.

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Which brings us to
the center pillar: the animals.

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The vast majority 
of animals raised for food

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reside on factory farms.

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And every single year,
we kill over 60 billion land animals.

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Out of these 60 billion
land animals, 1.3 billion are pigs.

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So, to sustain the demand
for pig-eating humans,

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these killings need to be maintained.

68
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And to maintain these killings,

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the first line of business
is to make sure that the pigs

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are giving birth to all the piglets
that we kill every year.

71
00:04:03,176 --> 00:04:06,658
So, through the centuries, 
female pigs, or sows,

72
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have been bred and selected

73
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to be able to give birth
to as many offspring possible.

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And today, each sow gives birth
to 10-12 piglets, two times a year.

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00:04:19,021 --> 00:04:22,351
The days prior to giving birth
and during lactation,

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the sow is kept in a metal enclosure,
called a gestation crate.

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While in the gestation crate,
the sow cannot move about,

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not even turn around,

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let alone make any meaningful
contact with her piglets.

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Soon after birth, the testicles
of male piglets are removed,

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00:04:42,186 --> 00:04:46,186
allegedly to make their meat
smell better when it is cooked.

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And to avoid biting and being bitten,

83
00:04:49,725 --> 00:04:54,035
some piglets have their tail
and selected teeth removed as well.

84
00:04:54,845 --> 00:04:58,255
With certainty, regardless
of the conditions until then,

85
00:04:58,504 --> 00:05:00,674
when the piglets are
around three weeks old,

86
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they are removed from the presence
of their mother, forever.

87
00:05:04,852 --> 00:05:08,852
During the rest of their short lives,
they are kept in crowded places

88
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to be fed and to grow
with thousands of their kin

89
00:05:12,879 --> 00:05:15,799
who are all destined
for the same senseless fate.

90
00:05:17,534 --> 00:05:22,074
Meanwhile, their mother is being prepared 
for her next pregnancy session.

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To keep the sows constantly pregnant,

92
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they are impregnated through artificial 
insemination, performed by humans.

93
00:05:30,231 --> 00:05:34,231
The pig semen is also collected
by human professional masturbators.

94
00:05:35,696 --> 00:05:40,006
You can lookup "Pig semen collection,"
on YouTube, if you are interested.

95
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So, even though pigs give birth 
to offspring all the time,

96
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they never have sex.

97
00:05:48,870 --> 00:05:53,020
And I guess most of us appreciate
that pigs are sentient beings,

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that can feel pleasure and pain,
often in similar ways that we humans do.

99
00:05:57,525 --> 00:06:00,958
Thus it seems inconsistent
that losing an offspring,

100
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which is arguably the most painful
experience that humans have to endure,

101
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is an experience that we carelessly
inflict upon pigs, all the time.

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00:06:11,733 --> 00:06:16,473
Most pigs never breathe fresh air
or walk under the bare blue sky,

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00:06:16,905 --> 00:06:19,456
and the only time they
might see a glimpse of the sun

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is when they are in a back of a truck
being transported for slaughter.

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What I have said here about pigs
can without much difficulty

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be adapted to fit the lives
of other domesticated animals,

107
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such as chicken or cows.

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The third pillar: the environment.

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The staggering amount
of animals we raise for food

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is having some dire consequences 
for the environment.

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Consequences that were perhaps 
unforeseen at the time,

112
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but have become so blatantly
obvious at the present.

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To put things in context, let's go
twelve thousand years back in time.

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Twelve thousand years ago,
there were no domesticated animals,

115
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and the combined weight 
of all large land animals

116
00:07:06,893 --> 00:07:11,803
was around 300 million tons,
out of which humans represented 1%.

117
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Today, the total combined weight
of all large land animals

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is almost 1500 million tons,

119
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five times the amount
it was twelve thousand years ago.

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Out of these 1500 million tons,
more than 1100 are domesticated animals.

121
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More than 300 are humans,

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and wild animals represent
only around 30 million tons.

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So, we used to be 1% out of 300 million,

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but today, along with our domesticated 
animals, we are 98% out of 1500 million.

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That is a huge difference
in a very short time.

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So, with this picture in mind,
three things emerge.

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Number one: our domesticated
animals eat a lot of food.

128
00:08:02,376 --> 00:08:07,036
How come we are able to feed
1100 million tons of animals,

129
00:08:07,402 --> 00:08:13,682
but we cannot prevent 10 million people 
from dying from malnutrition every year?

130
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How come there are more people
who die from eating too much,

131
00:08:18,249 --> 00:08:21,739
then there are people
who die from eating too little?

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00:08:22,860 --> 00:08:27,600
Number two: Our domesticated
animals take up a lot of space.

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00:08:28,765 --> 00:08:32,649
To make space for our animals
and the food we grow for them,

134
00:08:32,649 --> 00:08:34,609
we cut down rain forest.

135
00:08:34,609 --> 00:08:36,472
And when we cut down rain forest,

136
00:08:36,472 --> 00:08:41,472
we are not only destroying the planet's
defenses against carbon dioxide,

137
00:08:41,472 --> 00:08:46,242
but we are also destroying the habitats
of wild species and driving them extinct.

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00:08:47,196 --> 00:08:51,836
The main driver for species extinction
is rain forest destruction,

139
00:08:52,389 --> 00:08:56,699
and the main driver for rain forest 
destruction is animal agriculture -

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00:08:57,429 --> 00:08:59,579
mainly, cattle production.

141
00:09:01,363 --> 00:09:06,383
Number three: Our domesticated
animals release a lot of waste.

142
00:09:07,111 --> 00:09:11,001
All of these animals
shit, piss, fart, and burp.

143
00:09:11,962 --> 00:09:14,307
And while all is bad for the environment,

144
00:09:14,307 --> 00:09:18,097
it is the burp that is having
the most damaging effect.

145
00:09:18,685 --> 00:09:22,035
When ruminant animals,
like cattle and sheep, burp,

146
00:09:22,274 --> 00:09:26,274
they release methane,
and apparently, they burp a lot.

147
00:09:26,945 --> 00:09:29,185
And methane is a greenhouse gas

148
00:09:29,185 --> 00:09:31,625
that is much more potent
at heating the atmosphere

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than even carbon dioxide.

150
00:09:35,349 --> 00:09:37,610
Mainly because of ruminant animals,

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00:09:37,610 --> 00:09:43,061
the global release of greenhouse gases
from animal agriculture is so enormous

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that it is greater than from the whole
transportation sector combined.

153
00:09:50,302 --> 00:09:54,452
Now, reflecting upon these pillars
may leave some of you with the idea

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that there is something wrong 
with the human species.

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That of all the species,
it is the absolute worst.

156
00:10:03,066 --> 00:10:07,066
And given the terms we set
for the survival of billions animals,

157
00:10:07,251 --> 00:10:10,211
it is not that hard
to lose faith in humanity.

158
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And it is not just how we treat
non-human animals

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that can deter us from a glimpse of hope.

160
00:10:17,555 --> 00:10:22,785
We are also dealing with wars, 
refugee crises, climate change,

161
00:10:23,546 --> 00:10:30,056
terrorists, nuclear threat, world hunger,
and various forms of discrimination.

162
00:10:31,187 --> 00:10:32,467
There are parts on earth

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00:10:32,467 --> 00:10:36,447
where women have little or no control
over their lives or their bodies,

164
00:10:37,057 --> 00:10:39,887
and there are parts on earth
where people are being prosecuted

165
00:10:39,887 --> 00:10:42,717
because they do not love
or have sex in an orthodox way,

166
00:10:44,285 --> 00:10:46,228
and every single year,

167
00:10:46,228 --> 00:10:49,498
six million children die
before they reach the age of five.

168
00:10:51,018 --> 00:10:54,938
So, with this grim picture in mind,
it seems reasonable to ask:

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00:10:55,890 --> 00:10:59,480
Will the human species ever make an effort

170
00:10:59,480 --> 00:11:03,520
to change from an animal-based diet
towards a plant-based diet?

171
00:11:04,178 --> 00:11:07,698
Do we even have what it takes
to make such a shift?

172
00:11:09,295 --> 00:11:12,285
Well, I believe the answer 
is a resounding "yes,"

173
00:11:12,285 --> 00:11:13,585
and let me tell you why.

174
00:11:14,915 --> 00:11:17,265
It is mainly because of two things.

175
00:11:18,035 --> 00:11:20,375
First, despite all our faults,

176
00:11:21,507 --> 00:11:24,347
human beings have 
a great capacity for compassion,

177
00:11:25,250 --> 00:11:29,480
and our compassion has been increasing,
and it continues to increase.

178
00:11:30,458 --> 00:11:34,638
Also, we have made some meaningful impact
in the defense of animals.

179
00:11:36,173 --> 00:11:41,923
So, many of the bad things humans do
is blown out of proportion.

180
00:11:42,511 --> 00:11:44,361
Human history clearly shows

181
00:11:44,361 --> 00:11:47,821
that we are much more peaceful
and less violent than we used to be.

182
00:11:48,631 --> 00:11:50,097
There used to be a time

183
00:11:50,097 --> 00:11:54,587
when encounters between two human tribes
burst out in violent conflict.

184
00:11:55,437 --> 00:11:57,587
We have come a long way since.

185
00:11:57,873 --> 00:12:03,183
Today, we are over 7 billion human beings
living in relative harmony.

186
00:12:04,427 --> 00:12:07,397
Never before has there been so few wars,

187
00:12:07,906 --> 00:12:09,294
and despite the media hype,

188
00:12:09,294 --> 00:12:12,544
the terrorist threat
is relatively minuscule.

189
00:12:13,274 --> 00:12:17,041
Torture used to be at display
for people's entertainment,

190
00:12:17,041 --> 00:12:20,400
the death penalty has been 
abolished in many countries,

191
00:12:20,400 --> 00:12:22,488
slavery has been outlawed,

192
00:12:22,488 --> 00:12:24,495
and slowly but surely, since then,

193
00:12:24,495 --> 00:12:28,825
discrimination based on race
is no longer considered defensible.

194
00:12:30,240 --> 00:12:32,284
The rights and empowerment of women

195
00:12:32,284 --> 00:12:37,294
has seen a very positive and dramatic
effect over the last century or two.

196
00:12:38,084 --> 00:12:40,674
And the rights of
homosexuals is improving,

197
00:12:40,928 --> 00:12:46,448
notably, homosexuality was decriminalised 
in the United Kingdom, only in 1982.

198
00:12:48,305 --> 00:12:50,932
A further testament
to our altruistic behaviour

199
00:12:50,932 --> 00:12:56,752
can be seen in how we donate money to
help people who live in extreme poverty -

200
00:12:57,220 --> 00:13:00,780
people we do not know and will never know.

201
00:13:01,060 --> 00:13:05,060
Such altruistic behaviour
seems impossible in other species.

202
00:13:06,433 --> 00:13:07,517
And while it is true

203
00:13:07,517 --> 00:13:11,277
that six million children die, every year,
before they reach the age of five,

204
00:13:11,733 --> 00:13:15,423
it was only 30 years ago
when this number was 12 million.

205
00:13:19,182 --> 00:13:23,062
Improvement in other
poverty-related areas is evident as well.

206
00:13:24,129 --> 00:13:26,341
So, it seems irrefutable

207
00:13:26,341 --> 00:13:30,411
that human beings have
a great capacity for compassion

208
00:13:30,411 --> 00:13:32,851
and that our compassion is increasing.

209
00:13:33,317 --> 00:13:35,917
And that gives us
a good reason to be optimistic

210
00:13:35,921 --> 00:13:38,111
that we can make the shift

211
00:13:38,111 --> 00:13:41,751
from an animal-based diet
towards a plant-based diet.

212
00:13:43,061 --> 00:13:46,841
Also we have made some meaningful
impact in the defense of animals.

213
00:13:47,279 --> 00:13:50,339
Many countries now have laws
that govern animals

214
00:13:50,989 --> 00:13:52,329
where there used to be none.

215
00:13:53,253 --> 00:13:54,923
Using these laws,

216
00:13:54,923 --> 00:13:57,283
conditions for animals have improved,

217
00:13:57,693 --> 00:14:00,473
perhaps most notably
in the European Union.

218
00:14:00,685 --> 00:14:06,355
But also, big American food companies have
improved the conditions for their animals,

219
00:14:06,717 --> 00:14:09,237
not because they were told
to do so by the government,

220
00:14:09,237 --> 00:14:12,637
but rather due to popular demand
from their consumers.

221
00:14:14,327 --> 00:14:16,839
Arguably, these efforts are not enough,

222
00:14:16,839 --> 00:14:19,668
but they do show that
when it comes to animal suffering,


223
00:14:19,668 --> 00:14:22,958
that people are aware
and that they do care.

224
00:14:24,038 --> 00:14:27,426
Another impact in the defense
of animals is the fact

225
00:14:27,426 --> 00:14:31,588
that more and more people
are deciding, for whatever reason,

226
00:14:31,588 --> 00:14:34,558
to forgo animal products 
in their daily lives.

227
00:14:36,296 --> 00:14:39,326
With an increase in demand
for [plant] based products,

228
00:14:39,758 --> 00:14:42,608
restaurants, supermarkets, entrepreneurs

229
00:14:42,608 --> 00:14:45,715
are responding with an increase
in supply and variety,

230
00:14:46,159 --> 00:14:48,005
which in turn makes it even easier

231
00:14:48,005 --> 00:14:51,325
for people to accept and choose
a plant-based option.

232
00:14:54,607 --> 00:14:59,337
Despite these positive things,
the fact remains that factory farming

233
00:14:59,337 --> 00:15:02,233
is one of the greatest problems
facing the human race,

234
00:15:02,722 --> 00:15:04,276
a problem of such proportions

235
00:15:04,276 --> 00:15:07,426
that it affects the entire
biosphere of the planet.

236
00:15:07,996 --> 00:15:12,506
That is why it is genuinely important
that as many people as possible

237
00:15:12,506 --> 00:15:16,506
participate in the shift 
towards a plant-based diet.

238
00:15:17,286 --> 00:15:19,866
If you take a look at the atrocities

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that we have successfully
and often proudly

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eradicated from our civilized societies,

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such as torture, slavery,
death penalty, and discrimination,

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and then look at what is happening
with the animals we eat,

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it does not take too much effort
of our imagination to appreciate

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that it is with the animals we eat

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where torture takes place,
where slavery prevails -

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at it's very essence,
it is discrimination.

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Fellow human beings, it is high time

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that we embrace non-human animals
within our expanding moral circle.

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It will bring unprecedented benefits
to humans and other animals alike,

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for generations to come.

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(Applause)