By Annie Ferris
When I was 16, my best friend convinced me to go vegan with her for one week. Little did I know at the time, that one week would turn into nearly 3 years. Now, I’m not here trying to make any claims that veganism is the healthiest diet on the planet, or that eating meat is morally wrong, but to share the unexpected impact that being vegan has had on my life. As I said, I never expected to stay vegan for as long as I have. I went into it with the peer pressure from my friend and the idea that it could be interesting to try, but that it was likely not for me. What I found was that shifting a single part of my life to be focused on the better of others, rather than myself, changed my outlook on many other parts of my life.
Going vegan made me fully examine the impact of my previous diet on both the environment, and my personal health. In researching the environmental impact of a vegan diet versus a non-vegan diet, it really changed my attitude about the impact of my individual actions. While many, myself included, subscribe to the idea that individual actions do not often make nearly as significant of an impact as large corporations (who are usually causing the problem) would like you to believe, I no longer hold that my actions have no impact. Whether we like it or not, every choice we make, every meal we eat, and every store we shop at, has some sort of impact, environmentally, economically, or socially. This has become particularly apparent in the past few months, as individual’s choices to travel, or even leave the house, has caused medical emergencies in communities, states, and entire countries. As unfortunate and devastating as the situation surrounding COVID-19 has become, it is an extremely interesting example of the butterfly effect concerning human actions. So often, we never see the impact of our actions, which is a good thing for our consciences, but not so great for inciting necessary change.
Thinking about the butterfly effect can feel overwhelming, and for me has often led to apathy, thinking that whatever I do, there will be a negative impact somewhere. However, recognizing that there are things you can do that can have a positive impact on something or someone somewhere has allowed me to be more sympathetic to the situation. While my actions in themselves will not end animal cruelty or solve climate change, I can try my best, and hope that others do the same.