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Word Forest is thrilled to launch a new food-based fundraising initiative enabling our amazing supporters to mitigate the climate emergency in a convivial way.
Our charity co-founders, Tracey and Simon West, trialled the concept of a Word Forest Bring & Share Vegan Lunch at two local venues in recent months. They were financially successful, very enjoyable and by word of mouth, they grew in size. They’re now a firm part of our fundraising event calendar in East Devon. As they’re so easy to organise and so much fun to run, we’ve decided to roll them out as a national campaign.
As you know, our planet is in the grip of a climate crisis. Devastating extreme weather events across the globe are on the increase, as is sea level rise. The general consensus in the scientific community is that many of the world’s commercial food production systems are partially responsible.
According to a report published by The Guardian, eating a plant-based diet massively reduces the damage to the environment caused by food production. Research shows that vegan diets result in 75% less climate-heating emissions, water pollution and land use than diets in which more than 100g of meat a day is eaten. Vegan diets also cut the destruction of wildlife by 66% and water use by 54%.
Simon explains: “Seasonal, locally grown fruits and vegetables have the lowest water and carbon footprints, and food miles too. What better way to mitigate our climate emergency than by bringing people together to enjoy planet-friendly, plant-based food and to engage in inspirational eco-conversations?” He concludes: “We’re paying attention to the science and doing all we can to encourage others to look at it too”.
Attendees to the lunch are invited to bring along a plant-based dish of something delicious with a portion or two spare so others can enjoy it as well. They are also asked to write out the ingredients list to aid anyone with food allergies or preferences. Entry is suggested at £2.50 per person (the cost to plant a tree in Kenya) and any additional funds made over the cost of hiring a venue are used to reforest Kenya. We also offer local vegan vendors an opportunity to sell their wares by hiring a table for just £5.
From today, we’re inviting you to consider becoming a Word Forest Bring & Share Vegan Lunch host! To make the process easy we’ve created an online step-by-step guidebook to help you put on an event in your community. We hope the lunches also go some way to relieving any eco-anxiety by empowering attendees to feel they are an integral part of the solution to the climate emergency.
The Wests have been plant-based for 8 years, having gathered sufficient evidence on the many benefits of a vegan lifestyle to the Earth, to animals and to human health. Many members of our Board, Core Team and volunteers also embrace plant-based options.
Tracey concludes: “There are worrying meteorological times ahead. These lunches are a simple and effective way to help us fight global heating and extreme weather events. All you need is a venue, a few friends, a bit of organisation and the rest is a piece of (vegan) cake!”
To find out how to host a Word Forest Bring & Share Vegan Lunch, visit WordForest.org/lunch
Tracey West and The Team
