Sustainable Travel And Living: If You Love To Travel, You Should Go Vegan

Picture this: your heart is beating harder than it ever has before. A bead of sweat runs down your temple, and your body is shouting out to you that it is time to rest. Your lungs are filled with crisp, clean air. You feel like you’re on top of the world, because well, you literally are. You’ve just hiked to the peak of a daunting mountain or grassy hill, and you can now bask in the reward of looking out over the landscape that you’ve earned through sweat, (hopefully not) blood, and (maybe) tears.

Sound familiar? As travelers, we experience the world in a unique way, but also share some key moments that keep us addicted to travel and wanting more. Reaching the top of a summit that you’ve set out to experience is just one example. But there are so many reasons to love travel and how it shapes your life.

Now imagine this: You’ve made it to the summit, and your aching body rejoices. A break, at last. You sit down on the ground and take it all it, slowing down your breath and letting your eyes wander across the breathtaking forest, lake, or mountains in front of you. But then you see it. You stop. Before you is a clear sign of human waging war against nature: black smoke rising in the air, tree stumps lining the should-be forest floor where lushness was once present, and a lack of wild animals roaming the area because they’ve been violently displaced from their homes.

While many people assume that the number one driver of this destruction due to the energy that we use, they’re wrong. The real cause of so much destruction of the natural world is actually animal agriculture, as we will explore throughout this article. For this reason and many others, the connection is clear: veganism and travel go hand in hand.

What Is ‘Veganism’?

To begin, let’s clear up the confusion and talk about what veganism really is. Many people wrongly assume that veganism is a diet, but it is actually a social justice movement that compels you to change your diet. People who practice veganism don’t eat the flesh of nonhuman animals, or consume anything stolen from nonhuman individuals; they don’t consume animal-based dairy products or eggs. They don’t wear leather, wool, or fur. They avoid products tested on animals.

Many Talk The Talk, But Very Few Walk The Walk When It Comes To Protecting Animals

To sum it up, they’re actually enacting the values that (theoretically) everyone has in the USA, as we are a self-proclaimed nation of “animal lovers”. This includes the practice of honoring the bodily autonomy of others’, supporting their right to live freely, and also peruse one’s own agency. They also may be looking to protect the environment, uphold worker’s rights, or improve human health and wellbeing. There are endless reasons to live vegan, and many people often choose to practice veganism for multiple ones.

Now, let’s move on to what we’re really here to talk about: veganism and traveling; more specifically, why it doesn’t make sense to travel and consume animal bodies and their secretions.

Why We Travel In The First Place

Before we get into the numbers, arguments, and statistics, let’s do a little brainstorming as to why people travel. I’ve conjured up the top 4 reasons that I’ve been inspired to travel, and taken into consideration the feedback that I have gotten from others on the road.

The Top Four Reasons for Travel:

1. To have fun, disconnect from the ‘daily grind’ through new adventures, and enjoy life.

2. To enjoy the ‘great outdoors’, connect with nature, and be close to wildlife.

3. To learn more about/connect with other cultures.

4. To learn more about one’s self and become a better human being.

Now, I’d like to show you how if you’re traveling while consuming animal flesh and anything else stolen from these individuals, you may not be contributing to a future on Earth where others will be able to do the same. There are so many reasons why travelers should be living vegan, but let’s dive into just a few.

1. We Travel to Have Fun

Maybe we travel to enjoy ourselves, relax, seek adventure, or let go. We go to new places to experience life fully and soak up all the bliss that we can find. But should our experience of “fun” be harmful to others? Fun may include all different types of activities, and for most of us that includes eating. Yes, it’s possible to enjoy yourself while consuming meat, dairy, and eggs. I can even admit that some of these products are super tasty (I wasn’t born a vegetarian or even vegan, I evolved as time went on). But it’s not fun for everyone involved, and I believe that how we choose to have fun shouldn’t harm others or strip them of their autonomy.

I believe that how we choose to have fun shouldn’t harm others or strip them of their autonomy.

– Calen Otto

When I really sit with it, I realize that my true idea enjoyment doesn’t include enjoying temporary satisfaction while others suffer greatly because of my choices, and I would bet that in your heart of hearts you may feel the same. When I am fully educated about the harm that I am causing and perpetuating, I cannot have fun while understanding that I am literally physically, mentally, and emotionally abusing others. The good news is that there are endless ways to have fun that don’t stop others from enjoying their existence as well!

Why Eating Animals Isn’t Fun For The Victims Of Animal Agriculture

Eating animals is harmful to the planet, our bodies, and society as a general collective, but the animals themselves suffer the most. For starters, animal agriculture is based on violently turning a sentient being into a product, and is only made possible through reproductive servitude. The monster power-house of animal agriculture always begins the process of animal exploitation by forcing sentient beings to be born, with the pre-designed notation that they will merely exist for human consumption and capitalism. From the beginning they are not showing the same respect that one would show domesticated companion animals such as dogs or cats, and are stripped of the personhood and basic rights.

The Meat Industry

I won’t dive into all of the disturbing processes of the meat industry, because that would be pages and pages of explanation. But I will leave you with a few simple facts about the meat industry that the common person may overlook, ask you to address your most common justifications for eating animals, and urge you to learn more about what happens in the meat industry to animals and on factory farms:

The Dairy Industry

The dairy industry disturbs be deeply. Let’s get one thing straight: cows do not make milk because it is in their nature, or that they are milk machines. They make milk because they are mothers; on dairy farms cows are forcibly impregnated year after year.

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Sometimes by human hand and bull semen through Artificial Insemination (let’s not act like this is not disgusting, disturbing and incredibly violating), and sometimes by the females being forced to endure sexual intercourse with males – forcing heterosexuality and nonconsensual sexual acts onto another species. 

There’s Nothing Fun About Animal Agriculture, And There’s A Better Way

And it doesn’t stop there. We’ve not even began to cover sealife consumption, or debunk the myth of “humane” slaughter and animal farming. As I’ve demonstrated, while eating animals is a large part of how we enjoy ourselves and have fun while we travel, it does more harm than good. But just because you decide to not eat animal bodies or their secretions doesn’t mean that you can’t enjoy yourself when it comes to eating and dining experiences while you travel.

Trust me, I’m living proof of that! I’ve been vegan for about eight years now and I’ve visited 5 continents, over 20 countries, 34 states, and 20 national parks during that time. Two of these trips at the beginning of my travel life were extremely challenging, putting my vegan food finding skills to the test. The first trip was to South America; more specifically, to Chile for a year. The second was when I went across the United States, on a bicycle, with almost no money at 19 years old. I ate well as a vegan, easily, on both trips. Finding plant-based food wasn’t hard… seeing all of the nonhuman animal suffering across the globe was.

But Don’t We Need To Eat Animals And Their Secretions To Survive?

No, we don’t. Please refer to my vegan guide to answer commonly asked questions about plant-based diets and health. You can also check out Catching Up With Science: Burying the “Humans Need Meat” Argument, Bio-Individuality & The Myth That Some People ‘Just Need Meat’, Animals Eat Other Animals, So Why Shouldn’t We?, and 9 Reasons Your Canine Teeth Don’t Make You a Meat-Eater. You can explore the health section of my post about the dairy industry.

 2. We Travel to Experience the ‘Great Outdoors’, Connect With Nature, And Be Close To Wildlife

PSA: It can be a hard pill to swallow, but if you live in the “modern world” and consume animal flesh, eggs, or dairy products, you’re supporting the quick demise of the the environment and wildlife, as well as fueling the climate crisis.

What’s happening right night is being called the Sixth Great Mass Extinction of Species on Earth by scientists. Science.org says: “Earth’s creatures are on the brink of a sixth mass extinction, comparable to the one that wiped out the dinosaurs. That’s the conclusion of a new study, which calculates that three-quarters of today’s animal species could vanish within 300 years.”

But what does that have to do with chowing down on an animal burger, or opening a carton of dairy-based ice cream? Free From Harm sums it up perfectly when they say: “A result of clearing all this land for cattle, sheep, and other farmed animals is that ‘livestock’ production is now the single greatest driver of habitat loss and destruction globally (Science of the Total Environment, 2015). It is also the leading cause of species extinction, ocean dead zones, and water pollution. Indeed, scientists now agree that a mass extinction of species is rapidly underway; they are calling it the Sixth Great Mass Extinction of Species on Earth, with up to 200 species going extinct every day. And it’s being caused by us.”

Eating Animal Fuels The Climate Crisis, And Hurts Our Planet

In an article titled Meat and Dairy Consumption Are Destroying Earth’s Wildlife, Ashley Capps writes: “Among the most pressing of these is the impact to wildlife ecosystems that results from the disproportionate use of natural resources required to produce animal-based foods: it takes far more land, water, and energy to raise and slaughter some 70 billion land animals annually (and to grow the crops to feed them) than it would take to grow crops to feed 7 billion humans directly.” 

More Stats To Consider:

It’s important to note that “livestock” already takes up nearly 80% of global agricultural land, yet produces less than 20% of the world’s supply of calories. It is clear that farming animals for their flesh and secretions is arguably one of the top cause of greenhouse gas emissions. 

And it doesn’t stop there. For a fuller idea of how eating animals is harming our natural world and the wildlife that calls it home, please read this complete explanation provided by Free From Harm. You can also explore why backyard eggs are harmful here, and debunk the myths that claim that “grass-fed” beef is eco-friendly.

A Plant-Based Future Is Needed To Protect Nature

A plant-based diet needs to be globally adopted, and it needs to be adopted quickly. Research shows that without meat and dairy consumption, global farmland use could be reduced by more than 75%. That would be an area equivalent to the US, China, European Union and Australia combined – and we could still feed the world, in a better way. 

I’m still shocked by the number of “environmentalist” who continue to eat animals and their secretions when science tells them that this cruel habit is one of the biggest threats to our planet. I know that change is work, but it’s worth it. We don’t have to get it perfect, but we can actively try to create progress and strive for betterment in our lives. If we continue with this path of eating the animals that we share this magnificent world with, there will be no “Great Outdoors” left to love.

3. We Travel To Learn More About/Connect With Other Cultures

I often hear people say, “Well, I’m not about to give up any foods when I travel. It doesn’t make sense. I want to experience the culture and how they live.” But when we go to new places we’re often looking for new things because they’re “exotic” to us. They captivate us. They’re so different from what we normally experience, and that’s why they draw us in. But just because something is part of someone’s culture doesn’t mean that it is ethical, or that it is something that you need to take part in as well.

We create the strongest connections while traveling when we show up fully as ourselves, rooted in our own ethics but curious about how others live.

On top of that, the way that we connect fully with others/different cultures is by first being deeply connected to ourselves. The way we connect deeply with ourselves is by finding out what we stand for/value most and acting in alignment. Hence, we create the strongest connections while traveling when we show up fully as ourselves, rooted in our own ethics but curious about how others live.

You Don’t Have To Eat Animals To Experience One’s Culture

I went to countless “asados” (BBQ’s) as a vegan living in South America. Did I have to eat an individual’s flesh to “experience” the culture? No. Did I have to try different dishes that looked “exotic” to me and were “traditional” to them that contained egg, cheese, or cow’s milk just so that I could get the full experience? No. No, no and no.

The way that I engaged with the culture fully was being honest about who I was (and staying true to my commitment to causing the least amount of harm possible), while also getting to know others for who they were. Over time, my host dad came to enjoy testing his skills in the kitchen by veganizing empanadas, traditional soups, and more. While food is deeply embedded in cultural normals/rituals and human connection, it’s not the only way to connect with the people around you.

The way that I engaged with the culture fully was being honest about who I was (and staying true to my commitment to causing the least amount of harm possible), while also getting to know others for who they were.

What other ways can you connect with the people you meet traveling or those hosting you? Maybe it’s song, touch, dance, music or art. It could be by simply by spending quality time together. Or just maybe it’s by veganizing some of your favorite cultured dishes together, and having fun in the kitchen!

4. We Travel to Learn More About Ourselves, And Be Better

How will we ever get to know ourselves better, live more fully, or feel more aligned with our morals without being open to taking in new information and changing accordingly? The truth is that without being open to change, we won’t. Most of us understand that to grow we have to experience some change of heart, turbulence, letting go, or relearning. To be better humans, we have to make changes. So, if you’re out searching for newness and betterment, why are you not exploring veganism? Living vegan is about changing how you view our fellow sentient beings, for the better. It is often unrepresented because it is carelessly thrown labels such as “restrictive” and “difficult”. 

Still, I am aware that the conversation around the ethics of food and consumption in travel is a complex one, one where privileges and marginalized experiences must be acknowledged and contextualized at every step. But so many of the travelers that I meet and who are reading this will have the privilege, capacity, and resources to switch to a fully plant-based diet.

Veganism is about recreating your life to live in a way that’s better for everyone: non-human animals, human workers, the environment, and yourself. Veganism is a life-long journey that you can travel, no matter where you are. I can’t find a better door into self discovery than observing our actions and being honest about if they align with our truths.

Interested In Veganism? I’m Here To Help!

If you’ve made it to the end of this article, I applaud you. This is a big topic to dive into, so take your time with it and bookmark this page to come back to in the future. Although it can seem challenging to make the switch to practicing veganism and eating a plant-based diet, I’ve got you covered with multiple free resources to help you along your journey.

Free Resources To Take Advantage Of To Start Your Vegan Journey

Check out this resource that teaches you how to find plant-based foods no matter where you are in the world, and this guide on how to go vegan and why you should. The latter is filled with free resources from some of my favorite organizations that offer meal plans, cultural considerations and conversations, and more to make the switch more accessible and joyful.

These days there are so many delicious plant-based options options out in the world, and so many resources to help guide your plant-based journey along the way. Here are a few of my favorites that are great to start with: 

• Afro Vegan Society’s African American Vegan Starter Guide
• Afro Vegan Society’s Cooking Demo Library
• Afro Vegan Society’s Dump Dairy Resource Library
• Animal Save Movement’s Self-Care Guide
• Free From Harm’s Dairy-Free Guide
• Switch4Good’s Alternatives to Dairy
• Switch4Good’s Dairy Detox
• Switch4Good’s Dairy Free Recipes

Another important step to transitioning to vegan living is to surround yourself with like-minded folks who have already put in the work and are there to encourage you daily. Here are some of my favorite organizations who do just that:

• Milk Hurts highlights the ways in which dairy hurts animals, the planet, and human health. 
• Mothers Against Dairy shares stories from mothers across the globe on vegan parenting and their journeys to rejecting the dairy industry. 
• Switch4Good fights dietary racism on a systemic level, provides the science that shows how dairy harms human health and athletic performance, and has countless free guides to get you started on your dairy-free journey. 
• Aotearoa Liberation League is a decolonial justice project that focuses on liberation for humans, other animals, and the environment through a decolonial lens.
• Afro Vegan Society is on a mission to make vegan living accessible to everyone. They often share cooking demos, food swap guides, and more. 
• Vine Sanctuary is an LGBTQ-led farmed animal sanctuary that works for social and environmental justice as well as for animal liberation. 
• Animal Rebellion is a mass movement that uses nonviolent direct action and civil disobedience to campaign for animal and climate justice.
• The Animal Save Movement‘s mission is to spread the idea that we all have a moral duty to bear witness, end animal agriculture and reforest the Earth.
• A Well-Fed World is supporting a global shift towards plant-based foods more efficiently uses crops and natural resources to nourish people and cool the climate.
• Free From Harm is dedicated to helping build a nonviolent mass movement of liberation for all species. Their website covers a wide variety of topics about farmed animals and even has a section dedicated to former animal farmers gone vegan.

There Are So Many Reasons For Travelers To Live Vegan, What’s Yours?

I recently had Chris Huriwai, a fellow nature-lover, on my travel podcast and asked him why he perused veganism in the first place. He said, “I made the decision when I was about 13 years old to become a vegetarian. About 10 years after that, after learning about the environmental impact of agriculture – and also just the dominance of the industry in our society: the way it is seeped into politics, education, health care system and more – really pushed over the edge.”

My veganism is really driven by the fact that I hate manipulation, I hate bullying, and I hate seeing big corporations take advantage of minority groups. The only response I could think of to all of this was to go vegan.

– Chris Huriwai

“My veganism is really driven by the fact that I hate manipulation, I hate bullying, and I hate seeing big corporations take advantage of minority groups. The only response I could think of to all of this was to go vegan.” After learning the truth about animal agriculture and its impacts on our beloved planet, I hope (for the sake of our future) that it’s the response that you’ll have too.