Thank you so much to TEDxVUAmsterdam for inviting me to speak. If anyone watching is interested in learning more about veganism or my work in general, then you can do so either through my RU-vid channel or website. Thank you for watching!
@@angycucumber4319 Ethics was definitely the main reason as I've always hated animal cruelty. However, I do genuinely feel healthier since changing my diet. I know some people find it difficult to plan a balanced plant-based diet but I've found it relatively easy!
As a biomedical and food system scientist, my introduction to plant-based diet was through my research, when I was working on cancer, infectious diseases, antibiotic resistance and other diseases that later I realized are significantly correlated with animal consumption. Every single cancer institute in the world says the less meat you eat the better. What eventually made me vegan however, was watching what happens to animals 11 years ago. This was after one of my friends pointed out the hypocrisy and inconsistency between my actions and values. I always said I loved animals and I was against animal cruelty. But because of cognitive dissonance, I couldn't see that by eating meat, egg, and dairy I was paying for animals to be exploited and killed when I didn't have to. Veganism is the most rational and ethical way to go about our lifestyles. It saves lives. Human and non-human animals' lives. Now I come from a background where I ate a lot of meat and cheese. Back then I thought it was hard, but it really wasn't. There is a little adjustment but it's always easier for us to be vegan than for animals to be exploded and abused in trillions. So if I did it, you can do it too. All veganism is, is to reduce animal suffering as much as practical and possible. The key here is animal consumption is not a necessity for us, we do it for taste, pleasure, convenience, tradition, etc. I think these are not good reasons to kill animals for. Imagine if somebody was beating a dog for pleasure. We will take action and try to stop them. This is exactly what veganism is, except you do that not just for dogs, but also for all other animals or capable of suffering. Meat, egg and dairy industries do a great job in hiding the atrocities behind the scene. So please watch Dominion on RU-vid. Once you go vegan, you no longer actively pay for others to kill animals for you. But I hope you don't stop there. Veganism is the bare minimum we can do. Hopefully you become someone like Earthling Ed. Someone who speaks up against cruelty and injustice. If you're not vegan yet, please give this an open mind. At first we tend to resist. That's natural. We always resist change, I did too. I called this the meat bias. We love eating meat and that clouds are judgment. So try to think with your head, with your brain, and not with your stomach. Then you can see veganism is simply the best thing that you can do for yourself and for the animals. Give it an open mind and open heart. The right time to go vegan is your next meal and you can do this. Imagine if an animal you care about was in trouble. You will do anything and you will spend however much money necessary to make sure they are sound and safe. So please treat this with the same sense of urgency and seriousness. You got this ✌️🙏
Earthling Ed Winters and Dr. Faraz Harsini are two of the most effective advocates for animal welfare on this planet. Thank you deeply for everything you are doing.
Ed, you have done more for animals worldwide than any other vegan I can think of. However, you would certainly reach many more people if you'd invest in translating your speeches and debate videos into at least a couple of widely spoken languages. I anxiously await that day! Thank you!
Meanwhile joaquin phoenix is riding horses for millions in his new movie, yea he did the vegan oscar speech but he could do so much more, and people will listen to a celeb over ED
@@Acemoddzthat’s true to an extent, but I would say Ed has made a much bigger difference through his contributions because he isn’t apologetic like JP is. JP fans will likely go vegan but then see that he quit and quit themselves.
Vegan now for one year and couldn’t be more grateful. I knew all along but it took being challenged by a compassionate vegan to cause me to align my actions with my values. So grateful for people like Ed and so many others who I’ve discovered over this first year.
Bit of a click bait title, I thought my veganism would be challenged. But this is a good argument for those who don't understand why someone may choose to not use animal products. Well spoken. I've been vegan since I've been 14, just turned 35 and never gonna stop.
@@olli3686 this is true, but that's not what veganism is about, so you are misinformed. Did you not watch the video, did you just come here to see who you could try to rile up? Well, you tried with the wrong person, sorry. Veganism is about acknowledging the suffering humans cause animals on purpose, and choosing not to take part in it. You obviously step on ants involuntarily from time to time, you can't stop and move every worm from the sidewalk to the soil every single time. That's not the point. You have to eat something. Eating vegetables, grains, fruit, nuts, seeds, legumes, etc. is better for the planet and your health, and no animals are killed on purpose. We could do better in regards to how we treat bees we use to pollinate, but of course you are digging in soil or tilling it, some bugs, grubs, insects, will be killed. But it is NOT done intentionally in most instances. One does not always know, nor can one always avoid produce that is produced on farms using pesticides. You do what you can. I bet you expected an angry response, didn't you? No, sorry. I'm not some newbie who has been vegan for all of 5 minutes. I've been one way too long to fall for that trap you set. I'm just going to type as if I'm speaking in a normal, calm tone. Which is what I am right now, calm. Hahaha 🤣😂
@@kanupreiya_29 I get told a lot that I don't look my age. My brother is 14 months younger than me, but everyone thinks he's older by a few years. But obviously, genes play a role as well, and I use products on my skin whereas he doesn't.
As a country girl, I've always known all animals have their own personality. My granddad's milk cows were all the proof I needed. Daisy loved to be sung to. Belle wanted to play with the herding dogs rather than stay with everyone else when they were being gathered. I have many more examples of such, which colors my attitude to this day.
Great talk as usual! And I love the title, in fact I only watched your ted talk "Every Argument Against Veganism" because I was trying to find reasons to not go vegan 2.5 years ago because I was feeling guilty after watching Cowspiracy 😂 and knew immediately after watching that that I had to go vegan for the ethics. Thanks for everything you do Ed
@@dsoul1305 Imagine having listened to what Ed says, and then understanding nothing 😂 Either you didn't listen and are just trolling, or your basic comprehension and logic needs an update from v0.1.
@@Assassin99584 I was so brainwashed I went through my life acting against my morals paying for animals to be brutally and unnecessarily slaughtered on my behalf. I'm so glad I woke up and realized all the justification I was making up were just a symptom of the cognitive dissonance that I needed to use to continue doing things that I knew deep down were wrong.
If I were not vegan already I would surely be now. Awesome talk, very well done. It is so wonderful listening to you. You make the world a better place and I am deeply grateful for that. 💚
7+ years since our family quit eating animals. 3 boys - all athletes strong and healthy. My wife and I work out daily and we eat amazing plant based food! Best decision we’ve ever made! 🌱 💪🏼 Ed has also been a great source for us as we continue our journey. Continue to find your own way to share how normal and logical it is to choose to eat plants instead of animals - as they are all individuals.
I was a vegetarian for about 20 years, thinking I was being compassionate. I couldn't eat eggs because the idea disgusted me, but the idea of milk? Well, cheese tasted too good to give up. Then on a dark depressive day, as I was crying about how difficult and unfair my life was, a video popped up on my feed about mother cows' whose babies were being taken away, how they were trashing and crying. It hit me at once .... these animals are the ones truly suffering and even I, a so-called compassionate person had been blind to their suffering for decades. Animal milk Is such a cruel industry, yet most will not want to face the cruelties for the 10 second enjoyment of dairy products. I then looked up the egg industry, saw the horrors there, the cutest baby chicks being crushed alive etc. .... I was outraged, why don't we all know about this??? Ed, what you are doing is sooo important, thank you so much for being the voice of the voiceless. ❤
Brilliant presentation about empathy and understanding of animal cruelty and repercussions of animal consumption. The part where you talked about the smell of fear brought tears to my eyes. Thank you for your compassion and awareness. I've never heard of you before this video but I'm going to look up and see if there are any other videos you may have that I can watch. You sound very soothing and insightful. P.s. the Title of the video is wack! Misleading and unjust. Clickbate?
It's not clickbait. It's the idea that numbers and statistics are the end measure of suffering, whereas in fact the real measure is the individual personalities of so many creatures.
It's so glaringly obvious, yet it took me over 50 years - being an omnivore and later a vegetarian - for the penny to drop and go completely vegan (after seeing Gary Yourofsky's speech). And it wasn't that I didn't want to listen. I used to be one of those people who once asked a vegan: But what do you eat?
Although he didn't spell it out, I think he meant that we vegans also tend to fall into the trap of referring to non-human animals by numbers and as abstractions, rather than as individuals.
Thank you for such a wonderful talk, Ed, and major thanks to Rupert as well!! ❤ he probably enjoys being mentioned all the time about how he caused such a major impact and the ripple effect is tremendous due to him entering Ed's life
I haven’t finished yet but I can already tell it’s a very good speech for the uninitiated. I wish Ted Talks had a q & a session. That’s where Ed marvels the most.
As a vegan, I don't think there's something like "morally complete". We can always strive to do better, but don't think you're done just because you went vegan. That's the moral baseline.
Pain is a sensation that is felt in the brain. Plants dont have a brain at all therefore no means to feel pain whereas the animals we eat have brain and feel pain.
@@aakusterResearchers generally don't agree with Wohlleben. However, I believe plants can feel pain (maybe not in the way we do with brains). Plants would not evolve and develop certain defense mechanisms if they were totally unaware and insensitive to being eaten.
Huge understatements, Ed Winters. Such an eloquently artful speech, so well-expressed, so meaningful. And yet people will still ignore, because of their brains and habits. Let's keep telling the truth. Be fair, be kind, be vegan and antinatalist.
I love this message. Please dont lie about the contents of the material in the title. This only serves to turn more people off to what is trying to be expressed
@@manon3610 Read "Why Some People Do Well As Vegans (While Others Don't)", from He-alth-line. Short article, will enlighten you. Most vegans quit between 5 to 10 years. In the two year mark you are still living off the nutrients on your liver's reserves. Been there, done that. Don't ignore the symptoms when they come.
Ed is one of the best advocates for animal rights and delivers a powerful, thought provoking message with perfection and true passion. I thoroughly enjoyed his presentation I only wish it could be seen in the mainstream. No one is perfect but we can try.. we have 3x a day to make better choices. 🌱✌️
What a lovely and empathic speech ❤ However, I agree with others who have said the title is a bit click bait. I have been a vegetarian for decades until I realised that dairy and eggs are equally as abusive to animals. Then a vegan for years BUT I went back to eating meat as my husband and children eat it, its very hard and expensive to get them all to be vegan, I was sick of cooking 2 meals a night and I have fibromyalgia so I get very tired but still have to work. Your talk has pushed me into thinking again though and I will be eating much less meat from now on and having vegan meal nights for all the family 😊
I really look forward to the time when we can grow meat in labs without cruelty! Controversial perhaps but I generally think science will solve everything.. Be interested in any opinions about why this could be a bad idea!
I'd urge you to search for the health risks of being a vegan and not push this way of eating on others. There are many videos explaining the gaps and health risks of this diet.
I don't push my opinions on anyone especially my kids who are not vegan....but I did feel very healthy when I was vegan- a sense of clearness in my body and a sense of peace in my soul 😊 Calling veganism unhealthy is probably a cop out even if slightly true - unless you don't smoke, don't drink, take regular exercise, have an amazingly healthy diet etc
@@Freewoman76 I always lived next to nature, my mother was a naturalist. I didnt have had soda at home while living with her and continued not to have it after I moved. I'm very healthy-conscious and always was. I became vegan in the 2000's, a natural diet, I bought my food fresh from street market, sprouted and cooked all at home. I started to learn about the nutrition part to help make other people vegan. There were no vegan doctors by then. I found out that the scientific literature didn't matched vegan beliefs, but I believed, so I kept going and enriching my vegan diet. It wasn't enough. My mental health deteriorated and my depression turned me su1c1dal. I became better accidentaly, by moving out of the city where I was to one with more sunlight. But only after I stop the diet and focused on a red meat-based diet with liver and fatty fishes was that I became normal again. I noticed that my previous diet, plant based, but not vegan yet, already gave me light mental health issues. All that was in my research, the one that I ignored to trust vegan claims, vegan doctors claims. I remember that by the time the vegans were discussing if the omega 3 from plants were enough or they should recommend supplements because the lack of it causes deep depression it didn't strike me as dangerous. I have since learnt that my case is not isolated and became aware that many depressed vegans indeed took their lives... The list of health problems that vegan diets can cause are immense, not only mental. Don't take the animal products out of your family. Vegans never ever say the risks you are accepting because they don't want to believe.
@@Freewoman76 in the beginning it can give a good feel because living on plants for a while cause you to enter light starvation mode. It gives the "clear head vibe". Some people feel more energetic. This is well documented. I guess it didn't made much difference to me because my previous diet was made of roots, fruits and vegetables complemented with little animal foods.
Thank you very much for your talk! Please continue this series. How heartless a human species has to be to impose such unimaginable suffering to others, who are actually very close to humans in most ways! And even worse, humans proudly justify their cruelty by the “necessity”! Would you justify such acts of atrocity committed toward yourself or your loved ones?
Yes, is necessary, eat animal foods it's a matter of health and survival for the big majority. Harmed ex-vegans have been vocal about it now for a few years. Many exposing scientific data about this need. More than half of the population can't convert carotenoids into the restinol form vit A. Most people can't get enough ômega 3 from plants. It's a matter of mental health, brain health. It's ignorance to say that is not a need. Many peopled got harmed trying veganism. This push to restrictive deficient risky diet have to end along with factory farming.
I know this is a click-bait tittle, but in this case it is needed. I think mostly persons who are not a vegan would click on a video about "what vegans get wrong about..." and this talk is not aimed for vegans clearly.
I was a big meat and cheese eater like you’ve never seen one. But I’ve always had a mindset of “trying to be the better human I can”. When I made the connection between my food and the sentient exploited animals, I went vegan. Not only it is easy to do, it is a chance for anyone that goes vegan. Why ? You might discover so many foods you didn’t know about. You will be healthier (through whole plant based food) You will have your conscious cleared : no hypocrisy, just a new You living a life that is aligned with your values.
It's clear click-bait and a violation of youtube policy, the video can be taken down for it. Past the title, the intelectual dishonesty is abundant throughout the video. It deserves no credibility, one would have to fact-check each single claim he makes.
@@pbs36please do. Every claim is correct, and nothing dishonest other than the title here which is clearly done in order to get non vegans to view it as they many would ignore if it was a pro vegan title but that’s not really a big issue, if yt really wants to have it changed then so be it, that actual content is honest and correct
Well done Ed you are changing how people think about meat and fish and helping them to understand we can be healthy without hurting beautiful creatures. We live in a very cruel world. I'm vege now..going vegan . Yay
What i get from here is that we try to be moral creatures, but reality, is not moral. We wish we could create moral rules and apply them to everything and everyone, but we cant. And thats fine, but that doesnt mean that we cant keep trying to stay moral.
Hey dont use hamster balls btw, it can stress the hamster, because they cant stop on time and cant see very well. Hamsters are often abused on accident, so even if you think your hamster is taken care of well, please research anyway! (And dont listen to pet stores, the're just trying to sell you stuff)
@@sivalovesyoutube9373 I think it depends. If an animal is allowed to behave naturally, if they have a big space, good food and plenty mental and physical stimulation, if it's significantly better then the wild it's fine. I compare it to children in the sense that you're the one deciding many things for them, they didn't choose to be with you, but if they feel loved and happy it's fine. My position is: Any animal with genetic health issues is cruel, the care standards should be doubled/tripled, and breeding should be changed (no artificial insemination!), adopt when possible, the animal is kept for companionship not food or clothing. That's my opinion anyway, I understand why you don't like 'pet ownership' though.
