If we want a healthy planet, we must first focus on getting ourselves healthy. This is the oxygen mask rule – put on your own oxygen mask first before helping others. Sick people are not going to care about a sick planet and conversely, a sick planet creates more sick people. Navigating our way out of this vicious cycle is a radical act in the current system.

The American College of Lifestyle Medicine (ACLM) identified 8 risky behaviors responsible for 15 chronic diseases and 90% of the health care costs worldwide. Poor Diet is #1, followed by Physical Inactivity, Smoking, Lack of Health Screening, Poor Stress Management, Insufficient Sleep, Poor Standard of Care and Excessive Alcohol Consumption, in that order. According to Dr. John McDougall, Poor Diet alone is responsible for more than half of the health care costs.

In the current system, which depends on economic growth to maintain its Jenga tower of inequities, these 8 risky behaviors are encouraged since they are responsible for 90% of the health care economy worldwide. We are all encouraged to consume sickening foods and digital media, exercising nothing more than our fingers, totally detached from the natural world. Mental stress, lack of sleep and substance abuse are the consequences of such a deprived lifestyle.

In the current system, pharmaceutical companies maximize their revenues when they don’t cure our chronic diseases, but maintain them. Likewise, world leaders maximize their billionaire donors’ wealth when they don’t cure the planet’s ills, but maintain them.

Is it any wonder that former Vice President Al Gore forgets to mention the leading cause of climate change, when he is the co-founder of a firm managing investments worth $43 Billion to tackle the second leading cause?

Is it any wonder that Mark Zuckerberg is feeding macadamia nuts and home brewed beer to his cows and bragging about the “high-quality beef” he produces on social media in a modern re-enactment of Marie Antoinette’s “Let them eat cake” moment?

Climate Healing communities break this vicious cycle by promoting the exact opposite of the 8 risky behaviors among their members:

1. From “Poor Diet” to “Healthy Vegan Diet,” where nutritious, satiating, whole-foods, plant-based vegan meals are made freely available to all in the community as a basic human right.

2. From “Physical Inactivity” to “Regular Exercise or Yoga Asanas,” where regular physical activity is encouraged as a matter of routine.

3. From “Smoking” to “Conscious Breathing or Pranayama,” where community members re-learn how to breathe deeply and enjoy the life-giving qualities of our earth’s atmosphere.

4. From “Lack of Health Screening” to “Regular Health Routines,” where community members adopt daily routines that support health.

5. From “Poor Stress Management” to “Meditation and Awareness,” where community members re-learn how to meditate and get in touch with their inner selves.

6. From “Insufficient Sleep” to “Adequate Rest and Sleep,” which largely happens when the first five risky behaviors are corrected.

7. From “Poor Standard of Care” to “A Sense of Purpose,” as that comes with the consciousness of caring for oneself.

8. From “Excessive Alcohol Consumption” to “Contact with Nature,” which reduces the feeling of disconnection that causes substance abuse in the first place.

The good news is that you can form such Climate Healing communities starting today and you don’t even have to get permissions from anybody. This is indeed the most powerful action that you can take to help resolve ALL SIX planetary boundary transgressions, including climate change.

Find out more at our upcoming Vegan Convergence Of the Peoples #16 (V-COP16) on Jan 27-28, with its theme of “Healthy Me, Healthy Planet,” and go where no world leader dares to go. At V-COP16, we speak openly and with scientific integrity on every aspect of the Greatest Transformation in Human History. Distinguished speakers at V-COP16 include the amazing Dotsie Bausch of Switch4Good, the courageous Anita Krajnc and Steven George of Plant Based Treaty, the compassionate founders of the Interfaith Vegan Coalition, Lisa Levinson and Judy Carman and the incomparable force of Nature, Jane Velez-Mitchell of UnchainedTV.

Join us this coming weekend.

With much love,
Sailesh on behalf of the Climate Healers Core team.
(Akhil, Alison, Anne, BJ, Carl, Dakota, Dani, Deborah, Debra, Gabriele, Giva, Jamen, Kelly, Ken, Kimaya, Krish, Lisa, Liz, Maggie, Marco, Paige, Pareen, Paul, Ray, Sailesh, Sarah, Shankar, Stacey, Suzanne, Tami and Vega, the Cow and Climate Healer)