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News at Brighter Green

Brighter Green & Global Forest Coalition Briefing Paper for International Day for Biodiversity 5/22/13

On the occasion of the International Day for Biodiversity and the start of UN talks on a possible sustainable development goal (SDG) on agriculture Brighter Green and the Global Forest Coalition have published a briefing paper to raise awareness of the negative impacts of rapidly expanding industrial livestock farming and large-scale cattle ranching on the world's forests and biodiversity. Industrial animal agriculture cuts across multiple sectors, affecting land use, water, food security, public health, and climate change. But too often these intersections are overlooked.
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Brighter Green at The Seed in NYC 5/19/13

Brighter Green's Executive Director Mia MacDonald spoke about climate change and animal agriculture, and the ecological impacts of the global spread of factory farm operations, at the Seed Experience in New York City on May 18, 2013. She also screened Green's short documentary, "What's for Dinner?" Find out more about the film, including how to show it, here.
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Blog Post on the U.S. National Climate Assessment in the Huffington Post and Civil Eats. 5/2/13

Executive Director Mia MacDonald's blog post on the U.S. National Climate Assessment and U.S. and global systems of food production was featured in the Huffington Post and was re-blogged on the American food system news website Civil Eats.

Brighter Green collaborates with Global Forest Coalition at the World Social Forum 3/29/13

Brighter Green collaborated with Global Forest Coalition on an event and paper on the risks of industrial livestock production for the environment, communities (including indigenous communities), and animals at the World Social Forum in Tunisia.

China Dialogue Publishes BG Blogs 2/13/13

Brighter Green guest blogger Wanqing Zhou's exploration of of the growing challenge of food waste in China ("Food Waste and Recycling in China: Too Easy, Too Hard"), including from animal agriculture, has been republished in English and Chinese on China Dialogue, an important, bilingual Web portal for global environmental news with a focus on China.

Katerva Award Winners Announced 2/12/13

The winners of the two Katerva awards for innovation in sustainability have been announced. Mia MacDonald of Brighter Green served on the judging panel for the food security theme, and the project finalist she ranked highest, Backpack Farm, piloted in East Africa, came first in its category.

Brighter Green Hosts a Successful East African Girls' Leadership Initiative Fundraiser 12/7/12

Brighter Green and Tribal Link hosted a successful fundraiser for the East African Girls' Leadership Initiative in December 2012. Over $3,000 were raised to help support two girls' education, living costs, rights training, mentoring, and leadership skill workshops for one year. Singer-songwriter Joy Askew performed at the event and Grace Koutimet, from SIMOO spoke about the role of Maasai women in the community and how educating Maasai women greatly assists the communities' progress.

Mia MacDonald's Blog Post on COP 18 Featured in the Huffington Post 12/6/12

Brighter Green's Mia MacDonald's blog post on COP 18 and the conference's failure to address the negative effects of industrial food systems, particularly industrial agriculture, on climate change appeared in the Huffington Post on December 6, 2012.

Brighter Green Participates in COP 18 Side Event 12/3/12

Brighter Green's Mia MacDonald participated in and moderated a side event to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP18) in Doha, Qatar in December 2012. The side event entitled "Climate Change & Ensuring Sustainable, Humane, Equitable Food Systems: Views from the North and South" focused on climate change and livestock farming. Xie Zheng, featured in Brighter Green's short documentary "What's for Dinner?" also spoke at the event. For more information on Brighter Green's research on climate change and the globalization of farming click here.

Brighter Green attended COP 18 Climate Change Conference in Doha, Qatar 12/2/12

Executive Director Mia MacDonald attended the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 18) from November 26 to December 2, 2012. Mia shared Brighter Green's research on climate change and the globalization of intensive animal agriculture.

Brighter Green Joins Climate Action Network 11/16/12

Brighter Green has just become a member of Climate Action Network-U.S. (USCAN), in the lead up to the COP18 climate summit.
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New Videos: Exploring India's Expanding Dairy and Beef Industries

by Caroline Wimberly
August 23, 2011 11:15am
Filed under:
In this new two-part video series, Brighter Green examines the challenges and effects of India's beef and dairy industries.

Double-click to view full screen.
Part I:


Part II:


India today has the largest dairy herd of cows and buffalos in the world. To meet growing domestic demand, mainly for milk, India's cow and buffalo populations are increasing. At the same time, global as well as home-grown agribusinesses are making their mark on India, seeking to expand production through industrial style facilities. Beef is also a growing business in India, and a major source of the country's export income. These developments have multiple impacts for India's food security, natural resources, the cows and buffalos themselves, and the global climate.

India's cows and buffalos are the largest global livestock emitters of methane, a greenhouse gas that's at least 20 times more powerful than carbon dioxide. These animals also require significant amounts of feed and water, resources already under considerable pressure given India's large and growing human population. According to the World Bank, by 2020, India's land, water and air will be under more strain than anywhere else in the world.

For more on the globalization of factory farming in India, and other parts of the world, click here. Stay tuned for Brighter Green's forthcoming paper investigating these issues. For a summary of the research, click here.