News Release Event: “Eating Our Way To World Peace” Date: Saturday, March 20th Time: 1 p.m. – 3 p.m. Place: San Francisco Main Library, Koret Auditorium, 100 Larkin St at Grove (Enter at 30 Grove St and proceed downstairs) Contact: Blaise Scavullo, 415-642-1334, [email protected] Note: This is not a Library Sponsored Program. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 25th Annual Meat-Out Inspires Special Free Event: “Eating Our Way To World Peace” Featuring Stellar Speakers, Video Presentations and Vegan Food Tasting ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Sponsored by the San Francisco Vegetarian Society, Go Vegan Radio, Golden Era Restaurant and Loving Hut Restaurant, “Eating Our Way To World Peace” will celebrate Meat-Out 2010 with eye-opening talks by Will Tuttle, PhD, author of “The World Peace Diet,” Michael Klaper, MD, renowned vegan doctor and nutritionist, Joyce Tischler, co-founder and general counsel for the Animal Legal Defense Fund, and emcee Bob Linden, professional radio broadcaster and animal rights advocate, whose program “Go Vegan with Bob Linden” airs in the Bay Area on Green 960. Since 1985 Meat-Out, which coincides with the first days of spring, has been a day of global action, encouraging individuals concerned with improving their health, attaining environmental sustainability, and alleviating the suffering of billions of animals to get “meat out” of their diet. Each year the event has grown in popularity as more people become aware of the dire consequences of industrialized animal- based agriculture and over-consumption of animal products. A short list of related problems would include global warming and climate change, skyrocketing health care costs associated with heart disease, cancer, diabetes and obesity, deforestation, fresh water pollution and scarcity, desertification, species extinction, resource depletion, energy crises, hunger, violence, and war. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Will Tuttle, PhD Will Tuttle, PhD, is an award-winning speaker, educator, author and musician. His book “The World Peace Diet” has been called one of the most important books of the 21st century: the foundation of a new society based on the truth of the interconnectedness of all life. Will has a master’s degree in humanities from San Francisco State University and a doctorate in education from the University of California, Berkeley. He also trained in Korea as a Zen Buddhist monk and has worked extensively in intuition development, spiritual healing, meditation, music, creativity, vegan living, and cultural evolution. For the last 15 years he has been presenting events at conferences, retreats, and progressive churches and centers throughout North America. In July 2007 he received the prestigious “Courage of Conscience Award” from The Peace Abbey. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Michael Klaper, MD Dr. Michael Klaper graduated from the University of Illinois College of Medicine, Chicago, in 1972. He served his medical internship at Vancouver General Hospital in British Columbia, Canada, and proceeded with additional training in surgery, anesthesiology, orthopedics and obstetrics at the University of California medical center in San Francisco. As Dr. Klaper's medical career progressed he began to realize that many of the diseases his patients were afflicted with were made worse or actually caused by the high-fat, overly processed Standard American Diet (SAD). This prompted him to undertake a serious study of the link between diet and disease, eventually leading him to implement nutritionally based therapies in his practice. The results were dramatic. Nearly all of his patients who followed his dietary, exercise, and stress reduction programs soon became leaner and more energetic, while their elevated blood pressures and cholesterol levels returned to safer values. He also observed that many chronic diseases improved or resolved completely, often allowing his patients to reduce or discontinue their medication entirely. To further the education of physicians and other health professionals about the importance of nutrition in clinical practice, Dr. Klaper has served as Director of the non-profit Institute of Nutrition Education and Research. He also is a member of the Nutrition Task Force of the American Medical Student Association. He has served as adviser to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and has contributed to the making of two PBS television productions, “Food for Thought,” and the award winning, “Diet for a New America.” ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Joyce Tischler As one of the visionaries who co-founded the Animal Legal Defense Fund over three decades ago, California attorney Joyce Tischler has helped shape the emerging field of animal law. Joyce handled some of Animal Legal Defense Fund's earliest cases, including a 1981 lawsuit that halted the U.S. Navy's plan to kill 5,000 feral burros and a 1988 challenge to the U.S. Patent Office's rule allowing the patenting of genetically altered animals. She has tackled such diverse topics as challenges to hunting and trapping, using the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Endangered Species Act (ESA), enforcement of the federal Animal Welfare Act, animal custody battles, the right to kill animals pursuant to will provisions, landlord-tenant issues as well as damages and recovery for injury to or death of an animal. Joyce was the Animal Legal Defense Fund’s executive director for 25 years and now serves as the agency's general counsel. In 2009 the American Bar Association’s Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Section (TIPS) Animal Law Committee honored Joyce with the “Excellence in the Advancement of Animal Law Award.” ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Bob Linden Bob Linden initiated the first vegan / animal rights radio program in mainstream media, “Go Vegan with Bob Linden,” in 2001. It then became the first major network vegan program, heard on Air America on 26 radio stations nationally. In the Bay Area Bob can be heard on progressive Green 960 AM radio and online. Over 200 archived programs are available for free at www.GoVeganRadio.com. Bob, who emcees the San Francisco Vegetarian Society’s annual “World Vegetarian Weekend” in Golden Gate Park, has been involved with the creation of many events and festivals. These include “Worldfest” in Los Angeles, “Vegan Earth Day,” and “Soul Food-For-Thought” – a vegan Black History Month event recently staged at San Francisco's historic Herbst Theatre. Bob, a graduate of Queens College of the City University of New York, is a broadcast veteran, having served in radio management as Program Director of stations across the country. These include WQCD in New York, JAZZY 100 in Washington DC, The Sound in Seattle, KIFM in San Diego, LOVE 94 in Miami, and Z-92 in Omaha. A vegan since 1984, Bob was recently honored as recipient of the “Shining World Hero Award” from the Supreme Master Ching Hai International Association. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Information and material from www.MeatOut.org about the healthy, environmentally responsible, and animal-loving vegan lifestyle will be available at the San Francisco Vegetarian Society (www.sfvs.org) table. Vegan food samples outside the entrance to the auditorium and box lunches to go after the program will be provided by Golden Era Restaurant (572 O’Farrell St) and Loving Hut Restaurant (1365 Stockton St). Loving Hut is part of a worldwide chain of over 100 vegan restaurants - and growing (www.LovingHut.com). The library does not allow refreshments in the auditorium. .