Peru is renowned for its ancient Incan history, its culture and for being a group of very spiritual people devoted to taking care of Mother Earth. The Incas once lived in the highest mountains of Machu Picchu in Cusco, where they grew their own food—corn, beans and many other vegetables. It is said that they were blessed with longevity due to the peaceful and loving relationship among them as well as their spiritual practices.

Today, however, Peru is facing some of the adverse effects of climate change. Home to 70% of the world’s tropical glaciers, the rising temperatures are causing the rapid melting of these beautiful ice fields, not only significantly affecting Peru but also other countries such as Bolivia, Colombia and Ecuador with floods followed by droughts that subsequently are reducing their main source of water for drinking, agriculture and other uses. In the higher elevations, in the mountainous provinces of Puno, Pasco and others, temperatures have dropped to lower than minus 15° Celsius; the intense cold has taken countless lives.

To raise awareness of this dire situation and to help mitigate the crisis, a climate change conference entitled “Global Warming . . . Yes, There Is a Solution!” was held on September 12, Golden Year 6 (2009), at the most prestigious auditorium in Lima, “The Pentagotino.” It gathered more than 1,200 guests, some of whom were representatives of animal protection centers and NGOs as well as VIPs including: Mr. Alberto Tejada Noriega, Mayor of San Borja; Mr. Fabian Salazar Olivares, Chief of the Congress Protocol of the Republic; Ms. Maria Elena Parra Terrazos, Advisor for Foreign Investments; Mr. Joel Guevaara, Doctor of Homeopathic Medicine; Mr. Luis Bueno Quino, Mayor of Chosica; Mr. Felix Moreno Caballero, Mayor of Callao; Mr. Mahesh Bachani, Indian Community SOS Event Secretary in Lima; and Mr. Angel Raul Abugatas, Mayor of Santa Maria del Mar. As the Guest of Honor, Supreme Master Ching Hai graciously accepted the invitation to attend the event, which was broadcast live on Lima’s RBC Television's Channel 11 and on Radio Latina at 990 AM, reaching a listening/viewing audience of more than 50,000.

Read throughout the video conference were supportive messages from dignitaries such as: Mrs. Ingrid Newkirk, President of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA); Dr. Michael Greger, the US Director of Public Health and Animal Agriculture for the Humane Society of the United States; Mr. Jesse White, Secretary of State of Illinois, USA; Mr. Jose Manuel Echandi Meza, Member of Parliament from Costa Rica; and Mr. David Román, President of the Spanish Vegetarian Union. Many of them highlighted the importance of keeping a pure vegetarian diet for the sake of the environment, health, world hunger and the animals.

Distinguished guests also shared their thoughts on this grave global warming issue. Mrs. Cecilia Brack Mendiola, sociologist and author, elaborated on the root cause of the environmental problem and urged people to make extraordinary efforts to balance our relationship with nature by changing our lifestyles to be more frugal, using clean energy, planting more trees, recycling, eating organic products—fruits and vegetables—and avoiding the consumption of red meat.

Mr. Nicolás Pauls, a well-known musician and actor from Argentina who is also a vegetarian and defender of animals, encouraged people to pay attention to everything they do in their lives, including the food they eat, because it has an influence on the way we express ourselves. He said, “If you knew clearly how painful and suffering the life of an animal is, only to end up on a plate, I believe that only someone who is not aware and heartless could eat them.”

Mr. Gilberto Romero Zevallos, Director of the Center of Study for the Prevention of Disasters (PREDES) expressed concern about the suffering of the people who have been affected by disasters due to extreme weather conditions. Miss Wendy Lau Cordero, a chemistry student at the Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos, informed the audience of some of the activities planned by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and urged them to sign the climate change petition.

During the Q&A session, Supreme Master Ching Hai responded to a number of concerns from the event participants. Regarding the role of science in solving climate change, She told Miss Lau that the science community has been doing a good job in researching and informing the public about the critical condition of the Earth. Therefore, “we cannot blame the scientists or any scientific technology for the problems of our planet today. . . . The fate of our planet is in our hands before the scientists can do anything to help us.”

When explaining the expenses involved in making just one hamburger to Ms. Mayte Loredo, a chef, a naturalist and a business woman who has been vegetarian for over 30 years, Master gave a detailed account of its real costs in terms of land destruction, biodiversity loss, world hunger, topsoil depletion, greenhouses gas emissions, fossil fuel waste and health hazards. She concluded that hamburgers are clearly unaffordable, not only relative to global warming but also considering karmic consequences.

Master emphasized, “Before we expect the lion to lie down peacefully with the lamb, we humans must do it first. As long as humans cannot even lie down peacefully with the lamb, causing all the anguish, fear, sorrow and oppression to weaker beings and defenseless animals, we cannot realize this heavenly dream of the lion lying beside the lamb. So we must return to our compassionate self. We must return to our glorious status as the children of God. We have to bring Heaven to Earth.”

In conclusion, Master gave a complete report about the current adverse effects of climate change in Peru based on the latest publication by the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which spoke of Latin America’s vulnerability to severe climate impacts, hoping it would serve as a wakeup call to people in Peru and around the world.

Following the climate change conference was the Book Premiere of Supreme Master Ching Hai’s The Dogs in My Life, Spanish Edition. Many dignitaries sent their congratulations to Master via video. Among them was the Honorable Arturo Nunez Jimenez, Senator of the State of Tabasco, Mexico, who said in regards to the book, “It is a work that reminds us of the need to become more human in a time when the immense scientific and technological advances often makes us forget these small details; but they are nevertheless essential, to value the lives of all living beings.”

After an introductory movie about the book, guest speakers including Ms. Frida Holler, a professional model and author of the bestseller That Little Finger: Modern Guide of Courtesy and Civility; Ms. Pilar Sanllehi Bracesco, a marine biologist and director of the Amazon Shelter; and Ms. Vanesa Torres Bustamante, founder of the organization, United for the Animals, spoke from their own experiences on the importance of treating animals with love and respect as well as keeping a pure vegetarian diet. Master again appeared at the premier and patiently answered more questions from the audience. She reminded everyone that we should “pray not for Heaven to help us, but pray that we’re awakened to our heavenly quality and save our world in time.”

We thank our beloved Supreme Master Ching Hai for blessing this timely and much needed conference, and for giving solutions on how to restore our precious planet to its pristine state. May more people work together for the same goal of creating a peaceful vegan kingdom on Earth.

To watch Supreme Master Television’s coverage of this videoconference, please visit: http://video.Godsdirectcontact.net/magazine/WOW1185s.php

To watch Supreme Master Television’s coverage of the Book Premiere of The Dogs in My Life, Spanish Edition, please visit: http://video.Godsdirectcontact.net/magazine/WOW1262s.php

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