When I see vegan food sold in single-use plastic containers, I get frustrated knowing that plastic is not really recycled; it is down-cycled to less and less reusable grades, and too much of it eventually ends up in the ocean - where it kills animals. Caring for animals means caring for the environment they live in, and vice versa.

Some of us seem to be born with a drive to try to make the world kinder. In my twenties, living in New York City, I worked in a soup kitchen every Sunday for many years, just trying to do my part. Then I read Animal Liberation and learned about factory farming and the killing of animals for oven cleaner and realized nobody needed my help as badly as the animals did.

Animal rights is a serious subject, but I do my best to find humor where I can.

Caring for animals means caring for the environment they live in, and vice versa.

I don't understand "animal people" who say they are not environmentalists. Do they not realize that the vast majority of animals live in the environment?

It is important to meet people where they are. It reminds me of yoga, to which people may flock for the physical benefits, often to find that the spiritual benefits match or even outweigh them.

When I see vegan food sold in single-use plastic containers, I get frustrated knowing that plastic is not really recycled; it is down-cycled to less and less reusable grades, and too much of it eventually ends up in the ocean - where it kills animals. Caring for animals means caring for the environment they live in, and vice versa.