10-Year-Old Vegan Activist Delivers Moving TEDx Talk

10-year-old vegan activist Genesis Butler became one of the youngest people to participate in lecture series TEDx last month in Long Beach, CA. Butler spoke to the audience about her decision to remove animals from her diet when she was only three years old—a move that inspired her family to adopt veganism shortly thereafter. “I see a lot of people in their eco-friendly cars, with their ‘Save the Earth’ bumper stickers, but they’re in drive-throughs ordering burgers,” Genesis said during the lecture. “I have come to you as a representative of my generation and future generations … to ask you to think about the foods you eat.” While Butler has been vegan for four years to benefit the treatment of animals, she acknowledged the environmental impact of animal agriculture during her speech. “According to many scientific studies,” Butler said, “raising animals for food is the primary cause of global climate change, loss of biodiversity, pollution, and water shortage, just to name a few.” Young vegan activists are inspiring older generations worldwide, including Daniel Bissonnette—a 12-year-old who travels throughout Canada to educate the public about the health benefits of adopting a plant-based diet.