1. Panda Ambassadors

Meat-Free Mondays Monthly Challenge: Going Green, one Meal at a Time

WWF Panda Ambassadors
July Monthly Challenge

Meat-Free Mondays

  • Author: Guillermo Hercules

Panda Ambassador Monthly Challenges are an excellent way to stay involved throughout the year and find dynamic ways to make small changes in our lives with a big impact. This opportunity furthers exploration of different conservation issues, sharing knowledge, and tips with each other. During the month of July 2024, Maci T., a long-time Panda Ambassador from Indiana, led an inspiring food sustainability challenge called “Meat-Free Mondays”.

When asked about what inspired the challenge, Maci recalled that it all started through a heartfelt conversation with family: “My mom asked me if eating meat was actually a bad thing for the environment. This led to a discussion about methane emissions, water consumption, and transportation emissions. It was eye-opening to me.” She read WWF’s Planet-based Diets report and honed in on key facts about eating with the planet in mind, including that plant-based diets can significantly lower food-based greenhouse gas emissions by 30%. This motivated Maci to bring awareness to the benefits of sustainable diets for protecting wildlife and the planet through the “Meat-Free Mondays” challenge.

Meat Free Mondays social media post

Maci curated various statistics and facts about sustainable diets to share throughout the challenge.

The goal of the challenge was twofold: to promote sustainable food systems and to encourage others to try reducing meat consumption even just once a week. Over the course of July, every Monday, Maci prompted Panda Ambassadors on Mobilize to cook a meat-free meal and share a picture of it in the comment section. Pictures of homemade meals and recipes were then shared weekly by fellow Panda Ambassadors. As the challenge progressed throughout the month, Maci also posted weekly encouragements with sustainable diet facts, statistics, and articles debunking common myths about sustainable food. 

A fellow Panda Ambassador, Miranda B., shared the significance of the challenge for her: “This was a particularly personal challenge, because it inspired me to fully transition to a plant-based diet after 28 years of eating meat.” Other participants also shared key takeaways from their journey, with Cecilia D. commenting “This was a really fun challenge!! It definitely helped remind me to eat less meat and work that into a weekly habit. I was bad about remembering on Mondays, but I would make up for it during the week and be more aware about what I ate.”

As the month concluded, “Meat-Free Mondays” proved to be a resounding success, inspiring new learnings, experimentation with plant-based meals, and thoughtful conversations between Ambassadors. Participants adapted traditional dishes like Chile Rellenos and Tikka Masala to be more sustainable for the planet. Samuel D. and Miranda B. were recognized for enthusiastically participating in the challenge every single Monday and were awarded WWF-branded aprons.

The challenge also had many positive environmental impacts. By posting meal ideas through Mobilize, Maci and her fellow Panda Ambassadors created a vibrant space for learning, protecting biodiversity, and the planet. She demonstrated how eating sustainably can address issues like nature loss and global deforestation. For a taste of the delicious and meat-free creations that emerged from the challenge, stay tuned for our upcoming Panda Ambassador Cookbook that will be shared on Mobilize and here, on the Toolkit!

If you have any questions about monthly challenges or want to lead one, please feel free to email [email protected]

  • Vegetarian dish

    “Soybean noodles! Soybean noodles are a Korean traditional summer dish I always have when I have a lazy day or on a time crunch. This is super simple and tasty.” - Ji Soo C.

  • Vegetarian dish

    “Chile Rellenos with red rice. I prefer to bake instead of frying with batter.” – Samuel D.

  • Vegetarian dishes

    “I have successfully made it through my first week as a member of the vegetarian community. This morning, I managed to keep it completely vegan: tofu scrambled with crumbled seitan, roasted potatoes, and of course had to toss in the kale!” - Miranda D.

  • Vegetarian dish

    “Creamy lemon orzo!” – Maci T.

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