Welcome to Indonesia
As President of Indonesia Vegetarian Society (IVS), a member of Asian Vegetarian Union (AVU) and International Vegetarian Union (IVU), it brings me great pleasure that our country will have the opportunity to host the 4th Asian Vegetarian Congress in 2009.
nthused and motivated, our team has already begun the planning and preparation for the upcoming congress in Batam, and we are all very hopeful of the event’s success.
As always, we are confident that IVS events such as the 4th Asian Vegetarian Congress will fruitfully increase global awareness on the multi-faceted benefits reaped from a vegetarian lifestyle. Locally, IVS has been extremely active in holding events throughout the country, and promoting the merits of vegetarianism. Our branch offices in the smaller cities outside Jakarta have been contributing to our organisation’s mission of promoting a healthier way of living.
The world has clearly shifted its focus on becoming pro-green, and it is comforting to know that more and more global citizens are turning environmentally friendly. The high frequency of natural disasters prevailing in the past decades, the continuing deforestation of the world’s rainforests, and worries of the supply of sources for energy, are a few examples of the worsening condition of our Planet Earth. What will happen if this all continues? The answer is not a pretty sight: possibly more natural disasters, the extinction of animal and plant species which may potentially be valuable sources in curing diseases, and continued world hunger and famine. We all need to realize that living a vegetarian lifestyle will help our Planet Earth. For example, remember that every time one consumes beef, one is supporting the deforestation of our rainforests as cow-grazing requires acres and acres of open land-space. The environmental merits of vegetarianism will most definitely be a highlighted topic in the 4th Asian Vegetarian Congress in 2009.
Once again, we are proud to have the opportunity to host the 4th Asian Vegetarian Congress. Along with our entire team, we are looking forward to meeting old friends, meeting new faces, and making new friends, all for the common goal of promoting a better way of living.
Respectfully,
Bambang Sumantri
Dear friends around the world
Global warming. Probably, the issue has gained the greatest global concern and fear ever in human history. Its definite force of massive destruction is real, inconvenient and menacing from moment to moment. But, to those advocating vegetarian lifestyles, the issue is fundamental. It is not the fear. It is the urging necessity to promote a change in human lifestyles, a situation explicitly conjured by Albert Einstein over half a century ago.
Vegetarianism is basically a universal lifestyle of harmony. But it also represents the basic knowledge and the actual science of living harmoniously in the universe, which is all the actualisation of love for life. The motivation, the spirit and the determination of people going vegetarian are very clear, definite and firm: to bring health, welfare and harmony to life and Planet Earth.
To serve the purpose stated above, the Organising Committee underlines the importance of developing more discussion on issues of information and education systems at the congress this time. We believe it is urgent to establish better-organised systems to develop vegetarianism as a basic need for the sustainability of life and the environment in the world’s largest and most-densely populated continent Asia. Considering the strong traditional beliefs of Asian people in meat-consumption, let’s work out actual programmes to help them understand the benefits of going vegetarian, particularly for the reasons of health and environmental protection. Now is also the time for the Asian Pacific vegetarian societies to begin establishing communication and friendship with health and environment groups in other parts of the globe, which is also an indispensable issue.
I believe it is our hope that the forum can be a good opportunity for everyone to share their concern, experience, motivation, knowledge and expertise for the sake of the world. But the event can also be everyone’s joy in knowing one another from other parts of the planet.
It will be our timeless memory to see you all coming together to the 4th Asian Vegetarian Congress to give the world a true helping hand.
Warmest regards,
Susianto Tseng
Chairman Of the Organising Committee
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