Hope for the Animals

Vegan Voices Series 4: Hope starts us off with an update from one of our recent Glimmers of Hope segments and some thoughts on the climate summit in Glasgow. She then has a conversation with Rae Sikora who has been a spokesperson for animals, the environment, and human rights for over forty years. Rae is the co-founder of The Institute for Humane Education, VegFund, Santa Fe Vegan, and Plant Peace Daily. She is the author and co-author of numerous books and has also contributed an essay in the new anthology Vegan Voices: Essays By Inspiring Changemakers. Her essay, called “There is No Other,” is a reflection on how our proximity to and relationship with others, human and nonhuman, can determine how we treat them. Hope and Rae have an inspiring conversation about how important it is to recognize each individual and not judge any being with our preconceived notions of the group they are part of.  They discuss the culture of animals and Rae also offers some thoughts for combating compassion fatigue and despair with selfcare.

Resources:

Vegan Voices: Essays by Inspiring Changemakers

Plant Peace Daily

 DOVE Retreat Center

Book: Little Jew on the Soul Train

Santa Fe Vegan FaceBook Group

Vegan Voices Series 3: Twelve years ago, Stephanie Redcross-West started the company Vegan Mainstream which provides tools, training, and support for the brave individuals who identify themselves as vegan professionals. Stephanie has contributed an essay to the anthology Vegan Voices: Essays by Inspiring Changemakers, edited by Joanne Kong, that explores her work inspiring others to turn their vegan passion into successful businesses. She talks to Hope about how anyone can align their career with their vegan values and how to get started. Stephanie dreams big and is helping business entrepreneurs to transform their dreams and ideas into tangible goals to create a just, sustainable, vegan future.

Resources:

 Vegan Mainstream

Vegan Voices: Essays by Inspiring Changemakers

Vegan Voices Series 2: Thomas Wade Jackson is the director of the award-winning, feature-length documentary, A Prayer for Compassion and the founder of The Compassion Project, a multi-media production company. He also has an essay in the new anthology Vegan Voices, Essays by Inspiring Changemakers, edited by Joanne Kong. Thomas and Hope have a wonderful conversation about the connection between spirituality and veganism, what the Bible says about our relationship with animals, his latest film project, and his essay in Vegan Voices called Vegangelism and the Gospel of Spiritual Alignment. Thomas explains why he calls himself a Vegangelist and shares with us the “good news” about veganism. 

Resources:

Vegan Voices: Essays by Inspiring Changemakers

A Prayer for Compassion (film)

Interfaith Vegan Coalition

Compassion Consortium  

Vegan Voices Series: Dr. Joanne Kong has been praised throughout the world as one of the most compelling advocates for veganism today. She has given presentations at numerous vegan events, summits, and conferences. Joanne has written books and has a TEDx talk called The Power of Plant-Based Eating. Her new  anthology, Vegan Voices: Essays by Inspiring Changemakers, is the inspiration for our new Vegan Voices Series where we will be featuring selected authors from this book throughout the fall. Join us to hear all about this ambitious book with over 50 animal advocacy writers, all with different journeys, experiences, and unique forms of activism. 

Resources:

Link to Buy the Book:  https://lanternpm.org/books/vegan-voices/

Website: www.vegansmakeadifference.com

TEDx Talk: The Power of Plant-Based Eating, Joanne Kong

Hope’s flying solo today with a sweet story of rescue. Kakkuta the rooster was covered with blood when Hope found him in a parking lot. This rescue story will touch your heart and open your eyes to the plight of roosters in the egg industry. Hope explains why Kakkuta almost died because people believe the myth that backyard chicken keeping is a more ethical way to obtain eggs. Wherever there is a situation where hens are being kept for their eggs, we must always ask, “Where are their brothers?” Join us for this powerful story of rescue and get ready to open your eyes and heart to the truth that eating eggs, no matter the label, causes suffering. 

Resources:

United Poultry Concerns- Backyard Eggs Info

The Reason for Vegan Series: “Cage-Free” and “Free-Range” Eggs Explained

Hope starts us off today with a review of the Netflix show Sweet Tooth. She delves into the animal rights themes of hunting, experimentation, and speciesism that are explored in this thoughtful new show.

 Then Hope has a conversation with Gopi Om (Nicole Sopko) who has been teaching yoga for over a decade and has completed the advanced level Life of a Yogi teacher training at the Dharma Yoga Center in New York. A vegan for over 20 years, Gopi works alongside her partner, Dan, as Vice President of the natural foods company, Upton's Naturals. Gopi and Hope talk about yogic philosophy and how it relates to protecting animals. They also discuss Gopi’s company Upton’s Naturals and their focus on minimally processed, whole food ingredients for meat alternatives. Upton’s was a plaintiff in a lawsuit against the state of Mississippi for its insidious proposed law limiting what plant-based food companies could label their products with a possible two-year jail sentence for violators selling vegan meat alternatives.

Resources:

Uptons’ Naturals

Episode 23: Ahimsa and the Spiritual Path

On this episode, we have Glen Merzer joining us. Glen has authored and co-authored eleven books about veganism. He was a playwright who also wrote for network television for many years before stumbling into a career writing books that advocate for a plant-based diet. In his latest book, Food Is Climate, he argues that the best way to reverse climate change is a global shift to a vegan diet. Glen talks to Hope about how rewilding millions of acres of grazing land is our best chance for a fast and effective drawdown of carbon emissions. Glen also debunks the proposed new farming methods of “regenerative” animal agriculture and "grass-fed" meat, and enlightens us about how important the oceans are to the climate crisis. Join us for an important discussion about the future of the planet and how we can save it.

Resources: 

Get the Book! Food is Climate

www.glenmerzer.com

Antiracism in Animal Advocacy: Igniting Cultural Transformation

Vegan Voices: Essays By Inspiring Changemakers

We begin todays show with another Glimmers of Hope Segment where Hope shares some good news stories for animals from around the world. Then we are joined by Dr. Leila Dehghan. Leila is a medical doctor turned plant-based nutritionist. After transitioning to a whole food, plant-based lifestyle, she earned a Plant-Based Nutrition Certificate and obtained a Master’s of Science in Clinical and Public Health Nutrition. Her focus is to find effective ways to address racial and socio-economic issues that affect health. Her project "Athletes, Food & Diversity" seeks to introduce a plant-based diet to people of the global majority (a new term coined to refer to Black, Indigenous and people of color). Leila talks to Hope about racism’s negative effect on health, the importance of creating inclusive content in the vegan movement, and veganism as a social justice issue. 

Resources:

Athletes, Food & Diversity

Facebook: Dr Leila D.- Plant-Powered Qi Nutrition

Instagram: @plantpowered_qi_nutrition

Website: drleilad.com

Leila recommends this important article from Sentient Media

Book from Encompass: Antiracism in Animal Advocacy: Igniting Cultural Transformation

For the fifth and final installment of our Microsanctuary Series, we are joined by Quincy Markowitz. Quincy is the co-founder of Farm Bird Sanctuary, a bird-only sanctuary located in southern Wisconsin. They have been caring for chickens for over ten years and also engage in community action, including a campaign against a yearly “chicken toss” event at a local “Pioneer Days” festival where chickens are thrown from the second story roof of a building to crowds of people. Quincy tells Hope about the challenges and joys of rescuing roosters, problems with free ranging hens bred for their eggs, and their first love, a rooster named Sunny. 

Resources:

Farm Bird Sanctuary

Microsanctuary Resource Center

Our guest today is joining us from Ireland! James O'Donovan is a long time vegan and environmentalist. He is the chair of the Cork Environmental Forum and he runs an online magazine called Vegan Sustainably. James is working on projects that redirect government funding and subsidies from animal agriculture to ecosystem restoration and plant farming. He explains the damaging impacts of subsidizing animal agriculture and the detrimental harms of regenerative grazing. James explores the connection between the mindset of European colonizers and our speciesist views today and what he calls the colonialism of land and the colonialism of seed. He also shares his journey with Buddhist meditation that has helped expand his views of compassion and nonviolence.

Resources:

 Vegan Sustainability Online Magazine 

Grazed and Confused YouTube Video

Avoiding Meat and Dairy is the Single Biggest Way to Reduce Your Impact on the Earth- Article