Hope for the Animals

Joanne Kong joins us on the Hope for the Animals Podcast to talk about her new book Vegan Made Easy: A Practical Guide to Plant-Based Living. This episode  explores the how-to of living vegan.  Joanne talks about why she felt it was important to start the book with the vegan connection to social justice. She and Hope also talk about the difference between vegan and plantbased, sticky situations that vegans encounter and how to deal with them, how to avoid animal products beyond food, and some responses to frequently asked carnist questions.

Dr. Joanne Kong’s new book Vegan Made Easy: A Practical Guide to Plant-Based Living provides practical tips and know-how for those on their plant-based journey. It covers a wide range of topics including ways to make the transition, stocking your vegan kitchen, meal-planning, shopping, understanding food labels, plus advice on navigating social challenges, travel, and eating out. Beyond diet, other lifestyle aspects of vegan living are explored as well. 

Vegan advocate Dr. Joanne Kong has spoken throughout the United States, including talks at numerous vegfests, conferences, high schools, and universities. Her highly-praised TEDx talk, The Power of Plant-Based Eating, at over 1 million views on YouTube, is placed on numerous websites internationally. Dr. Kong is the editor of Vegan Voices: Essays by Inspiring Changemakers, released in 2021 by Lantern Publishing & Media. She also appears in the major documentary, Eating Our Way to Extinction. As a critically-acclaimed concert pianist, Joanne incorporates the arts into her animal advocacy with benefit concerts for animal sanctuaries, as well as unique Strands of Compassion events presented by VEGAN VIRTUOSI, a duo with cellist Dr. Christoph Wagner. Her new book, Vegan Made Easy: A Practical Guide to Plant-Based Living, is out now.  

 Resources: 

Joanne’s website: www.vegansmakeadifference.com

Joanne’s Book: Vegan Made Easy: A Practical Guide to Plant-Based Living

Eugene VeganFest, May 3, 2026

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On this episode we are tackling the cultural and political shift back to meat, saturated fat, high-protein diets and the connection to hyper-masculinity. The US is seeing a resurgence of meat-eating as a symbol of masculinity, masculinism, meat connected to identity politics and the “culture wars”. Our guest, Jan Liband, will explore the social factors driving this backlash and explore how social media, economic uncertainly, and fear are motivating this trend. 

Jan and Hope talk about how toxic masculinity, a toxic subsidized meat economy, and a response to progressive advancements are components propelling the meat-heavy movement. They also talk about the pervasive myths around meat, protein, and muscle building, and how these affect men in particular. There are strong phycological factors at play that are embedded in our culture and are resurfacing in our current political climate. 

Jan Liband is a fact-based environmentalist, public speaker, and former Silicon Valley veteran who has been vegan since the 1980s. He has an academic background in psychology plus decades in marketing and has studied our shifting attitudes towards food and the growing environmental and health impacts of our global food system for decades. Jan volunteers for several vegan and environmental organizations and serves as Chief Researcher and Speaker for Plant-Based Advocates, a Bay Area based non-profit and is a board member of Compassionate Living. In addition to advocacy, Jan is an accomplished athlete, martial artist, and professional musician who holds a degree in Psychology from U.C. Santa Cruz.

Resources: 

FILM: The Game Changers

BOOK: The Sexual Politics of Meat

Atlantic Article: America is Done Pretending About Meat: Plant Based Eating Has Lost Its Appeal

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Hope is hosting Compassionate Living’s Humane Hoax Online Conference on March 17, 2026 and to entice you to register, we are replaying a fantastic conversation from Episode 81 on humanewashing in journalism. Lisa Barca is one of the 18 contributing authors to Hope’s anthology The Humane Hoax: Essays Exposing the Myth of Happy Meat, Humane Dairy and Ethical Eggs and they had an insightful conversation that we wanted to share again. The theme of this year's Humane Hoax Online Conference is language and narrative, so this conversation reflects our focus for the conference and we hope that you will register! The link is below. 

Lisa has fascinating insights into the portrayal of farmers, farmed animals, and our relationship to animals in her chapter and discusses them with Hope in this conversation. She explains the “absent referent,” or the erasing or hiding of animal’s identities and how it relates to the humane hoax. She also talks about how the new “humane” do-it-yourself slaughter normalizes violence toward animals and she offers advice to journalists, and to us all, on language that helps the animals to be seen and heard in media stories about them.

Lisa Barca is a lecturer in the Honors College at Arizona State University, where she teaches humanities, writing courses, and seminars on the ethics of humans’ relationships with other animals. Her current research centers on critical animal studies, media ethics, rhetoric and ideology, and the intersections of feminism and animal rights. She holds a Ph.D. in Romance Languages and Literatures and is a contributing author to the volume Meatsplaining: The Meat Industry and the Rhetoric of Denial and also to The Humane Hoax: Essays Exposing the Myth of Happy Meat, Humane Dairy, and Ethical Eggs.

Resources:

Humane Hoax Online Conference Information

Conference Registration

Order Hope Bohanec’s Book: The Humane Hoax: Essays Exposing the Myth of Happy Meat, Humane Dairy, and Ethical Eggs

Social media is ubiquitous. Love it or hate it, social media's influence shapes our lives and steers our culture. Johnny Oberg uses this power for the good of animals. Johnny has a social media superpower with 300,000 followers and millions of eyes on his persuasive posts. He and Hope discuss the potency of social media to transform our world to one that cares about animal freedom. They talk about how to deal with “trolls” in your comments as well as AI generated content and how it might affect the believability of animal abuse content. 

Johnny Oberg is an animal advocate dedicated to making the world a kinder place for animals by utilizing the power of social media. A vegan since 2009 he became an independent advocate in 2018 funded through individual donations, focusing on amplifying pro-animal content in the digital space. Previously, he served as Director of New Media for The Humane League and as Director of Communications for Vegan Outreach. In his decade of experience in social media advocacy, he has accumulated 300,000 followers his posts have been viewed 500 million times, and he has heard from thousands of people who've been influenced by his work. 

Resources:

Official website: JohnOberg.org

Donations: Donorbox.org/JohnOberg

Instagram: Instagram.com/JohnOberg

Twitter: Twitter.com/JohnOberg

Facebook: Facebook.com/JohnObergOfficial

Threads: Threads.net/@JohnOberg

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/johnoberg.bsky.social

YouTube: YouTube.com/user/JohnOberg

LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/JohnSOberg/

Article: Stop Saying Factory Farming

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In this solo episode of Hope for the Animals, host Hope Bohanec breaks down major recent developments shaking the vegan and animal advocacy world. From the return of beef and dairy to the top of U.S. dietary guidelines, to government-backed support for the beef industry, to controversial new campaign encouraging people to donate money instead of going vegan — Hope examines how political power, industry influence, and shifting advocacy strategies impact animals, public health, and social change.

Hope calls for renewed moral clarity, reminding listeners that behind every policy and marketing campaign are living, feeling beings. With honesty, urgency, and compassion, she explores why ethics must stay at the center of veganism, why individual choices still matter, and why speaking up is more important than ever — especially when it feels like we're moving backward. With heartfelt conviction, this episode challenges complacency, defends individual action, and encourages advocates to stay vocal, critical, and empowered in the long game for animal freedom.

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Grassroots activism is at the heart of justice movements, but animal advocacy has undergone significant changes in recent years. The grassroots has dried up and resources and energy has shifted. Laila Kassam has dedicated the past decade to researching social justice movements and analyzing their effectiveness. She will share her insights and practical strategies for implementing a healthy movement ecosystem in our latest episode.

Laila is a Founder and Director of Project Phoenix, cultivating a national network of organizations and individuals working toward shared goals for animal freedom. Laila is a Co-Founder and former Director of Animal Think Tank where she served for six years. She is co-editor of the book ‘Rethinking Food and Agriculture: New Ways Forward’ which envisions a truly just and sustainable food system. She is on the Advisory Board of Animal Advocacy Careers and The Empathy Project and a mentor for Kickstarting for Good. Laila has been involved in social change for most of her career having previously worked in international development for 15 years. She has a PhD in Development Economics (SOAS) and an MSc in Development Management (LSE).

Resources:

• Project Phoenix Website: https://www.project-phoenix.org.uk/
• Substack Post: Have we lost our nerve as a movement?: https://projectphoenixuk.substack.com/p/have-we-lost-our-nerve-as-a-movement
• Animal Freedom Network: https://www.animalfreedom.org.uk/
• Substack post on the first phase of the RSPCA campaign last year: https://projectphoenixuk.substack.com/p/for-charlie-a-unified-campaign-to

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Hope’s husband, Cogen, returns to the show for a unique discussion on the portrayal of animal personhood in media. They delve into the evolution of children’s entertainment and examine the representation of animals as individual, intelligent persons. Cogen and Hope explore how the depiction of animal personhood in these films has shaped our perception of animals. From Mickey Mouse to Charlotte’s Web and the Muppets, they examine how we have come to empathize with animals and recognize their emotional nature and how far we still have to go.

Films discussed:

Early Mickey Mouse Cartoons
Bambi
Dumbo
The Fox and the Hound
Beauty and the Beast
Princess and the Frog
101 Dalmatians
The Secret of NIHM
Charlotte’s Web
Babe
Finding Nemo
Finding Dory
Moana
Luca
Brother Bear
Kung Fu Panda
The Lion King
The Muppets

On this episode we explore Buddhism with Forrest Tierce, U.S. Project Director for Dharma Voices for Animals (DVA). DVA works to raise awareness on the connection between the ecological crisis caused by animal agriculture and Buddhist ethics—helping individuals and communities align their food choices with sustainability and compassion for all beings. 

Forrest has been a dedicated vegan for 18 years and draws from two decades of Buddhist practice across multiple traditions, with a deep commitment to the heart of the Buddha’s teachings—especially the Five Precepts—as guiding principles for compassionate and ethical living.

Forrest’s story of transformation is inspiring. He grew up in Texas, his father worked in poultry industry, and in this youth, he hunted and fished animals. Forrest shares how he transformed to a life of nonviolence through Buddhism and vegan living. He talks about how practitioners of the teachings of the Buddha strive to reduce the amount of suffering in the world, but how that can too often leave out animals exploited for food. 

His new campaign with DVA is called the Sustainable Sanga Collative That supports Buddhist sangas and retreat centers in serving plant based foods. Forrest also tells us about when he was a park ranger and how he would incorporate vegan ethics into his presentations for park visitors. 

Resources:

Dharma Voices for Animals

Sustainable Sanga Collative

Ahimsa Living Circle

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Joining us today is Dr. Faraz Harsini, the founder and CEO of Allied Scholars for Animal Protection (ASAP). Faraz shares with Hope the importance of creating ongoing infrastructure on US college campuses that students can utilize for continued outreach. They discuss various vegan education tactics such as the use of graphic imagery and its effectiveness. Faraz also talks about encouraging changes to dining halls and how student activists should focus on increasing vegan options and not distractions like cage-free egg transitions. 

Dr. Faraz Harsini is a food systems and biomedical scientist. He holds a degree in Chemical Engineering with a focus on environmental research and nanobiotechnology, an MSc in cancer research, and a PhD in Cell Physiology and Molecular Biophysics.  As the founder and CEO of Allied Scholars for Animal Protection (ASAP), he is building permanent infrastructure in university to protect animals. Through ASAP, Faraz empowers students, promotes veganism, advances alternatives to animal testing in universities and medical schools, and helps dining halls transition to plant based food systems.  He also lectures at many universities educating students on the benefits of a vegan diet. 

Resources:

www.alliedscholars.org

www.instagram.com/alliedscholars

www.instagram.com/dr_faraz_harsini

www.youtube.com/c/DrFarazHarsini

https://twitter.com/DrFarazHarsini

Website:

www.alliedscholars.org

Ahimsa Living Circle Registration

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Hope is right at home this episode talking about one of her favorite subjects, humanewashing. Lia Wilbourn joins Hope for a conversation about their mutual frustration with the humane hoax and the deceptive marketing and cover-up tactics employed by the animal farming industry. They explore the detrimental impact of continuing to use the term “factory farming” and argue that the animal advocacy movement should phase it out. Lia and Hope also discuss the cage-free egg industry transition, challenging the notion that this industry shift is a positive development for animals. They also address the criticism of using the word “vegan” and how some people are saying that we shouldn’t use the word as it has too many negative connotations. There are lots of strong opinions on advocacy in this one, we unpack it all for you! 

Lia Wilbourn has been active in a wide range of animal rights activism, including street outreach, demonstrations, writing, social media, speeches and art as activism. She is currently the Farmed Animals Campaign Coordinator at In Defense of Animals, advocating via articles, petitions, videos, etc. and co-hosting a monthly online Vegan Mentor Support Group. She also works with Allied Scholars for Animal Protection, is a volunteer on the Humane Hoax Project team, and is certified in Plant-Based Nutrition through Cornell University. 

Resources:

Lia’s Contact/Instagram: @liaforanimals

The Humane Hoax Project

Article: Fixating on Factory Farms...

Article: Stop (Saying) Factory Farming

The Ahimsa Living Circle monthly online gathering: info and registration

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