Robert Grillo, Playing the Outside Game to Grow our Movement

As an activist for all species (including the human ones), Robert Grillo has played the role of thought leader as well as front line activist, leading campaigns, large-scale protests and other creative actions since 2012. He has learned as much from academia as he has from the streets, from first-hand experience in grassroots activism. Most figures involved in social change are either academics on the theory side or activists on the practice side. Rarely do you find those who engage equally in both the theory and application, providing a unique perspective that bridges that gap between the two important sides of every movement.

Grillo is also the founder and director of Free from Harm, a non profit dedicated to advancing a plant-based food system and challenging the dominance of animal agriculture since 2009. He founded Slaughter Free Network in 2018 with the intent of building a powerful grassroots base and carrying out dramatic and innovative actions to capture the attention of media, public and food industry powerholders.

John Beske and Marla Rose, Vegan Street’s 25th Birthday!

JOHN BESKE is a long-time veteran of graphic design, advertising and marketing with stints at a series of large and small advertising agencies including Leo Burnett and Della Femina McNamee. During this time, he produced print, television, promotional and retail advertising and design for dozens of companies including such famous brands as General Mills, Sony, Popsicle, Miller Brewing and, yes, even McDonald’s. Eventually, he became disillusioned the advertising industry and left the agency scene to become an art director for brands he believed were doing good in the world. Shortly after, he co-founded a visionary marketing agency called Sustain that devoted all of its work to building the messaging of non-profits in the environmental and social justice sectors including campaigns for Sierra Club, Earthjustice and the Rainforest Action Network. During this same time, he teamed up with Marla to create the pioneering website Vegan Street in 1998, and open a Chicago chapter of EarthSave International in 1999.  In 2005, he left Sustain to form John Beske Communications, which has been building the brands of vegan and ecologically responsible companies and organizations for more than a decade. John Beske Communications has now been folded into Vegan Street Media.

MARLA ROSE is an award-nominated journalist, columnist, public speaker, recipe developer and author as well as event planner. Since leaving her job in humane education in 1998, Marla has dedicated her life to building vegan culture and community and today she writes most of the content for Vegan Street. In 1999, Marla was the founding chairperson of EarthSave Chicago, which hosted dozens of monthly potlucks, each featuring speakers, and produced five major day-long vegan conferences called The Conference for Conscious Living, which ultimately evolved into  Chicago VeganMania, which was a popular free festival for ten years. In 2009, she and her partner John Beske were awarded Activists of the Year by Mercy for Animals and won Green America‘s People and Planet Award in 2015. For the past several years, she has been writing feature stories for magazines and has spoken at the Green Festival, Animal Rights Conference, Vegetarian Summerfest and many other conferences and festivals. She is a frequent writer for  VegNews  magazine, a writer of feature stories and author of several books.

Ed and Natasha Tatton, Bred, Sourdough Loaves, Small Breads, and Other Plant-Based Baking ED TATTON is a professional chef who has been to culinary college and worked in high-end kitchens in the UK, Australia, New Zealand as well as Canada, but now specializes in making organic naturally leavened sourdough. As co-owner of BReD–Organic Sourdough with his wife Natasha, Ed leads a small bakery team, making and baking bread, pizza dough, and other small baked goods. These days, Ed’s food is compassionately 100% plant-based, a movement he is passionately excited to be part of and help grow for the benefit of people, the planet, and animals. He lives in Whistler, BC. More on Ed on Instagram and Facebook: @eds_bred NATASHA TATTON is an English teacher turned bakery manager, animal rights advocate and co-founder of BReD–Organic Sourdough, a 100% plant-based café/bakery in Whistler, BC. Natasha has taught English all over the world but now leads a small front-of-house team of cashiers and baristas. She taught English and ventured into various food and beverage roles, nurturing her desire to establish a vegan eatery to provide more compassionate food choices for people.

Get BReD now!

Zen Honeycutt, Fast Food and School Lunches: Toxin Dense, Nutrient PoorZen Honeycutt is the Founding Executive Director of the non-profit, Moms Across America, a National Coalition of Unstoppable Moms with the motto “Empowered Moms, Healthy Kids.” Moms Across America’s leaders created over 1,000 community events in all 50 states to raise awareness about GMOs, toxins in the food supply, and other environmental issues that pose risk to the health of our families. The organization’s mission is to educate and empower mothers and others with actions and solutions to create healthy communities. Zen Honeycutt and Moms Across America initiated the first glyphosate testing in America and successfully petitioned Costco to remove Roundup from their shelves. She is the author of UNSTOPPABLE, Transforming Sickness and Struggle into Triumph, Empowerment, and Celebration of Community, the director of a short film called Communities Rising and the co-founder of the recently launched program called The Neighborhood Food Network whose mission is to create a parallel food system, one street at a time.

Shawna Weaver, PhD, Climate Grief, From Coping to Resilience and Action

Shawna Weaver is a career-long educator and mental health advocate. She spent her early career as a mental health therapist and school counselor. The climate crisis compelled her to return to graduate school to earn a PhD in Sustainability Education and explore the intersection of nature and human wellness. She has presented on environmental justice topics to audiences all over North America, Australia, and Europe. She is currently focused on education program development, household sustainability, and wellness advocacy. When she isn’t working or traveling, she is home in northern Minnesota, exploring trails with her three legged canine companion.

Nancy Leeds Gribble, Navigating MenopauseNancy Leeds Gribble is Founder & CEO of NourishLiftGrow. Nancy is a Women’s Wellness and Weight-loss Coach, Plant-based Culinary Nutrition Expert. She specializes in empowering women in midlife and beyond with the tools and guidance they need for optimal health, fat loss, hormone balance, and body confidence. She believes and shares how the transformative power of food can heal, support and build our health and create ageless vitality. Her motto: Don’t let aging change you, change the way you age – the Plant Powered Way!

Dr. Jeanette Rowley holds a PhD in Law and has a special interest in veganism and human rights. She has published widely and presented globally on the subject of legal protection for vegans. She founded and chaired The Vegan Society’s International Rights Network. Last year, she and Dr. Carlo Prisco edited Law and Veganism: International Perspectives on the Human Right to Freedom of Conscience (2022). Dr. Rowley is the driving force behind a decade of symposiums on vegan rights. She has given evidence in Mr. Casamitjana’s case and gave oral evidence for Canadian firefighter Adam Knauff.

Astrid Prevost is an ethical vegan and aspiring dietician. She battled bulimia for several years, until veganism gave Astrid the strength to create boundaries; to reject what she didn’t want; to say “no.” In respecting other animals, she found self-respect. Those boundaries are being tested now, by a cooking class that demands Astrid use animal products or risk failing. Astrid offered to substitute animal ingredients with vegan ones and submitted a doctor’s note. When both were rejected, she initiated a lawsuit in France for discrimination.

Tamara Bedić, is an ethical vegan, animal rescuer, employment attorney. Tamara is a past-President of the National Lawyers Guild, NYC chapter. She is chair of the Animal Rights Committee. When she’s not championing the rights of women in the workplace, she is organizing webinars or rescuing birds in distress. She is ‘Mom’ to two FIV+ tom cats.  Links mentioned in the podcast:

1. FREE WEBINAR: Expanding Vegan Rights, Tuesday, October 17, 2023, 12 – 1pm EDT

Four plaintiffs and three lawyers will discuss vegan discrimination cases in the U.S., UK, Canada and France. The laws of these countries differ, but the common goal is having ethical veganism recognized as a “creed” or “ethical belief” worthy of protection from discrimination. The ethical vegans who will be speaking about their individual cases are: Jerold Friedman, Jordi Casamitjana, Adam Knauff and Astrid Prevost.

2. Crowdfunding for Mathias, who will also speak on the above October 17th webinar: https://www.ulule.com/droit-detre-vegane/

Astrid shares this message with us:

I’d like to take this opportunity to let you know about this existential project supported by the AVF: in many collective catering places, vegans are prevented from eating according to their philosophy, and attempts are made to force them to consume animal products.

This is what happened to Mathias during a preventive incarceration. He was left with no access to vegan meals during 11 months, and sometimes could not eat anything for days as all dishes were cooked with dairy or eggs. Although he was in perfect health before being held in custody, he came out of detention malnourished and with several nutrient deficiencies.

Today, Mathias and his lawyer are taking the case to the European Court of Human Rights: if they win, this will have consequences in all 46 member countries of the Council of Europe. Beyond the prison setting, access to vegan meals will be recognized as a fundamental right.

We need your help to turn our right into a reality : we have a crowdfunding going on to finance Maître Olivier Peter’s work, a lawyer specializing in European and international law.

Every euro counts: please support us, and spread the word!

His lawyer, Olivier Peter, defended a lot of antispeciest and does it pro bono in front of national courts, but going to an international court like the ECHR requires a lot more work, and that’s why there is this crowdfunding.

Tamara Bedić, Jerold Friedman, Jordi Casamitjana: Vegan Discrimination Cases, Part I

Tamara Bedić, is an ethical vegan, animal rescuer, employment attorney. Tamara is a past-President of the National Lawyers Guild, NYC chapter. She is chair of the Animal Rights Committee. When she’s not championing the rights of women in the workplace, she is organizing webinars or rescuing birds in distress. She is ‘Mom’ to two FIV+ tom cats.

Jerold “Jerry” Friedman is vegan, an animal rights activist, and California attorney. Jerry was not yet a law student when he challenged South California Permanente Group (commonly known as Kaiser Permanente) for rescinding their employment offer after he refused a mandatory MMR vaccine. Later, as co-plaintiff with Viva!USA (the American arm of Viva!UK), Jerry won a lawsuit against Adidas from selling shoes made of kangaroo skin in California that violated California’s endangered species law. Jerry is founder of the Animal Law Practitioner listserv that helps animal attorneys from across the USA collaborate and a long-time member of the National Lawyers Guild.

Jordi Casamitjana is an ethical vegan, activist and author of (among other things) Ethical Vegan: A Personal and Political Journey to Change the World. Born in Spain but living in the UK, Jordi is a zoologist with a special love for wasps. Jordi was surprised to discover his pension fund at League Against Cruel Sports was supporting unethical industries– e.g. tobacco, oil and pharmaceutical companies that tested on animals. This is the official link of the rulings on his case.

Links mentioned in the podcast:

1. FREE WEBINAR: Expanding Vegan Rights, Tuesday, October 17, 2023, 12 – 1pm EDT

Four plaintiffs and three lawyers will discuss vegan discrimination cases in the U.S., UK, Canada and France. The laws of these countries differ, but the common goal is having ethical veganism recognized as a “creed” or “ethical belief” worthy of protection from discrimination. The ethical vegans who will be speaking about their individual cases are: Jerold Friedman, Jordi Casamitjana, Adam Knauff and Astrid Prevost.

2. Tyson and Perdue Are Facing Child Labor Investigations

Anouk Frolic, The Be Kind AlphabetAnouk Frolic is a long-time vegan animal rights activist who has used her artistic talents to be a voice for the animals. She lives in Toronto, Canada with her daughter, husband, and senior rescue cat. A graduate of OCADU (Ontario College of Art), she has been an illustrator for hire and owner of her own company, Anouk’s Ark (www.anouksark.com), where she created eco-educational games and puzzles about endangered species to ensure our beautiful planet is healthy for future generations to thrive in. This is the first children’s book Anouk has written and illustrated.&bsp;LINKS MENTIONED IN THE PROGRAM:Vegan Cheesy Sauce Recipe

Mark Rifkin, Implications of Chronic Disease and Climate-Related DisastersMark Rifkin is the Senior Food and Agriculture Policy Specialist at the Center for Biological Diversity, where he advances sustainable diets via policy. In addition to being a Registered Dietitian, he holds Master’s Degrees in health education and environmental science and policy. He specializes in practical applications of plant-based diets and implications for sustainability, policy and health. He is the author of a 2023 article published in a scientific journal on implications of chronic disease and climate-related disasters on health care capacity and nutrition policy. Mark previously worked in policy for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, provided nutrition counseling, and worked in environmental health. He’s been vegan since 1986.

Link mentioned in the program:Nutrition policy critical to optimize response to climate, public health crises