As an ethical stance, we’re familiar with veganism, its tenets, and how it translates to our daily lives. Outside of that, you’d be surprised to learn about the many points with which veganism intersects, and today we’re exploring one: the relationship between veganism, and leadership.

Leadership coach Nancy Wehnert is on the show to discuss her approach to leadership, and how that connects to veganism. Nancy is a leadership coach who works with leaders and their teams. After running her own company for 15 years and seeing her team members struggling with how to perform at their best, she became passionate about leadership and building cohesive, high-performing teams. 

We speak about her method in doing that, and how the glories of plant-based life supported the process [and beyond]. 

Sheep farmer-turned-vegan JH Burnett speaks with me about his experiences in animal agriculture, his vegan transition, and more. This is one of the most raw conversations that’s been aired on the podcast thus far, so I’m really grateful to JH for sharing his story.   JH is a former sheep farmer and breeder in the dairy industry who, after the atrocities he witnessed in these industries, turned vegan and an animal rights activist. He openly shares his gruelling story and absolute low point, and how he gave life a second chance, dedicating himself to the animal liberation movement.   He’s written a memoir, Ex-Farmer Goes Vegan, offers vegan-inspired coaching programs, and, along with his wife Elle, co-creates a variety of vegan children’s books.   Trigger warnings: animal abuse and suicide.

Why are doctors talking about connection? What is connection medicine and is connection just a "nice-to-have" or does it really impact your physical health and disease outcomes?

My guests today, Drs. Alona Pulde and Matthew Lederman, combined conventional Western medicine, Chinese medicine, Lifestyle medicine, Nonviolent Communication, Polyvagal Theory, and Trauma-Informed, Somatic Principles & Pain Reprocessing to create their groundbreaking health paradigm. 

They have been successful corporate leaders, starred in the documentary Forks over Knives, lectured for eCornell, served as adjunct medical school professors and corporate medical advisors, and are New York Times bestselling authors.

Where are the places where veganism, plant-based living, and business practices intersect? We have found some, and we’re here to share the intel!

Cynthia Owen joins me on the show to talk about making veganism more mainstream, leveraging grants to help businesses move forward with plant-based offerings, and her coaching work, including being part of a cultural/global movement for women.

Cynthia is a seasoned Mentor and Coach in the realm of personal growth and skill development, having supported over a hundred Fempreneurs to take their businesses to the next level. With advanced degrees in science and economics, Cynthia brings more than 25 years of professional experience in market analysis, program design and delivery to the table. 

Should kids be eating a plant-based diet? Will kids who are vegan be inherently more prone to vitamin deficiencies? We’re jumping into these questions and more on today’s podcast episode. 

Dr. Leigh Ettinger has been a medical doctor since 1998 but did not learn about the plant-based diet until 2014. He made changes in his own eating and quickly saw the benefits.

He’s earned a certificate in plant-based nutrition from eCornell and is now board certified in obesity medicine. He enjoys helping families successfully change course to a plant-strong path for their health, for the animals, for social justice, and for the environment.

In this ititeration of the 'Ask Us Anything' series, our listeners make the call on what we're speaking about, and what we dive into!

We answer questions that have been received from listeners [via email, Facebook, and Instagram], on everything from strength training and recovery, to veganism and tattoos, to intermittent fasting...and a heck of a lot more. 

We packed as many answers to listener questions as we could into this episode, and promise to return with another episode to cover the questions we couldn't address.

If you're looking for a multi-faceted, multi-subject, BS-busting episode, you've found it! 

Jen Sinkler has a few different titles: writer, editor, trainer, and art maker [to name a few.]

In recent years, her focus as a fitness trainer has pivoted. She trains clients out of a local gym and hosts a community workout group, but her focus has expanded to a bigger-picture approach: learning about the links between the environment and personal health. We discuss a few things that aren’t working in the fitness industry, ableism in the sector, and Jen's process of learning about community organization, and how to get involved with pertinent issues on local and state-wide levels.

 

Since 2018, Jen has been studying and practicing various forms of visual art — drawing and collage, in particular — and she’s preparing to launch a greeting-cards company. 

 

We discuss her many roles, projects, and what she’s discovered as her focus in the fitness industry has shifted [you’ll want to hear this!]

In this episode I share with you a few thoughts on my birthday, and a presentation I gave recently at a health expo, about veganism and strength training. This is a great place to start if you’re new to either veganism or strength training (or both). And if you’re *not* new to these worlds, it’ll be a good refresher to make sure you’ve nailed the fundamentals.

Learn why I no longer set annual goals on my birthday (and which two books had the biggest impact on me in this area), and how I celebrated this year. Also get the basics on the 6 fundamental strength training movement patterns you need to include in your workouts each week, a few nutrients to which active vegans need to pay extra attention, muscle gain and/or fat loss on a plant-based diet, and everyone’s favourite vegan topic: protein.

Professor Laura Fox is the Douglas M. Costle Chair in Environmental Law and Director of the Farmed Animal Advocacy Clinic at Vermont Law & Graduate School.

In 2018, California voters approved Proposition 12, which prohibits the sale of pork, eggs, and veal from animals that were raised in extreme confinement and unsanitary conditions, regardless of where they were raised (in California or elsewhere). Groups with farming interests challenged this law. Recently, the Supreme Court rejected the challenge, upholding Proposition 12.

Professor Fox and I discuss the implications of this decision on animal welfare in the future, its food safety and public health effects, how her work fits in with her long-term veganism, and more.

Vangile Makwakwa is an author, podcast host, founder of wealthy-money.com, and of course: vegan!

Vangile shares her vegan story, how veganism factors into the retreats she leads, and how it supported her through releasing trauma.

Speaking to the impact that different forms of systemic oppression have on personal finances and wealth, Vangile discusses her finance journey from a deeply personal perspective, and outlines how that has informed her career.