We love hearing what’s going on in the world of veganism and animal rights around the world, and this week we catch up with Gina Song Lopez, who is conducting research on the vegan and animal rights movement in Taiwan and China.

Gina Song Lopez is a PhD candidate at the Centre for East and South-East Asian Studies and a member of the Lund University Critical Animal Studies Network at Lund University in Sweden. Her research focuses on the Veg*n/plant-based movement in Taiwan and China. Meatless diets in East Asia have been traditionally associated with religious practice. However, in recent years there has been a noticeable expansion of motivations to adopt veganism and vegetarianism. The new generation of vegans and vegetarians are concerned about issues of animal protection, climate change, health, and self-cultivation. This shift brings attention to changing narratives around veg*n food and identity. As such, her project is also concerned with how ‘new’ veganism is translated into the regional cultural (and political) contexts and the actors involved in this translation.

• • Farm Sanctuary
  • Gina Song Lopez on Instagram
  • Lund University Critical Animal Studies Network

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Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today.

Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcatcher, and don’t forget to leave a 5-star review!

Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series.

Join us in the Our Hen House Community, or follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren.

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This episode is brought to you in part through the generosity of A Well-Fed World. A Well-Fed World provides the means for change by empowering individuals, social justice organizations, and political decision-makers to embrace the benefits of plant-based foods and farming. Learn more at awfw.org.

Strategy is a big topic of debate amongst animal activists. What is the best way forward to create the most change? Esther Salomon of Animal Think Tank joins us to discuss the strategies and many lessons the animal rights community can learn from other justice movements throughout history.

Esther Salomon helped kick-start Animal Rising as a full-time member in 2019 and supported it through its first wave of resistance to later become a founder and director of Animal Think Tank. She is currently working towards establishing VARC (the vegan and animal rights conference), a grassroots gathering for animal advocates in the UK. She is a certified Kingian Nonviolence Level One Trainer and has a background in nonviolent strategy and civil resistance for Animal Freedom.

• Animal Think Tank website
• Animal Think Tank on X
• Animal Think Tank on Facebook
• Animal Think Tank on YouTube

• Direct Action Everywhere activists face felony and misdemeanor charges
• Animal Law Podcast #99: The Case of the Prohibited Protest
• Live to 100: Secrets of the Blue Zones
• This Is an Uprising: How Nonviolent Revolt Is Shaping the Twenty-First Century
• Doing Democracy: The Map Model for Organizing Social Movements
• In Peace and Freedom: My Journey in Selma

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Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today.

Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcatcher, and don’t forget to leave a 5-star review!

Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series.

Join us in the Our Hen House Community, or follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren.

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This episode is brought to you in part through the generosity of A Well-Fed World. A Well-Fed World provides the means for change by empowering individuals, social justice organizations, and political decision-makers to embrace the benefits of plant-based foods and farming. Learn more at awfw.org.

Every activist knows that journalists who are willing to cover serious animal stories are all too rare, but this week we will be talking to someone who has carved out a career doing exactly that. Freelance journalist and animal advocate Jessica Scott-Reid shares her experience in the world of animal-related journalism.

Jessica Scott-Reid is a freelance journalist and animal advocate. She has been writing about animal rights and welfare, climate change, vegan culture, and plant-based foods for nearly a decade. Her work is regularly featured in mainstream media across Canada and beyond, such as The Globe and Mail and Toronto Star, as well as in advocacy publications like Sentient Media and Planet Friendly News. She was the co-host of the Paw and Order Podcast and the mother to one daughter, two dogs, and a rescued fish and snail.

• Jessica Scott-Reid on Facebook
• Jessica Scott-Reid on Twitter
• Jessica Scott-Reid on Instagram

• Recycling and other myths about climate change
• The Vegan on Bookshop.org
• Jessica Scott-Reid on Sentient Media
• Jessica Scott-Reid on MuckRack
• Jessica Scott-Reid on Canada’s National Observer

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Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today.

Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcatcher, and don’t forget to leave a 5-star review!

Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series.

Join us in the Our Hen House Community, or follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren.

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This episode is brought to you in part through the generosity of A Well-Fed World. A Well-Fed World provides the means for change by empowering individuals, social justice organizations, and political decision-makers to embrace the benefits of plant-based foods and farming. Learn more at awfw.org.

There’s nothing we love more than talking to people who are saving animals in places we’ve never been to, and today we’ll be talking to Sneha Shrestha in Nepal about her extraordinary work saving dogs, helping farmed animals, and spreading veganism through her organization, Sneha’s Care.

Sneha Shrestha is a prominent animal advocate and vegan activist based in Nepal. She is the founder of Sneha’s Care, a nonprofit committed to protecting farmed animals and community dogs from cruelty through rescues, welfare initiatives, and education. To date, Sneha’s Care has rescued over 15,000 animals as part of its mission to create a society that treats animals humanely.

• Sneha’s Care Website
• Sneha’s Care on Facebook
• Sneha’s Care on Instagram
• Sneha’s Care on X

• The mystery of the social media disinformation war on plant-based meat
• The Backlash to Plant-Based Meat Is No Coincidence
• The New Science the Plant-Based Industry Needs To Know
• Grazed and Confused: In ‘The Vegan,’ a Guilty Hedge Funder Eats His Feelings

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Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today.

Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcatcher, and don’t forget to leave a 5-star review!

Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series.

Join us in the Our Hen House Community, or follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren.

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This episode is brought to you in part through the generosity of A Well-Fed World. A Well-Fed World provides the means for change by empowering individuals, social justice organizations, and political decision-makers to embrace the benefits of plant-based foods and farming. Learn more at awfw.org.

Do you try to keep up with animal-related legislation but sometimes find yourself wondering what it all means? This week we get some answers regarding the hugely important EATS Act and the effort to eradicate state animal welfare laws from Chris Green, Executive Director of the Brooks McCormick Jr. Animal Law & Policy Program at Harvard Law.

Chris Green is the Executive Director of the Brooks McCormick Jr. Animal Law & Policy Program at Harvard Law School,  former Chair of the American Bar Association’s TIPS Animal Law Committee, and, previously, the Director of Legislative Affairs for the Animal Legal Defense Fund. A graduate of Harvard Law School and the University of Illinois, Chris regularly testifies at legislative hearings on animal protection matters and has been quoted on animal legal issues in dozens of major media outlets.  In 2022, Chris received the American Bar Association’s Award for Excellence in the Advancement of Animal Law.

• Brooks McCormick Jr Animal Law & Policy Program at Harvard Law School
• Harvard Animal Law & Policy Program on Facebook
• Harvard Animal Law & Policy Program on X
• Harvard Animal Law & Policy Program on LinkedIn

_____________________________________________

Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today.

Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcatcher, and don’t forget to leave a 5-star review!

Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series.

Join us in the Our Hen House Community, or follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren.

__________________________

This episode is brought to you in part through the generosity of A Well-Fed World. A Well-Fed World provides the means for change by empowering individuals, social justice organizations, and political decision-makers to embrace the benefits of plant-based foods and farming. Learn more at awfw.org.

There is no place more relaxing than a beautiful garden, and nothing better to eat than homegrown fruits and vegetables, but what is a vegan to do when all of the potting soils and fertilizers are riddled with animal products? Jimmy Videle has the answers, and he joins us today to discuss his new book, The Veganic Grower’s Handbook: Cultivating Fruits, Vegetables, and Herbs from Urban Backyard to Rural Farmyard, as well as the new North American Veganic Certification Standard.

Jimmy Videle is a farmer, activist, naturalist, consultant, and researcher. He has been a consultant and researcher with A.U.M. Films (producers of Cowspiracy and What the Health), Humane Party USA, and the Animal Protection Party, Canada. He lives with his wife, Mélanie Bernier, and five rescue cats on the small-scale veganic farm, La Ferme de l’Aube, in Boileau, Québec. A full-time organic farmer since 2005, he is also the author of the recently released The Veganic Grower’s Handbook: Cultivating Fruits, Vegetables, and Herbs from Urban Backyard to Rural Farmyard, the host of The Veganic Grower’s Hour YouTube show, and the co-founder of the North American Veganic Certification Standard.

• ‘Poisoned: The Dirty Truth About Your Food’: Everything You Need to Know
• The Truth About Your Bacon
• A new investigation exposes the stomach-churning practice that goes into making your bacon
• Activists call it rescue. Farms call it stealing. What is ‘open rescue’?
• The Veganic Growers Handbook
• Jimmy Videle Facebook
• Jimmy Videle – Veganic Grower on YouTube
• North American Veganic Certification Standard
• La Ferme de l’Aube

_____________________________________________

Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today.

Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcatcher, and don’t forget to leave a 5-star review!

Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series.

Join us in the Our Hen House Community, or follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren.

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This episode is brought to you in part through the generosity of A Well-Fed World. A Well-Fed World provides the means for change by empowering individuals, social justice organizations, and political decision-makers to embrace the benefits of plant-based foods and farming. Learn more at awfw.org.

Panicked about climate? Wondering what to do? Nate Salpeter and Shira Jacobson join us to discuss Sweet Farm, a sanctuary that is attacking the climate crisis from many different angles. From animal rescue to the most sophisticated agriculture technology, from plant-based regenerative ag to composting, Sweet Farm will give you hope and inspire you on your journey!

Nate Salpeter, who holds a Ph.D. in engineering, is, along with Anna Sweet, a co-founder of Sweet Farm, which is a place of education, inspiration, and innovation through farm animal rescue, regenerative agriculture, and technology initiatives to scale accessible change in the food and climate systems globally. Nate is also an investor in the alternative protein, agriculture technology, and sustainability sectors and a general partner at SNØCAP, an emerging climate innovation fund that aims to enable sector shifts and unlock the potential for previously unimaginable companies to exist.

Shira Jacobson is a marketing and social media specialist and the Development and Communications Manager at Sweet Farm, where she works to make the world a kinder, more sustainable place for all.

• Save the Planet, Put Down that Hamburger
• What’s a Plant-Based Diet? Here’s What You Need to Know to Eat Less Meat.
• Calling Plant-Based Food ‘Vegan’ Makes Fewer People Choose It, Study Finds
• Sweet Farm’s website
• Sweet Farm on Instagram
• Sweet Farm on Facebook

_____________________________________________

Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today.

Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcatcher, and don’t forget to leave a 5-star review!

Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series.

Join us in the Our Hen House Community, or follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren.

__________________________

This episode is brought to you in part through the generosity of A Well-Fed World. A Well-Fed World provides the means for change by empowering individuals, social justice organizations, and political decision makers to embrace the benefits of plant-based foods and farming. Learn more at awfw.org.

Ever felt motivated to be more active but didn’t know where to find the resources to get started? This week Mariann speaks with Zeynep Sağlamöz, Global Graphics Coordinator for Animal Save Movement, about the fantastic resources they have made available to activists. She also tells us about animal rescue efforts during Turkey’s recent devastating earthquakes and the awe-inspiring progress made by activists in the municipality of Didim.

Zeynep Sağlamöz is an animal rights activist in Türkiye. After seven years in the ad-land as an art director & graphic designer, she became vegan and left her corporate job, having realized that she was creating work promoting a speciesist industry. She now uses her expertise and know-how to expose the truth about animal agriculture by directing and producing thousands of powerful multilingual graphics for Animal Save Movement, where she serves as the Global Graphics Coordinator. She has two cat friends, Delilah and Pixel.

• Zeynep on Instagram
• [email protected]

• The next pandemic could spring from the US meat supply, new report finds
• The Save Movement website
• Plant Based Treaty Website

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Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today.

Subscribe to our show on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcatcher, and don’t forget to leave a 5-star review!

Check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series.

Join us in  the Our Hen House Community, or follow us on social media! You can find Our Hen House on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren.

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This episode is brought to you in part through the generosity of A Well-Fed World. A Well-Fed World provides the means for change by empowering individuals, social justice organizations, and political decision makers to embrace the benefits of plant-based foods and farming. Learn more at awfw.org.

Has a painting or piece of artwork ever stopped you immediately, demanding your full attention? Such is so often the case with Jane O’Hara’s paintings. This week, Jane joins us for a conversation about her artwork, which highlights  “the failure of the human-animal bond and the tendency of humans to impose their own agenda despite the risks.” We specifically discuss her extraordinary new series State of the Union, currently on exhibit at the New Bedford Art Museum in Massachusetts. The series, at once appearing extremely familiar and yet vaguely surreal, is a visual and auditory examination of the animal experience across the US. We dig into Jane’s artistic process and the pivotal moment she realized she wanted to embrace a vegan lifestyle, and she also shares the story of her late cat Nellie, why she decided to use Nellie as an anchor in the State of the Union series, and the difference in how we tend to treat companion animals and farmed animals.

*We are thrilled to expand the accessibility of our podcast by offering written transcripts of the interviews! Click here to read Jasmin’s interview with Jane O’Hara*

Jane O’Hara is a contemporary American artist,  curator and founder of Jane O’Hara Projects. She received a BFA in painting from Boston University. Jane’s work has been presented and exhibited across the US. She is an honoree of the Courage of Conscience Award from the Peace Abbey, honoring individuals and organizations that have distinguished themselves through humanitarian causes, peace and social justice activism.

“The arts have played a strong part in opening my eyes.” – Jane O’Hara

Resources: 

• What will we be eating in 2040?

Highlights for Episode 706: 

• An overview of Jane’s State of the Union series and how she picked the themes for each painting
• Jane explains why she chose to supplement each painting with an audio component 
• Why so many of Jane’s paintings include the theme of  industrial farming and how she approaches it in each work 
• The story of Nellie the Cat and why Jane decided to incorporate her throughout the State of the Union series
• Jane shares the story of how her art became intertwined with her animal activism
• The pivotal moment that prompted Jane to become a vegan and animal activist 
• The profound connection between the viewer and the artist and why  visual art often affects people so profoundly
• The interplay of humor and irony in Jane’s work and how she manages to bring that into her paintings despite their often tragic themes  
• Compassion Art and what artists gain from being a part of the collective
• The Beasts of Burden series and how it demonstrates how deeply integrated animals are into our lives 
• Jane’s artistic process and how she plans her research and painting

Podcast Transcript:

We are thrilled to expand the accessibility of our podcast by offering written transcripts of the interviews! Click here to read this episode's interview.

Connect with Jane O’Hara:

• • Jane O’Hara’s Website
  • Jane O’Hara Projects on Facebook
  • Jane O’Hara Projects on Instagram

Connect with Our Hen House:

• Our Hen House Website
• Our Hen House on Facebook
• Our Hen House on Instagram
• Our Hen House on Twitter

_____________________________________________

Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today.

You can listen to our podcast directly on our website or subscribe on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcatcher! Also, if you like what you hear, please rate it and leave us a comment on Apple Podcasts!

Don’t forget to check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series.

Join the Our Hen House Community online!

The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren.

__________________________

This episode is brought to you in part through the generosity of A Well-Fed World. A Well-Fed World provides the means for change by empowering individuals, social justice organizations, and political decision makers to embrace the benefits of plant-based foods and farming. Learn more at awfw.org.

Faraz Harsini, Ph.D., realized something was missing from the animal rights movement and decided to fill that gap. The organization he founded, Allied Scholars for Animal Protection (ASAP), is helping university students and others on campus build ongoing, lasting advocacy organizations. We discuss ASAP’s long-term plans for expansion, how students can get help starting their own chapter, the support ASAP offers, and why Faraz believes connecting animal rights folk on campus is crucial. He also tells us about his role at The Good Food Institute and the research they’re doing to scale the production of cultivated meat.

*We are thrilled to expand the accessibility of our podcast by offering written transcripts of the interviews! Click here to read Mariann’s interview with Dr Faraz Harsini*

Dr. Faraz Harsini has advocated for animal rights for over ten years. He is a biomedical scientist and Allied Scholars for Animal Protection (ASAP) CEO and founder. This non-profit organization supports students interested in advocating for animal protection and pursuing careers that can make a difference. He is also a Bioprocessing Senior Scientist at Good Food Institute, where he works on advancing scientific and technological methods to produce alternative proteins on a large scale. Dr. Harsini believes that the root cause of many global issues affecting humans and animals is linked to the food system. Therefore, he aims to change the food system through his work at GFI and to train and support students to become future leaders in animal protection through ASAP.

“I’m sick of animal rights organizations and student organizations becoming inactive because of a lack of support, lack of infrastructure, or lack of mentorship.” – Faraz Harsini

Resources: 

• Pale and gelatinous: I tried vegan seafood so you don’t have to

Highlights for Episode 705: 

• The three key areas ASAP focuses on: outreach, education, and empowerment
• How they’re supporting student dining halls to go plant-based and make veganism as accessible as possible
• Why so many university students struggle to remain vegan
• How Faraz aims to show students how to take their passions and channel them into long-term animal advocacy 
• ASAP’s goal of establishing chapters where vegans can connect and access education and lectures 
• Faraz’s tips for students who want to advocate for veganism on their campus effectively
• How students can set up an ASAP chapter at their university and the infrastructure support ASAP offers
• The Elwood Dog Meat spoof and the impact it had on the student body at Texas Tech
• Faraz’s position at The Good Food Institute and what he does as a Bioprocessing Senior Scientist to help scale the production of cultivated meat

Connect with Dr. Faraz Harsini:

• Allied Scholars’ Website
• Dr. Faraz Harsini’s Website
• Allied Scholars on Twitter
• Allied Scholars on Facebook
• Allied Scholars on Instagram
• Dr. Faraz Harsini on Twitter
• Dr. Faraz Harsini on YouTube
• Dr. Faraz Harsini on LinkedIn

Connect with Our Hen House:

• Our Hen House Website
• Our Hen House on Facebook
• Our Hen House on Instagram
• Our Hen House on Twitter

_____________________________________________

Thank you for listening to the Our Hen House podcast! If you enjoy our podcasts, believe in our mission to effectively mainstream the movement to end the exploitation of animals, find community and solace in our shows and resources, and would like to show your support for vegan indie media, please make a donation today.

You can listen to our podcast directly on our website or subscribe on Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcatcher! Also, if you like what you hear, please rate it and leave us a comment on Apple Podcasts!

Don’t forget to check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series.

Join the Our Hen House Community online!

The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren.

__________________________

This episode is brought to you in part through the generosity of A Well-Fed World. A Well-Fed World provides the means for change by empowering individuals, social justice organizations, and political decision makers to embrace the benefits of plant-based foods and farming. Learn more at awfw.org.