Vegan Posse

Peggy Young grew up in northern Wisconsin where a picnic is not a picnic without hot dogs and hamburgers on the grill and a jelly mold of marshmallows for dessert. Becoming vegan was foreign territory.

Peggy was diagnosed with stage 3 ovarian cancer in 2010 at the tender age of 53 - far too young to say goodbye to her two daughters and her new husband. Her research revealed that a whole-food food plant-based diet was her best bet for living to enjoy her later years. She tried it to see if it would positively affect her cancer.

Now, almost 14 years later, Peggy is still here and enjoying life at the age of 66! She loves her family and her vegetables, and she's shifted to helping others change their lifestyles to optimize their lives.

Resources:

Peggy Young - Star McDougaller: https://www.drmcdougall.com/education/star-mcdougall-interviews/peggy/

Carol Adams, The Sexual Politics of Meat: https://caroljadams.com/spom-the-book

Looking for a living example of initiative and self-determination? Look no further! In May of 2013, Paul Chatlin was diagnosed with heart disease and presented with two options: bypass surgery or something called "plant-based nutrition." He opted for the latter.

The very next day, Paul consulted with Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn, who gave him the lowdown on whole-food, plant-based eating. Incredibly, after just three weeks, Paul's angina disappeared. His cholesterol levels plummeted from 350 to 92, and he lost 75 pounds in four months! Not only that, he kept it off.

Paul promised himself that when he felt better, he would put together a support group to help others. He contacted Dr. Joel Kahn, who agreed to assist him on the journey. In February 2014, he hosted his first Plant-Based Nutrition Support Group (PBNSG) meeting, and 123 people attended! As of today, PBNSG has helped more than 150,000 people, offering outreach programs that are always educational and plant-based.

Paul's current project is creating an alliance called Sage Circle Alliance to bring together like-minded organizations and individuals.

Resources:

Plant-Based Nutrition Support Group: https://www.pbnsg.org/

Sage Circle Alliance: https://www.sagecirclealliance.org/home

Email Paul: ⁠[email protected]⁠

For many of us, 2023 was messy, gritty, and all too real -and boy, does Dr. Jen Howk get real about her own challenges and "growth opportunities" over this past year. Never one to rest on her laurels, Jen continues to push new limits. In this, her epic encore appearance on the Posse, Jen lays it all out on the table, including her tumultuous 2023; her new podcast, The Face of the Deep; her fraught relationship history, complicated by that pesky "ethical veganism" of hers; and her ever-evolving relationship with evolutionary psychology.

More about Jen...

Jan Howk, Ph.D., is an author, researcher, and interdisciplinary social scientist. She earned her B.A. with honors from the University of Washington, and her M.A. and Ph.D. from Harvard University. She is currently co-authoring a book with psychologist Dr. Doug Lisle that explores the biological and evolutionary underpinnings of human nature and how such insights can help us better understand the central questions and dilemmas of human life. You can preorder the book and follow their collaborative work at Esteem Dynamics - https://esteemdynamics.com/

Jen offers individual one-on-one coaching, webinars, and e-courses. In addiion, her Patreon subscribers may access her several weekly Zoom group calls:

Resources:

Jen Howk website: https://jenhowk.com/

The Face of the Deep podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/ch/podcast/the-face-of-the-deep/id1721738586

The Face of the Deep episode with Chrissy Benson: https://podcasts.apple.com/ch/podcast/episode-2-the-defended-self-internal-family-systems/id1721738586?i=1000639458336

The Jungle by Upton Sinclair: https://www.amazon.com/Jungle-Upton-Sinclair/dp/1503331865

The China Study by T. Colin Campbell: https://www.amazon.com/China-Study-Comprehensive-Nutrition-Implications/dp/1932100660/

Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser: https://www.amazon.com/Fast-Food-Nation-Eric-Schlosser-audiobook/dp/B00005AAQB/

Vegan Freak Radio: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLA138BB8D067CD283

The Pornography of Meat by Carol Adams: https://www.amazon.com/Pornography-Meat-New-Updated/dp/1501364391/

The Moral Animal by Robert Wright: https://www.amazon.com/The-Moral-Animal-Robert-Wright-audiobook/dp/B003VXI8DO/

Esteem Dynamics: https://esteemdynamics.com/

Chef AJ has been devoted to a plant-exclusive diet for over 46 years. She was the host of Healthy Living with CHEF AJ on Foody TV. She's the author of three bestselling books, The Secrets to Ultimate Weight Loss, Own Your Health, and The 10th Anniversary Edition of Unprocessed.

Chef AJ is the creator of the Ultimate Weight Loss Program. In 2018, she was inducted into the Vegetarian Hall of Fame.

Resources:

Website: https://www.ChefAJ.com

Watch Chef AJ LIVE! Daily 11:00 a.m. P.S.T.  https://YouTube.com/c/ChefAJ

Learn more about Chef AJ:

My Story: https://youtu.be/CbyCJY7AC4k

Bestselling book: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07JC8LHLZ?ref=exp_chefaj_dp_vv_mw
Amazon store: https://amazon.com/shop/chefajInstagram: https://instagram.com/therealchefaj

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/chef.aj1

Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/therealchefaj.com

SoCal native and longtime vegan Rich Rees started his music career as a professional drummer and  concert producer. He went on to become a successful booking agent, working \with such artists as Colin Hay, Wynonna Judd, Michael McDonald, Alan Parsons, Human League, English Beat, Dave Davies, and many more. Rich was the assistant to the music director for President Bill Clinton's Arkansas Ball at the 1997 inauguration, and later went on to produce a Classic Rock all-star show that toured North America for nearly three years.

In 2006, a the height of his booking career, he produced a sold-out 80s show at the legendary Hollywood Bowl In Los Angeles, featuring The Human League, Psychedelic Furs, and ABC. He later produced a tour called Classic Hits Live that showcased artists from the 70’s era, including Ambrosia, Christopher Cross, Edgar Winter, and Dave Mason. He toured with that show throughout the world for nearly ten years. It was one of the first Yacht Rock package shows, that spawned the genre and has since become a household term.

Rich has since retired from the mainstream music business and in 2020, hw moved to the Nashville area. He is

After a number of extended stretches as a vegetarian, Rich became a full-fledged vegan after attending a two-week vegan cooking course at the Vegan Fusion Academy with chef Mark Reinfeld. He has been vegan now for over a decade and still cooking pretty much every day. He lives

Resources:

Zoo Life with Jack Hanna: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL3Sujwhl8vvLbcDuNbNZSsB0Lnu3cXEmE'

Vegan Summerfest: https://summerfest.navs-online.org/

Vegan Chef Mark Reinfeld trainings: https://www.chefmarkreinfeld.com/

Harold Brown is a former beef and dairy farmer. He was born on a cattle farm in Michigan and spent over half his life in agriculture. After a personal health crisis forced him to confront the incidence of heart disease in his family, Harold began eating a plant-exclusive diet. Living in great health as an herbivore and seeing his triglycerides plummet led him to reexamine all of his previous assumptions about eating animals. He soon arrived at the profound conviction that exploiting and killing non-animals for food is immoral. At that point, Harold went from merely plant-exclusive to truly vegan. Now a vegan activist, he is the founder of Farm Kind and one of the subjects of the documentary Peaceable Kingdom.

Resources:

Documentary, Peaceable Kingdom: The Journey Home: https://www.peaceablekingdomfilm.org/

Diet for a New America by John Robbins: https://www.amazon.com/Diet-New-America-Choices-Happiness/dp/193207354X

Human Myth website: https://www.humanemyth.org/

The holidays can be tricky for us vegans! In this special holiday episode, I share my top seven LUCKY Tips for navigating the holidays with ease, grace, and plain old vegan fun.

Resources:

Gingerbread cake - FYI I find it easiest to order gingerbread spice online since grocery stores may not have it, or you can make your own: https://thevegan8.com/vegan-gingerbread-cake/

Pumpkin cornbread (FYI, I tweaked slightly and use 1 cup pumpkin puree and 1/2 cup maple syrup): https://www.veggieinspired.com/pumpkin-maple-cornbread/

What the Health documentary: https://www.whatthehealthfilm.com/

Vegucated documentary: https://www.amazon.com/Vegucated-T-Colin-Campbell/dp/B006LZSHAS

The Game Changers documentary: https://gamechangersmovie.com/

The perfect holiday gift! Novel Marrying Myself by VP host Christine Melanie Benson - the "anti-romance romance" with a vegan twist! https://www.amazon.com/Marrying-Myself-Christine-Melanie-Benson/dp/1685130763/

Feel free to email Chrissy to vegan-vent anytime! [email protected]

Lee Hall has been vegan for almost 40 years! Lee worked for many years as a legal officer, a board member for several nonprofits, and an adjunct animal law and environmental law professor at Rutgers Law School and Widener-Delaware Law School. Lee even wrote the entry for the Encyclopedia for the UN Sustainable Development Goals titled "Nonhuman Rights and Human Sustainability." A frequent presenter at Vegan Summerfest, Lee is the author of On Their Own Terms: Animal Liberation for the 21st Century. Check out Lee's studio for the Art of Animal LIberation at patreon.com/leehall.

Resources:

Lee's Studio for the Art of Animal Liberation: https://www.patreon.com/leehall

On Their Own Term: Animal Liberation for the 21st Century by Lee Hall: https://www.patreon.com/posts/on-their-own-to-67064257

Human Myth website: https://www.humanemyth.org/

Quiet by Susan Cain: https://www.amazon.com/Quiet-Power-Introverts-World-Talking/dp/0307352153

Tribe of Heart website: https://www.tribeofheart.org/sr/home_english.htm

Humane Myth website: https://humanemyth.org/

Documentary, The Superior Human?: https://youtu.be/mqT82oGeax0?si=l_UWSxeZUZV1UYzh

Novel Marrying Myself by Christine Melanie Benson: https://www.amazon.com/Marrying-Myself-Christine-Melanie-Benson/dp/1685130763/

Documentary Kedi: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PpG0z-npFIY

Alyssa Almond began her career with Teach For America as a third-grade bilingual teacher in Washington Heights, New York City. Her fascination with languages and language learning called her to specialize in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL). She helped immigrants acquire the language skills necessary for them to succeed in the U.S. Alyssa worked both as a middle school ESOL teacher and as a program administrator in Adult Basic Education.  

But, her veganism reminded her that she's not just about helping humans.  

So, in 2017, after some intensive coaching, she gathered her courage and left her full-time job in education. This leap landed her at a farmed animal sanctuary. She later became a writer and curriculum designer for documentary film The Last Pig.

Following her passion, talent, and empathetic nature, Alyssa created the perfect role for herself. As a Certified Professional Co-Active Coach (CPCC), Alyssa gets to help animals by supporting the humans who serve them!

Resources:

Website: www.rootedrise.com

Social Media:

www.linkedin.com/in/alyssa-almond-ⓥ

https://www.facebook.com/rootedrise/

Documentary, The Last Pig: https://www.thelastpig.com/

An award-winning chef, educator and authority on plant-based cuisine, Chef Mark Reinfeld is the founding chef of the Vegan Fusion Institute, with over 25 years experience preparing innovative vegan and raw food cuisine. He has written eight acclaimed books and conducts virtual and in-person culinary trainings around the world. Chef Mark was inducted into the Vegetarian Hall of Fame. He was the founding chef of The Blossoming Lotus Restaurant, voted "Best Restaurant on Kaua’i". Mark's first cookbook, Vegan Fusion World Cuisine, was named “Best Vegetarian Cookbook in the USA" and has a foreword written by Dr. Jane Goodall.

Website: ⁠www.chefmarkreinfeld.com⁠

Upcoming events: ⁠https://www.chefmarkreinfeld.com/workshop-calendar⁠

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