Our Hen House: Vegan & Animal Rights Movement | Stories from the Frontlines of Animal Liberation

Dr. Christopher Carter joins us on the podcast this week to discuss his new book The Spirit of Soul Food: Race, Faith, and Food Justice. This groundbreaking work covers everything from the history of soul food to choosing how to eat in a way that helps us “live into our fullest sense of self.” Dr. Carter shares why he centers the discussion on three fundamental principles for eating practices—seeking justice for food workers, caring for the earth, and soul-full eating—and describes how soul-full eating helps us understand the impacts of our diets on not just our bodies, but on the bodies of animals. He also dives into a deep discussion of the meaning and practices of Black veganism and why it is a movement that can and should be embraced by all. Dr. Christopher Carter is an assistant professor of theology and religious studies at the University of San Diego and a pastor in the United Methodist Church. While working on his doctorate, his dissertation—Eating Oppression: Food, Faith, and Liberation—would be the foundation for his recent book, The Spirit of Soul Food: Race, Faith, and Food Justice. He is on the board of directors of Farm Forward, an anti-factory farming nonprofit. “The concepts around Black veganism bring to light the purpose and guiding principles of not consuming animals as a way to call out the racism that’s in our food system.” – Dr. Christopher Carter Highlights for Episode 641:  What soul food looks like and tastes like for Dr. Carter, plus why it has a considerable part to play in preserving and promoting community and passing on a particular kind of Black ancestral wisdom Some of the challenges that white supporters of the animal rights movement might have in fully embracing the arguments in the book including the trauma of facing their own internalized racism  Why we need to embrace the interconnectedness we have with both human and non-human beings to reach a sustainable, transformative, and healing liberation  An ordained clergy member whose family history is intertwined with Christianity, food justice, and food sovereignty, Dr. Carter explores why his veganism is rooted in his religion and reimagines how soul food can help those who want to eat in a way that is consistent with their theological and social values The current role of churches in food justice and why The Spirit of Soul Food places today’s Black foodways at the crossroads of food, justice, and faith Dr. Carter’s views on how the anti-racist movement and the animal rights movement can work together to recognize that the food we grow, distribute, and eat disproportionately harms Black people specifically, and people of color among the global poor in general, and work towards decolonizing our diet in the US  Dr. Carter explores why Black veganism forces an examination of how the language of animality has been used to justify the oppression of any being who deviates, by species, race, or behavior, from white cultural norms Whether white people can practice Black veganism and whether that authentically moves them beyond the stereotype of being an ‘animal lover’ and into the more complex arena of collective liberation  Dr. Carter shares his definition of ‘flourishing’ as a goal for individuals, humans, and animals and how it intersects with Christianity  Resources: Animal Rights protestor Zoe Rosenberg chained to basket at NBA playoff game Animal Rights protestor Alicia Santurio glued to floor at NBA playoff game Dutch Government Announces €60M Cellular Agriculture Fund My Grandmother’s Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending Our Hearts and Bodies, by Resmaa Menakem Meow Meow Tweet is offering our listeners 20% off Connect with Dr. Christopher Carter: Dr. Christopher Carter’s Website  Dr. Christopher Carter on Twitter  Dr. Christopher Carter 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. The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren. __________________________ This episode is brought to you in part by Meow Meow Tweet. Meow Meow Tweet creates vegan personal care for every body. Always ethical, low-waste, handmade & cruelty-free. They are also not only a Certified B Corp, but also certified plastic negative, climate neutral and leaping bunny certified. Right now Meow Meow Tweet is offering a discount for our listeners only! You can save 20% by visiting their website and using the code HENHOUSE at check out. __________________________ 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.

She’s an activist, artist, librarian, professor, and more. The multi-hyphenate Stacy Russo joins us on the podcast for a deep dive into Love Activism. Created by Stacy in 2013, Love Activism is a daily, holistic, and radical activism rooted in kindness. In our conversation, Stacy outlines the eight elements of this activist approach and describes how they can empower us every day.  She explains why she firmly believes creativity is an element of Love Activism and how people can practice creativity by making their own or supporting others’ art. For those not drawn to traditional art forms, Stacy also shares how to find your own creative outlet. Empathy, another element of Love Activism, is also up for discussion. Stacy details how empathy can sometimes act as a barrier and prevent people from seeing, understanding, and fighting for the rights animals should have in this world. Plus, we discuss the author’s own journey toward animal rights activism, beginning with her introduction to the punk scene of the 1980s. Stacy Russo, librarian and Associate Professor at Santa Ana College, is committed to creating books and art for a more peaceful world. She is the author of several nonfiction books, the editor of two essay collections, a published poet, a collage artist, a DIY oral historian, and the author/illustrator of children’s picture books. Stacy’s books have been featured on National Public Radio, Pacifica Radio, the Canadian Broadcasting System, Sirius XM Radio, KCET Artbound, LA Weekly, and various other media channels. She is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in transformative studies at the California Institute of Integral Studies. Stacy is a longtime vegan. “I definitely feel that service is a very powerful form of love — there are so many different ways that we can serve each other and serve animals.” – Stacy Russo Highlights for Episode 640:  Stacy describes why service is an element of Love Activism and provides examples of how acts of service can be construed as long term activism, including her role in caring for her elderly dog Walter How the principles of Love Activism can also be understood as self-care and empowerment for individuals  Techniques that activists can use to truly take care of themselves while still keeping their focus on their activism How Stacy’s relationship with feminism and her immersion in the punk rock scene of the 1980s led to her discovery of the animal equality movement Why Stacy’s unashamed veganism and animal equality message were almost a barrier to getting her books published Everyday magic and how it elevates our common daily experiences and rituals to a profound or spiritual level and why we often find everyday magic in our interactions with the animals we know  The A Better World Starts Here book project and how it aims to further the work of vegan activists committed to eradicating  injustice and oppression Why Stacy was inspired to write Stella Peabody’s Wild Librarian Bakery and Bookstore  What Stacy feels it means to be a vegan artist in terms of content, materials, and message Resources: Better Nate Than Ever trailer About to Go Awf song Antibiotic-free claims on animal products can’t be trusted, new study finds Meow Meow Tweet is offering 20% off for our listeners! Connect with Stacy Russo: Stacy Russo’s Website  Stacy Russo on Facebook  Stacy Russo on Instagram  Wild Librarian Press Website  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. The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren. __________________________ This episode is brought to you in part by Meow Meow Tweet. Meow Meow Tweet creates vegan personal care for every body. Always ethical, low-waste, handmade & cruelty-free. They are also not only a Certified B Corp, but also certified plastic negative, climate neutral and leaping bunny certified. Right now Meow Meow Tweet is offering a discount for our listeners only! You can save 20% by visiting their website and using the code HENHOUSE at check out. __________________________ 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.

The trailblazing Gemunu De Silva, a United Kingdom-based undercover investigator of animal exploitation, joins us this week on Our Hen House. Gem, one of the first and longest-serving investigators of the worldwide hidden mistreatment of animals, tell us about his path into the world of animal activism and the animal rights movement. It was his very first factory farm investigation in the 1980s that not only horrified him but, fortunately, inspired him to devote his life to helping to amplify unheard voices.  After years of international investigations, he founded Tracks Investigations, an investigation agency working to support the important work of animal protection organizations around the globe. Plus, Gem highlights the impact and influence of investigative filmmaking on legislation.  Gemunu De Silva is a filmmaker and activist who has been investigating and documenting animal rights abuses since the 1980s. He was the first person in the UK to film inside industrial farms and expose the atrocities within. In the early 1990s, he went on to direct and produce a number of documentaries for UK national television relating to animal issues. Gemunu’s path led him to establish and operate the Investigations Unit at Compassion in World Farming. In the early 2000s, he went to work as the Director of Research and Investigations at Cruelty Free International, where he specialized in exposing the vile international trade in primates for research. In 2006, Gemunu co-founded Tracks Investigations, an ethical investigation agency undertaking projects for animal protection groups around the globe. To date, Tracks have completed over 260 investigative film projects for 38 animal rights and protection organizations in 58 countries.   “I think investigations are probably the most powerful tool that you can have in your armory in the animal rights world. Not only do they change public opinion, they also change legislation.” – Gemunu De Silva Highlights for Episode 639:  Why Gem first stopped eating meat and how that led to him becoming involved with animal rights activism at a local level  The difficulties of using cumbersome VHS equipment in initial investigations and how they managed to film the conditions in animal hellholes How Gem manages the trauma How he deals with the fact that presenting people with information doesn’t always inspire change His family’s reaction to his career choice and the radical streak found in one half of his family Techniques for getting into factory farms and capturing footage and how those techniques have changed over the last 30 years, especially as technology has improved   His role in infiltrating and exposing a monkey trapping operation in Mauritius while he was working for Cruelty Free International Advice on what makes for a good undercover investigator and how a team can work together to produce results Resources: Lizzo’s Watch Out for the Big Grrls Trailer Corning Museum of Glass Meow Meow Tweet is offering 20% off for our listeners! Connect with Gemunu De Silva: Tracks Investigations Website Tracks Investigations on Instagram  Tracks Investigations on Twitter Gemunu De Silva on LinkedIn Pioneering Undercover Investigator Finally Emerges From Behind the Camera Gemunu De Silva on Species Unite Podcast  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. The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren. __________________________ This episode is brought to you in part by Meow Meow Tweet. Meow Meow Tweet creates vegan personal care for every body. Always ethical, low-waste, handmade & cruelty-free. They are also not only a Certified B Corp, but also certified plastic negative, climate neutral and leaping bunny certified. Right now Meow Meow Tweet is offering a discount for our listeners only! You can save 20% by visiting their website and using the code HENHOUSE at check out. __________________________ 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.

LoriKim Alexander can do it all—from her core organizing role with Black VegFest to her work in the fields of anthropology and biology. She joins us on Our Hen House to discuss how The Cypher, the organization she founded, places emphasis on veganism’s true, anti-oppressive meaning. LoriKim shares how The Cypher started off as an educational, political book club on Facebook and how it evolved into an expansive, multigenerational, and multi-orientation space for Black femme leadership. LoriKim also tells us how she became involved with Black VegFest and the importance of having a community space where she, a Black femme vegan activist, can be her true self.  Jamaican-born and world-bred, LoriKim Alexander has dedicated her life to working for social and environmental justice, specifically organizing around centering justice for LGBTQIA+, Black, Indigenous, and people of the global majority. She uses her work in biology, anthropology, and environmental education in a synergistic way to forward Black liberation. She sees veganism as a central platform for decolonization, food justice, and combating environmental racism to galvanize the struggle to liberate all marginalized beings.  “These deeper relationships [with animals] prepared me to understand that we as sentient beings are not very far apart from each other.” – LoriKim Alexander Highlights for Episode 638:  How LoriKim’s childhood in Jamaica led her to a lifelong friendship with and admiration for animals Why LoriKim’s anguishing experience of farm-to-table eating transitioned her into veganism Growing up with Lulu Belle the calf and how this experience helped her form deeper relationships with non-human animals How vegan or vegetarian festivals can avoid being experienced as racist, homophobic, xenophobic, or misogynistic and how Black VegFest aims to create a community space LoriKim’s response to the pushback Black VegFest has received  How The Cypher connects Black and Indigenous LGBTQIA+ femmes of all genders so they can work together and share their voices  What the term “vegan minded” means and how it can be central to communities Why The Cypher will be taking Black trans and queer femmes into the woods for hikes LoriKim’s biological and anthropological research and how it has influenced her work on environmental racism The implementation of environmental education for people of the global majority on indigenous ecological knowledge and decolonization through veganism How environmental racism impacts the everyday lives of Black people living in the US Resources: This Rochester couple wants their ‘Net-Zero’ home to inspire more affordable, eco-friendly living Supreme Court agrees to hear pork producers’ challenge to California animal anti-cruelty law Connect with LoriKim Alexander: Email: cypher.the@protonmail.com 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. 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.

Hope Ferdowsian, President and CEO of Phoenix Zones Initiative (PZI)—a non-profit organization committed to advancing the interconnected rights, health, and wellbeing of people and animals—joins us on the podcast to discuss how the organization is striving to realize optimal health outcomes for humans and non-human animals alike. More specifically, Hope shares how, by expanding upon the One Health approach, PZI is centering justice as a primary mechanism for realizing such outcomes. We also discuss why PZI focuses on transforming animal research in their advocacy. Plus, Hope explains the Belmont Report, including why the ethical principles such as respect for autonomy, beneficence, non-maleficence, and justice, as outlined in the report, should also be applied to non-human beings.   Hope Ferdowsian is a double board certified physician who has cared for individuals who have experienced displacement and violence and has worked on policy to address structural inequities and human and animal exploitation. Her work across six continents has included collaboration with the Office of the Surgeon General of the United States and the development of medical, public health, and educational resources for nongovernmental organizations, national governments, and intergovernmental organizations. As a result of her work, Hope was named a Humanitarian of the Year by the American College of Physicians in 2017. Many of her publications, including her book Phoenix Zones: Where Strength Is Born and Resilience Lives, focus on ethics, global public health, and the link between human and animal rights, health, and wellbeing. In 2019, she co-founded Phoenix Zones Initiative to translate insights in the book into a movement for systemic change. She now also serves as an associate professor in the Department of Medicine at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine. “We need to push forward the idea that we can only have optimal health outcomes in humans and non-human beings through justice.” – Hope Ferdowsian Highlights for Episode 637:  How Phoenix Zones Initiative supports animal rights Why we cannot have health for both humans and non-human animals without rights and justice  How One Health has been co-opted by industries, federal agencies, and international agencies and why its misuse damages optimal health outcomes in humans and non-human beings Practical applications of the Just One Health approach and how the Phoenix Zones Initiative seeks to influence policy How PZI is engaging members of Congress, policymakers, and other stakeholders to ensure that there is more transparency around the use of animals in research How PZI is supporting a current Senate bill that aims to prevent wildlife trafficking The importance of moving federal funding away from animal research and toward more modern, ethical, human-centered research methods How PZI hopes to play a part in the establishment of a strategic roadmap that helps federal agencies in the US create a path away from animal research and toward more ethical methods that are better for both animals and people  Practical steps toward taking Just One Health from theory to action Why Hope remains hopeful Resources: Plant City Why the Anti-Factory Farming Movement Needs Direct Action Canadian Centre for Alternatives to Animal Methods Connect with Hope Ferdowsian: Hope Ferdowsian’s Website Phoenix Zones Initiative Website Phoenix Zones Initiative on Facebook Hope Ferdowsian on Facebook Phoenix Zones Initiative on Instagram Phoenix Zones Initiative on Twitter 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. 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.

Faithful listeners will know this to be true: we can’t get enough of Grass Fed, Rochester’s premier vegan butcher shop and deli. Thus, this week, we couldn’t be more thrilled to welcome Rob Nipe and Nora Rubel, founders of Grass Fed, to the podcast. The husband-and-wife team joins us to dish why they view Grass Fed as training wheels for veganism, and they give us the breakdown of the vegan meats Rob makes, including breakfast sausage, pastrami, and barbecue brisket. Plus, they tell us how Bruce Springstreen prompted them to explore making small-batch, handcrafted plant-based meats in earnest. In our conversation, Nora also shares the joy the duo finds in connecting with customers, building relationships with Rochester’s vegan community, and the unexpected individuals who have expressed interest in their products.  Grass Fed vegan butcher shop and deli is the joint venture of Rob Nipe and Nora Rubel, offering delicious small-batch, handcrafted vegan meats made from good, plant-based ingredients. Rob (the Butcher) hails originally from New Jersey and, as a former omnivore, seeks to create delicious cruelty-free versions of the meats he previously enjoyed. He loves a challenge and has spent years perfecting his mad meat-making skills. Sharing them with his adopted city of Rochester is a dream realized. Nora (the Butcher’s Wife) loves to cook and eat. She also writes and teaches about food, culture, and religion at the University of Rochester. She understands the cultural and nostalgic connection folks have to the foods they grow up with and is excited to help them feel those connections in a cruelty-free way.  “We try to trumpet the idea of veganism as something that is attainable.” – Rob Nipe                       “There’s only so much we can do in the world to ease suffering, but there are certain things we can do to limit our impact.” – Nora Rubel Highlights for Episode 636:  Why Rob and Nora became vegan and how a plant-based diet helped Rob’s health issues How a novel helped move Nora from vegetarianism to “ethical” omnivorism to veganism What Nora means by the phrase “non-practicing vegan” and how vegan meats allow people to make the leap into going entirely plant-based The story of Rob’s decision to develop vegan meats How they developed an amazing vegan Passover celebration meal and the positive response from their friends Why they started their business in Rochester rather than a bigger city like New York Their connection to the kosher community and how important the community is to their success Nora’s work as a Jewish Studies professor at the University of Rochester and how it intersects with the Grass Fed vegan butcher project Resources: Most animal cruelty is legal on the farm. A judge is questioning that.  Once a beloved vegan ice cream brand, Coconut Bliss’ new dairy line outrages customers. A Jewish studies professor and her cheesesteak-loving husband are behind Rochester’s new kosher ‘butcher shop’ Connect with Rob Nipe and Nora Rubel: Grass Fed Website Grass Fed on Facebook Grass Fed on Instagram  Grass Fed Butcher’s Wife 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. 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.

Joining us on the Our Hen House podcast this week are Joan E. Schaffner, JD and Rajesh K. Reddy, JD, PhD. Joan and Raj are founding members of Lawyers for the Convention on Animal Protection, an international team of law practitioners and academics committed to advocating for a global animal protection agreement. They join the podcast to share details about the Convention on Animal Protection (CAP), and how the concept came to fruition just in time for the pandemic. In our conversation, we discuss how zoonotic viruses, including COVID-19, are directly related to animal exploitation and mistreatment, as well as how the CAP aims to mitigate the risk of future pandemics. But the proposed treaty goes further than that. Joan and Raj also explore how the treaty seeks to provide certain minimum protections for all animals in human hands as well as their different lived realities—from animals used in research and testing to companion animals to farmed animals and captive wildlife—and also discuss some of the roadblocks that face such an effort. Joan E. Schaffner, JD, is an Associate Professor of Law at The George Washington University Law School. Ze received a JD from the University of Southern California and an MS in mechanical engineering from the  Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Joan is co-chair of the American  Bar Association (ABA) International Section, International Animal Law Committee; Past Chair and  Newsletter Vice-Chair of the ABA Tort Trial & Insurance Practice Section (TIPS) Animal Law Committee; Founding Chair of the American Association of Law Schools (AALS) Section on Animal Law; and Fellow, Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics. Joan has received the ABA TIPS  Andrew C. Hecker Memorial Award, the AALS Excellence in Animal Law Award: Scholarship Teaching-Service, and the ABA TIPS Excellence in the Advancement of Animal Law Award. Dr. Rajesh K. Reddy directs the Global Animal Law and Animal Law Advanced Degree Programs at the Center for Animal Law Studies at Lewis & Clark Law School, where he teaches International Animal Law, Animal Legal Philosophy, and Emerging Topics in Animal Law, among others. Raj also serves on the Lewis & Clark tri-campus Committee on Equity and Inclusion, the Law School’s International Law Committee, and as a Confidential Advocate. Outside of Lewis & Clark, he chairs the International Subcommittee of the Animal Law Section of the American Bar Association and serves as a board member of Minding Animals International. He has previously served on the executive committees for the Animal Law Section of the Oregon State Bar, Humane Voters Oregon, and the diversity, equity, and inclusion nonprofit, Encompass. “Once the umbrella treaty is negotiated, there will be an opportunity for states to provide much greater protections for animals and against pandemics.” –Joan E. Schaffner, JD “Animal protection is important for pandemic prevention, but it’s critically important for conservation, for habitat preservation, and the like.” –Dr. Rajesh K. Reddy Highlights for Episode 635:  The goals for the Convention on Animal Protection and why it’s so important to make it internationally accessible Where pandemics originate, generally speaking, and how COVID-19 specifically was able to spread around the world  Why factory farms, just like live animal markets, are potential sources of zoonotic diseases What countries can expect if they sign the Convention on Animal Protection, what they would need to do, and the principles they are committing to uphold  Two progressive provisions detailed in the treaty from a social and a legal standpoint  How the Convention for Animal Protection guards against countries using it as a smokescreen  Why Dr. Reddy compares the treaty to the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling Resources: Sentient Media Managing Editor listing Encompass Executive Director listing Deer Humans podcast GW Animal Law Program Connect with Joan E. Schaffner: Joan E. Schaffner on LinkedIn Connect with Dr. Rajesh K. Reddy: Rajesh K. Reddy on LinkedIn Connect with Lawyers for the CAP Email Lawyers for the CAP Connect with the Convention for Animal Protection: CAP Website CAP Video CAP on Facebook CAP on Twitter CAP on Instagram CAP 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. 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.

According to powerhouse activist and community organizer Eloísa Trinidad, an anti-colonial framework is fundamental to how she approaches activism. Eloísa, who serves as Executive Director  of both the Vegan Activist Alliance and the food justice organization Chilis on Wheels New York, is a total liberation activist. She is unapologetically adamant that species does not define personhood and emphasizes the importance of the language we use in our narratives as activists. In our conversation, we also dive into Eloísa’s work with Chilis on Wheels, where she helps provide plant-based groceries to students and families experiencing food poverty in New York. She also tells us about the Overthrow Vegan Community Fridge, New York City’s first plant-based community fridge, which Eloísa helped launch last year, alongside fellow activists. Plus, she shares why she believes true change always stems from genuine connection.  Eloísa Trinidad is a total liberation activist who approaches liberation praxis and veganism with an anti-colonial framework to raise awareness of how Western colonization has affected and continues to affect the plight of human and beyond-human persons (animals), and how it has changed the food system and our relationship with each other and to the natural world. Through her role as Executive Director at Chilis on Wheels New York, Eloísa focuses on making veganism accessible to communities in need. She is also co-founder and Executive Director at Vegan Activist Alliance, a systems change focused, community-driven anti-speciesist organization. Eloísa sits on the Board of Directors at Plant Powered Metro NY, is NY Chapter President at Hip Hop is Green, and is on the following Advisory Boards:  Center For Science in the Public Interest,  Agriculture Fairness Alliance, The Vegan Museum. “We are all persons — we just happen to be different species.” – Eloísa Trinidad Highlights for Episode 634:  Eloísa’s childhood growing up with her great grandparents in the Dominican Republic Collective liberation and why it is so fundamental to her personal mission How the Vegan Activist Alliance supports and educates activists to go beyond the streets How Chilis on Wheels is making veganism accessible to communities in need and has expanded into a nationwide network  How the vegan community fridge operates and why Eloísa believes it is a project that activists in different locales can replicate to help promote plant-based lifestyles Eloísa’s work as New York chapter president of Hip Hop is Green The Healthy Future Students and Earth Pilot Program Act and what Eloísa hopes can be accomplished by helping schools provide healthier, climate-friendly, and culturally appropriate plant-based meals The impact of poverty on the food choices people make and why it’s so important for activists to understand that not everyone has the privilege of entirely free choice   Connect with Eloísa Trinidad: Plant B Chilis on Wheels Website   Vegan Activist Alliance Website   Hip Hop is Green Website Eloisa Trinidad 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. 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.

Rachel Dreskin, CEO of the Plant Based Foods Association (PBFA), joins the podcast this week to discuss why it is so vital for vegan foods to have a trade association. Rachel tells us how the organization, which advocates at both the  federal and state levels, is working to even the playing field to help plant-based brands compete against animal-based products and succeed. In this behind-the-scenes look, Rachel also breaks down the way products in a supermarket are organized, and she explains whether it’s best for plant-based foods to be allocated their own section or for them to be integrated alongside their animal-based counterparts. She also dives into the thorny issues of labeling, including why the term “plant-based” has become muddied, and how we can ensure people are fully aware of what they are purchasing.  Rachel Dreskin is the CEO of the Plant Based Foods Association, the first and only trade association representing the nation’s leading plant-based food companies, as well as the CEO of the Plant Based Foods Institute, PBFA’s sister nonprofit dedicated to driving transformation to a plant-based food system. She also serves as a board member of the Regenerative Organic Alliance, has guest lectured at top US universities like Stanford and New York University, and has been featured in Bloomberg, Fortune Magazine, and the Chicago Tribune.  “We’re finding that when products are integrated within the sections of the store that have animal-based products, the sales increase quite dramatically.” – Rachel Dreskin Highlights for Episode 633:  The types of companies that have joined PBFA How and why PBFA represents the interests of completely plant-based food brands, but also accept companies as members who have animal products in their portfolio Rachel’s thoughts on the elements that separate a successful company in the plant-based arena from one that doesn’t make it  “Vegan” versus “plant-based” terminology and why PBFA uses the term “plant-based”   Major drivers leading people to purchase plant-based foods Why PBFA is planning lifecycle assessments across the plant-based and animal-based categories so they can demonstrate the environmental benefits  Whether subsidies play a part in keeping plant-based foods from competing fairly What PBFA believes it would take to transition farmers away from growing crops destined for animal feed and toward growing crops consumed directly by humans How plant-based milk has made so much progress and Rachels’s thoughts on how it will move even further forward  ​​And lastly … how they’re going to get Starbucks to drop the up-charge for plant based milk Connect with Rachel Dreskin: Plant Based Foods Association Website Plant Based Foods Association on YouTube Plant Based Foods Association on Instagram Plant Based Foods Association on Twitter 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. 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.

CreatureKind’s Aline Silva joins the podcast this week for a discussion about food, animals and Christianity. Reverend Silva, who serves as CreatureKind’s Co-Director, gives us an overview of the religious nonprofit, which encourages Christians to recognize faith-based reasons for caring about the well-being of all living creatures and helps them implement plant-based practices within their church communities. Founded on the belief that all animals are God’s creations and humans’ love and care must extend to all of His creations, and not just fellow humans, CreatureKind has developed a six-week course for churches that focuses on self-reflection to help individuals see how they contribute to factory farming and the oppression of animals, and how they can take steps to change. Reverend Aline Silva serves as the Co-Director of CreatureKind. Before coming to CreatureKind, she was a local parish pastor of rural and farming populations in Kansas, Missouri, and Colorado for more than 10 years. Aline shares herself as a queer, Black & Indigenous immigrant of Brazil to the US. She chooses not to eat non-human animals, her fellow worshippers of God. Aline is a pastor, a preacher, and a life coach who writes today from the un-ceded lands of the Tequesta, Taino, and Seminole peoples, namely South Florida, USA. “CreatureKind is a part of creating an overarching community of Christians who hold a deep concern for what animals are going through today.” – Aline Silva Highlights for Episode 631: Why churches and religious organizations are motivated to get in touch with CreatureKind How Aline and her team help groups and individuals fulfill a commitment to consume plant-based foods rather than animals Their philosophy on consuming animals for food and why it is rooted in the question of whether God cares for the welfare of animals How a plant-based diet does not rely on the oppression of fellow worshipers of God and how we don’t need to rely on eating animals to obtain nutrients What CreatureKind is doing to help people who want to become more active for animals and understand how large scale factory farming also damages humans Whether preachers are nervous about approaching their congregations to promote a plant-based lifestyle and how CreatureKind advises them What the CreatureKind Food Friendly Challenge is and how their toolkit helps members of a church community choose plant-based meals by starting conversations about Christianity and farmed animals Aline’s thoughts on why so many faith-based organizations have left consideration for animals off the agenda Resources Mentioned: Meet the People Getting Paid to Kill Our Planet When Being Vegan Just Isn’t Enough: How and Why I’m Making My House Net-Zero Episode 494: David Clough on Theology and Ethics Connect with Aline Silva: CreatureKind Website CreatureKind on Facebook CreatureKind on Instagram CreatureKind on Twitter 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. 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.