It’s All About Food

Caravan of Dreams was founded by Angel Moreno in 1991 as the place where the Spanish expat could combine his passions for food, health, music, arts, and community. Since then it has served the East Village in particular — and New York City in general — with all organic, all vegan, kosher verified, and extensive live food options, plus a fully stocked bar, nightly entertainment, and occasional educational seminars and events. Built plank-by-plank and brick-by-brick by Angel, Caravan of Dreams became the vanguard of a new mode of living, and has since become one of the established stalwarts of the East Village scene and a symbol of the Zeigeist. Caravan of Dreams is for people that appreciate the quality of things and — like Angel — have a deep respect for the elements. This can be found in the restaurants commitment to the freshest organic food ingredients, structured water, energy-saving lighting, and more. The purity of Angel’s vision and dedication fostered an on-going and evolving community of participants who embrace better living. The restaurant is now the home for that community, a place where Angel and others reach out to countless people to develop new ideas for a greater world based on the Caravan of Dreams tenet: good food and health, music and dance, friends, family and lovers. These are the indigents to the wellspring of happiness Angel has always envisioned and actively shares.

Rey Ortega is a pioneer in the plant-based sector with over 30 years of experience. In 1994, he founded the Alternative Baking Company, one of the first vegan cookie brands on the market, which generated $1 million in sales in 1995. In 1997, he founded Sun Flour Baking Company. to create new flavors, tastes, textures, and nutrition products with a longer shelf life and higher profit margins. Sun Flour Baking produces raw and baked gluten-free cookies free of animal products. It also provides co packing, product development, consulting, testing, nutrition facts, graphic design, and wrapping in small batches. Clients include Continental Airlines, Sodexo Marriott Food Service, and Whole Foods. The company supports Farm Sanctuary, the American Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), and In Defense of Animals (IDA). Rey owned Garden to Grill, a vegan restaurant, for five years. With extensive knowledge across the entire product life cycle, he is an experienced formulator within the industry, has designed three facilities, and has sold millions of vegan cookies, keeping eggs and dairy out of the mouths of many. Besides owning ‌five plant-based brands, he has also published two children’s books and is an expert at cannabis infusion for topical and edible products. More about Rey and how to start a vegan business here. It’s Giving Tuesday! You can make a tax-deductible contribution to Responsible Eating And Living by clicking on this link.

Robert Grillo, Playing the Outside Game to Grow our Movement As an activist for all species (including the human ones), Robert Grillo has played the role of thought leader as well as front line activist, leading campaigns, large-scale protests and other creative actions since 2012. He has learned as much from academia as he has from the streets, from first-hand experience in grassroots activism. Most figures involved in social change are either academics on the theory side or activists on the practice side. Rarely do you find those who engage equally in both the theory and application, providing a unique perspective that bridges that gap between the two important sides of every movement. Grillo is also the founder and director of Free from Harm, a non profit dedicated to advancing a plant-based food system and challenging the dominance of animal agriculture since 2009. He founded Slaughter Free Network in 2018 with the intent of building a powerful grassroots base and carrying out dramatic and innovative actions to capture the attention of media, public and food industry powerholders.

John Beske and Marla Rose, Vegan Street’s 25th Birthday! JOHN BESKE is a long-time veteran of graphic design, advertising and marketing with stints at a series of large and small advertising agencies including Leo Burnett and Della Femina McNamee. During this time, he produced print, television, promotional and retail advertising and design for dozens of companies including such famous brands as General Mills, Sony, Popsicle, Miller Brewing and, yes, even McDonald’s. Eventually, he became disillusioned the advertising industry and left the agency scene to become an art director for brands he believed were doing good in the world. Shortly after, he co-founded a visionary marketing agency called Sustain that devoted all of its work to building the messaging of non-profits in the environmental and social justice sectors including campaigns for Sierra Club, Earthjustice and the Rainforest Action Network. During this same time, he teamed up with Marla to create the pioneering website Vegan Street in 1998, and open a Chicago chapter of EarthSave International in 1999. In 2005, he left Sustain to form John Beske Communications, which has been building the brands of vegan and ecologically responsible companies and organizations for more than a decade. John Beske Communications has now been folded into Vegan Street Media. MARLA ROSE is an award-nominated journalist, columnist, public speaker, recipe developer and author as well as event planner. Since leaving her job in humane education in 1998, Marla has dedicated her life to building vegan culture and community and today she writes most of the content for Vegan Street. In 1999, Marla was the founding chairperson of EarthSave Chicago, which hosted dozens of monthly potlucks, each featuring speakers, and produced five major day-long vegan conferences called The Conference for Conscious Living, which ultimately evolved into Chicago VeganMania, which was a popular free festival for ten years. In 2009, she and her partner John Beske were awarded Activists of the Year by Mercy for Animals and won Green America‘s People and Planet Award in 2015. For the past several years, she has been writing feature stories for magazines and has spoken at the Green Festival, Animal Rights Conference, Vegetarian Summerfest and many other conferences and festivals. She is a frequent writer for VegNews magazine, a writer of feature stories and author of several books.

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

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

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

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

Dr. Jeanette Rowley holds a PhD in Law and has a special interest in veganism and human rights. She has published widely and presented globally on the subject of legal protection for vegans. She founded and chaired The Vegan Society’s International Rights Network. Last year, she and Dr. Carlo Prisco edited Law and Veganism: International Perspectives on the Human Right to Freedom of Conscience (2022). Dr. Rowley is the driving force behind a decade of symposiums on vegan rights. She has given evidence in Mr. Casamitjana’s case and gave oral evidence for Canadian firefighter Adam Knauff. Astrid Prevost is an ethical vegan and aspiring dietician. She battled bulimia for several years, until veganism gave Astrid the strength to create boundaries; to reject what she didn’t want; to say “no.” In respecting other animals, she found self-respect. Those boundaries are being tested now, by a cooking class that demands Astrid use animal products or risk failing. Astrid offered to substitute animal ingredients with vegan ones and submitted a doctor’s note. When both were rejected, she initiated a lawsuit in France for discrimination. Tamara Bedić, is an ethical vegan, animal rescuer, employment attorney. Tamara is a past-President of the National Lawyers Guild, NYC chapter. She is chair of the Animal Rights Committee. When she’s not championing the rights of women in the workplace, she is organizing webinars or rescuing birds in distress. She is ‘Mom’ to two FIV+ tom cats. Links mentioned in the podcast: 1. FREE WEBINAR: Expanding Vegan Rights, Tuesday, October 17, 2023, 12 – 1pm EDT Four plaintiffs and three lawyers will discuss vegan discrimination cases in the U.S., UK, Canada and France. The laws of these countries differ, but the common goal is having ethical veganism recognized as a “creed” or “ethical belief” worthy of protection from discrimination. The ethical vegans who will be speaking about their individual cases are: Jerold Friedman, Jordi Casamitjana, Adam Knauff and Astrid Prevost. 2. Crowdfunding for Mathias, who will also speak on the above October 17th webinar: https://www.ulule.com/droit-detre-vegane/ Astrid shares this message with us: I’d like to take this opportunity to let you know about this existential project supported by the AVF: in many collective catering places, vegans are prevented from eating according to their philosophy, and attempts are made to force them to consume animal products. This is what happened to Mathias during a preventive incarceration. He was left with no access to vegan meals during 11 months, and sometimes could not eat anything for days as all dishes were cooked with dairy or eggs. Although he was in perfect health before being held in custody, he came out of detention malnourished and with several nutrient deficiencies. Today, Mathias and his lawyer are taking the case to the European Court of Human Rights: if they win, this will have consequences in all 46 member countries of the Council of Europe. Beyond the prison setting, access to vegan meals will be recognized as a fundamental right. We need your help to turn our right into a reality : we have a crowdfunding going on to finance Maître Olivier Peter’s work, a lawyer specializing in European and international law. Every euro counts: please support us, and spread the word! His lawyer, Olivier Peter, defended a lot of antispeciest and does it pro bono in front of national courts, but going to an international court like the ECHR requires a lot more work, and that’s why there is this crowdfunding.

Tamara Bedić, Jerold Friedman, Jordi Casamitjana: Vegan Discrimination Cases, Part I Tamara Bedić, is an ethical vegan, animal rescuer, employment attorney. Tamara is a past-President of the National Lawyers Guild, NYC chapter. She is chair of the Animal Rights Committee. When she’s not championing the rights of women in the workplace, she is organizing webinars or rescuing birds in distress. She is ‘Mom’ to two FIV+ tom cats. Jerold “Jerry” Friedman is vegan, an animal rights activist, and California attorney. Jerry was not yet a law student when he challenged South California Permanente Group (commonly known as Kaiser Permanente) for rescinding their employment offer after he refused a mandatory MMR vaccine. Later, as co-plaintiff with Viva!USA (the American arm of Viva!UK), Jerry won a lawsuit against Adidas from selling shoes made of kangaroo skin in California that violated California’s endangered species law. Jerry is founder of the Animal Law Practitioner listserv that helps animal attorneys from across the USA collaborate and a long-time member of the National Lawyers Guild. Jordi Casamitjana is an ethical vegan, activist and author of (among other things) Ethical Vegan: A Personal and Political Journey to Change the World. Born in Spain but living in the UK, Jordi is a zoologist with a special love for wasps. Jordi was surprised to discover his pension fund at League Against Cruel Sports was supporting unethical industries– e.g. tobacco, oil and pharmaceutical companies that tested on animals. This is the official link of the rulings on his case. Links mentioned in the podcast: 1. FREE WEBINAR: Expanding Vegan Rights, Tuesday, October 17, 2023, 12 – 1pm EDT Four plaintiffs and three lawyers will discuss vegan discrimination cases in the U.S., UK, Canada and France. The laws of these countries differ, but the common goal is having ethical veganism recognized as a “creed” or “ethical belief” worthy of protection from discrimination. The ethical vegans who will be speaking about their individual cases are: Jerold Friedman, Jordi Casamitjana, Adam Knauff and Astrid Prevost. 2. Tyson and Perdue Are Facing Child Labor Investigations

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

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

Sersie Blue and Gigi Carter, Healthy for My Purpose Sersie Blue is a health coach, and Gigi Carter is a certified nutritionist. Together, they created Healthy for My Purpose, a program birthed during the pandemic to address the impact of comorbidities and the disproportionate number of COVID-19 deaths in the Black community. Healthy for My Purpose is made up of several programs and resources designed to help Christians take charge of their health. It includes Healthy Christian Woman Bootcamp, Daniel Fast: A Bridge to Healthy Living 4-Week Program, Daniel’s Plate Recipe Website, and the Healthy for My Purpose Podcast. Sersie and Gigi are launching their new book, Daniel Fast: Why You Should Only Do It Once September 2023. This book empowers the reader to take charge of their health by using the Daniel Fast as a jumping-off point to a long-term sustainable lifestyle. Links mentioned in the program: Biblical Daniel Fast Put To The Test

Kate Galli, Strong Body Green Planet Kate is qualified as a Master Personal Trainer, Life Coach, NLP Practitioner and has also completed the eCornell Plant Based Nutrition Certificate program. Kate first got into fitness as a way to transform her body and confidence. She has spent 17 years helping 1,000’s of individuals sculpt a body and life they love and over the past 7 years has focused on Vegan Health Coaching as one of the most powerful ways to advocate for the animals is to be fit, strong and healthy. Her vision: To create a fit, strong, happy, healthy, compassionate vegan world. On an actionable level Kate’s intention is: to help you create the Mindset that makes your best eating and exercising choices simple and sustainable.

Remembering Hans Diehl, PhD Chosen as “One of America’s 20 Super-Heroes of the Health Movement” (Vegetarian Times), Dr. Hans Diehl was the founder of the Lifestyle Medicine Institute in Loma Linda and a Clinical Professor of Preventive Medicine at the School of Medicine of Loma Linda University, Loma Linda, CA. Offering more than 30 years of leadership in the fast-growing field of Lifestyle Medicine, his pioneering efforts as an epidemiologically trained lifestyle interventionist with the Complete Health Improvement Project (CHIP) and its more than 85,000 graduates have consistently shown how simple lifestyle changes can prevent, arrest, and facilitate the reversal of many of our largely lifestyle related chronic diseases. The clinical results of his research (including two Randomized Clinical CHIP Trials) have been published in more than 45 peer-reviewed medical journals. His books Health Power, Dynamic Living, Take Charge of Your Health, and You-Turn (co-authored with Aileen Ludington) and the Optimal Diet Cookbook (co-authored with Darlene Blaney) have been translated into 36 languages with more than two million copies in circulation. He earned his doctorate in Health Science and an MPH in Public Health Nutrition from Loma Linda University. Prior to founding the Lifestyle Medicine Institute in 1988, Dr. Diehl was the Director of Education and Research at the Pritikin Longevity Center. He contributed to the development of the UCLA Cheer Center and was awarded a post-doctoral research fellowship in cardiovascular (CV) epidemiology (National Institutes of Health). CHIP, original the Coronary Health Improvement Project, then the Complete Health Improvement Project is now PIVIO. More at PIVIOHealth.com

PART 1: Chef Mark Reinfeld, Virtual Vegan Culinary Training Programs 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. Since then, Mark has authored seven more books including the bestselling 30-Minute Vegan series, as well as his latest books detailing the links between health and plant-based diets. He serves as the Executive Chef for the North American Vegetarian Society’s Summerfest and offers vegan consulting services, including chef trainings, teacher trainings, and recipe development, for clients such as Google, Whole Foods, Kroger, Adventist Health, Danone, The Humane Society, Bon Appetit Management, Sabra, Aramark, Sodexo and more. Chef Mark is the recipient of a Platinum Carrot Award – a national award given by the Aspen Center for Integral Health to America’s ‘top innovative and trailblazing healthy gourmet chefs’. Mark’s mission is to help create a sustainable future for humanity by training others in the art of plant-based cuisine – for our health, the planet, and for a more peaceful world. DISCOUNT!! Use REAL20 as a code for 20% off Mark Reinfeld’s trainings. Part 2: Richard H. Schwartz, PhD, Judaism and Global Survival Richard H. Schwartz, Ph.D., is the author of Vegan Revolution: Saving Our World, Revitalizing Judaism; Judaism and Vegetarianism; Who Stole My Religion? Revitalizing Judaism and Applying Jewish Values to Help Heal Our Imperiled Planet; and Mathematics and Global Survival and has over 250 articles at JewishVeg.org/schwartz. He is President Emeritus of Jewish Veg, associate producer of the documentary “A Sacred Duty: Applying Jewish Values to Help Heal the World,” and professor emeritus at the College of Staten Island, New York. A father, grandfather, and now great-grandfather, he has lived with his wife in Israel since 2016. Richard Schwartz will be happy to email a PDF of his book, Vegan Revolution: Saving Our World, Revitalizing Judaism, to each person who emails him at VeggieRich@gmail.com and requests it.

Hartglass & De Mattei, Stop Eating Animals! In this episode, Caryn Hartglass and Gary De Mattei get REAL about the climate crisis and cut through all the BS. Animal agriculture needs to end. They review a few restaurants in Cape Cod and Manhattan that they visited recently. Links mentioned in the program: Your Questions About Food and Climate Change, AnsweredVegans, vegetarians, fish-eaters and meat-eaters in the UK show discrepant environmental impactsSave the Planet, Put Down that HamburgerVegan diet massively cuts environmental damage, study showsEd WintersApricot ButterBread + RosesGrab & Go Health BarCadenceMorgenstern’s BANANAS

Chadi Nabhan, MD, MBA: Toxic Exposure, The True Story Behind the Monsanto Trials and the Search for Justice Chadi Nabhan, MD, MBA, is a board-certified hematologist and a medical oncologist who practiced oncology and treated lymphoma patients for years. He has over 300 peer-reviewed papers, abstracts, and book chapters. He has worked in diverse health care settings and is the creator and host of the “Healthcare Unfiltered” podcast. Links mentioned in the program: Bayer Provides Update on Path to Closure of Roundup™ Litigation

Coyote Jacobs, SALT, a confessional animal liberation narrative Coyote Jacobs was born as a large insect under a rock but through a series of increasingly unfortunate events now has to live life as a human man. He forgets when he became an artist but it’s the main thing he does. His work draws primarily from his experiences with non-human animals, specifically those rescued from slaughterhouses and other places of exploitation. Within his work, he hopes to create uneasiness with the assumed entitlement over animal lives. He fosters bunny rabbits and is friends with many chickens.

Sandra Nomoto, Vegan Marketing Success Stories While earning her degree in English Literature, Sandra Nomoto published poetry in literary journals and film reviews online. At twenty-five, she founded Conscious Public Relations Inc., an award-winning virtual agency that certified as a B Corporation. After a decade in business, she authored and self-published The Only Public Relations Guide You’ll Ever Need in 2019. Living vegan since 2018, Nomoto is now a content writer and editor for vegan businesses who also helps vegan and spiritual non-fiction authors. She aspires to eat vegan food around the world and blog about it, and lives in East Vancouver, Canada with her husband.