Veganism is a powerful message taken from any point of view. Health, longevity, fitness, respect for life, environmental care and sustainability… People come to it for any of these or a thousand other reasons. My belief is that the more people shift to a plant based lifestyle, the better it will be for one and all and to this end, I decided to make vegan cooking my profession. For a great a lot of people, it’s very important that it expands, that more people are exposed to and more curiosity piqued about vegan eating and living. I try to keep my eyes peeled for interesting ways to get people thinking about making the change or, even better, excited about making the change. That’s how I stumbled across Veganuary. Veganuary, in its simplest form, is an invitation to eat plant-based for the month of January and beyond.
“Veganuary set out to create a movement that would appeal to non-vegans throughout the world. A charity, Veganuary exists to promote and support veganism, breaking down misconceptions by presenting information in a fresh, friendly and non-judgemental manner.“ – the Veganuary
Veganuary is a non-profit organization that encourages people worldwide to try vegan for January and beyond. During the 2020 campaign, more than 400,000 people took our pledge to try a vegan diet, while more than 600 brands, restaurants and supermarkets promoted the campaign, and launched more than 1200 new vegan products and menus in the UK market alone. Throughout the year, Veganuary encourages and supports people and businesses alike to move to a plant-based diet as a way of protecting the environment, preventing animal suffering and improving the health of millions of people.
Something about the whole concept really resonated with me; its simplicity maybe. Mostly I like that I didn’t feel as though they were pushing an agenda other than trying to make the world a better place by representing what was closest to their hearts. It’s easy, especially if it’s the field you work in, to become fixated on the negative impact and consequences of animal-based production and consumption and to lose sight of a more positive vision, which is what we are working towards and what should be the thing which gets most of our focus. Coming across Veganuary reminded me of that.
Form the Veganuary website: “The campaign began life as a conversation between husband and wife, Matthew Glover and Jane Land in late 2013. As passionate ethical vegans, they were searching for a way to inspire more people to stop eating animals. Within a couple of months, they’d come up with a name, a brand and a website, and the very first Veganuary was run late at night from their bedroom – entrepreneur and English teacher by day, animal rights campaigners by night. They placed a bet: Jane hoped 100 people might take part, whereas Matthew was a little more optimistic with a wager of 1,000 sign-ups. They both lost. 3,300 people from all around the world signed up to go vegan in January 2014, and – just like that – a phenomenon was born.”
The story of how it all started reminded me that I don’t need vast resources, or a huge range of specialized cooking skills or nutritional expertise to make a tangible difference. The guys who started Veganuary did nothing more than sharing their vision and issue and invitation. In doing so they have touched more than 1 000 000 lives within their first 6 years.
For anyone who might be interested the website (www.veganuary.com) has links to recipes, nutritional advice, guidance for helping to get the ball rolling, a directory of shops and restaurants near you, where you can buy whatever you may need to get you through the January challenge. You’ll find everything you need quite easily.
January may be nearing its end, but the Veganuary challenge can be whatever you want it to be, “Vegan for January and beyond’, as their website says. It’s well worth trying simply for the joy of experiment and trying something new. It may represent a profound turning point in your life.
Author: Hein Human Adamson
