10 Years Since Veganuary: Co-founders Matthew and Jane reflecting on the past and envisioning the future
May 14, 2024
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Matthew and Jane, co-founders of Veganuary, reflect on the past 10 years and discuss the growth of the movement. They explore challenges, mainstream acceptance, working dynamics, and transitioning into new ventures like Veg Capital and VFC. The episode highlights strategies for advancing animal liberation movements, measuring impact, and the importance of collaboration and risk-taking in the plant-based food sector.
Veganuary led to Veg Capital and VFC, focusing on plant-based investments and products.
Strategic marketing increased Veganuary participants, with plans for fundraising and AI integration.
Deep dives
Veganuary's Impactful Journey with Matthew and Jane
Veganuary began in 2013 by Matthew Glover and Jane Land, encouraging millions to go vegan for January and beyond, fostering a global movement. The success of Veganuary led to founding Veg Capital and VFC by Matthew, focusing on plant-based investments and products.
Inspirational Advocates and Influential Figures
Matthew and Jane share inspiring figures from the movement, like Seth Tibbitt, founder of Tofurky, and Kate Fowler, Communication Director at Generation Vegan. These individuals have made significant contributions to animal advocacy and plant-based activism.
Challenges and Growth of Veganuary
Through strategic marketing on platforms like Facebook, Veganuary's participant numbers have soared from 3,000 in 2014 to around 700,000 internationally. The emphasis on surveys over sign-up numbers has provided deeper insights into participant behavior, revealing wider gender demographic engagement.
Future Prospects in Animal Advocacy
Future opportunities in animal advocacy include enhanced fundraising efforts, leveraging AI technology, and conducting in-depth research on effective diet change initiatives. Collaboration with organizations like Animal Think Tank and Social Change Lab can further amplify impact and reach within the movement.
Matthew and Jane co-founded the online campaign Veganuary in 2013, which has encouraged millions of people across the globe to try being vegan for the month of January and beyond. More recently, Matthew launched Veg Capital, an organisation that provides early-stage capital to companies striving to replace the use of animals in our food system and founded vegan chicken brand VFC. Jane remains on the board for Veganuary as chair.
Episode filmed live at the Vegan and Animal Rights Conference in Manchester in April 2024. The episode is warm and nostalgic as Jane and Matthew gave us insight into their Veganuary journey. The episode was also recorded and is available on our youtube channel.
Relevant links to things mentioned throughout the show:
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