Hope for the Animals

On this episode we have our second session of the Humane Hoax Book Club with two of Compassionate Living’s Humane Hoax Team volunteers Marian Erikson and Fireweed. We talked about a few of the chapters from the new anthology, The Humane Hoax: Essays Exposing the Myth of Happy Meat, Humane Dairy, and Ethical Eggs. A fascinating chapter we examine is called “Murder She Wrote” about the memoirs of Femivores, women who own farms and dominate and kill animals in an attempt to gain equality in the male dominated spaces of farming, hunting, and butchery. We explore other chapters that focus on speciesist language, the cognitive dissonance of consuming animals, and we expose foodie culture for its celebration of violence. Resources:Order the Book! The Humane Hoax: Essays Exposing the Myth of Happy Meat, Humane Dairy, and Ethical EggsMarian Erikson’s Plant Based Briefing podcastLearn More and Support this Podcast:Compassionate LivingHope for the Animals Podcast

On this episode we are featuring one of the contributing authors to the new book, The Humane Hoax: Essays Exposing the Myth of Happy Meat, Humane Dairy, and Ethical Eggs, Nicholas Carter. Nicholas is an ecologist and co-founder of PlantBasedData.org, a library of peer-reviewed studies calling for plant-based diets. He has his Master’s in Environmental Practice and his thesis focused on the global estimates of greenhouse gas emissions attributed to animal agriculture. He also works with Plant Based Treaty as a Science & Policy Analyst and Plant Based News as a Data Scientist & Lead Researcher. Nicholas’ chapter is called Grazing Vs. The Planet and in this episode, he unpacks sustainable animal agriculture and labels like carbon negative and carbon neutral beef. Nicolas tells us about how he recently debated representatives of While Oak Farms and exposed them for their greenwashing. He also shares some solutions like rewilding and veganic agriculture and how we have the tools we need to heal this planet, we just need the will to implement them. Nicholas says, “Veganic farming is the real regenerative agriculture.” Resources: Buy the Book! The Humane Hoax: Essays Exposing Happy Meat, Humane Dairy, and Ethical EggsNicholas Debates White Oak FarmsFilm: Rewilding a MountainLearn More and Support this Podcast:Compassionate LivingHope for the Animals Podcast

We are excited to announce that our host of the Hope for the Animals Podcast, Hope Bohanec, has released an anthology called The Humane Hoax: Essays Exposing the Myth of Happy Meat, Humane Dairy, and Ethical Eggs published by Lantern Publishing and Media. As humanewashing and greenwashing become more prevalent and pervasive, this volume, with 18 contributing authors, activists and academics, exposes the humane hoax from every angle. We have two guests on the podcast today for our first session of the Humane Hoax Book Club to discuss the book. Alastor Van Kleeck has a Ph.D. in English and co-founded the Triangle Chicken Advocates Sanctuary as well as The Microsanctuary Movement. Alastor also co-founded The Humane Hoax Project with Hope and wrote a chapter for the new book. Much of Alastor’s writing is available at strivingwithsystems.com. Also joining us is Sena Crutchley. Sena is an associate professor and long-time animal rights and environmental activist. She is a founder and board member of Piedmont Area Vegan Educators and also founded and runs Ruby’s Refuge, a microsanctuary for chickens and fishes. Sena is a volunteer on the Humane Hoax Team.Resources:ORDER THE BOOK! The Humane Hoax: Essays Exposing the Myth of Happy Meat, Humane Dairy, and Ethical Eggs. The Humane Hoax ProjectLearn More and Support this Podcast:Compassionate LivingHope for the Animals Podcast

Happy Easter! In honor of spring, today we are featuring rabbits and welcome Mark Hawthorne to the podcast. Mark is the author of numerous books on animal rights and social justice, including: A Vegan Ethic: Embracing A Life Of Compassion Toward All and the bestselling Striking at the Roots: A Practical Guide to Animal Activism. His most recent book is called The Way of the Rabbit which is a joyful celebration of rabbits, both wild and domestic. Mark is a longtime rabbit lover who has fostered and rescued many bunnies over the years, eight of whom he adopted. He also volunteers with the vegan food justice group Food Empowerment Project, that was founded by his partner Lauren Ornelas. Mark tells us some stories of the rabbit in history and myth, shares interesting insights about rabbits, talks about the rise in popularity of using rabbits for meat in the US, and also talks about his other book Bleating Hearts: The Hidden World of Animal Suffering. Resources:Book Launch Party for The Humane Hoax: Essays Exposing the Myth of Happy Meat, Humane Dairy, and Ethical Eggs edited by Hope Bohanec. Register Today!Some of Mark’s Books: The Way of the RabbitBleating Hearts: The Hidden World of Animal SufferingStriking at the RootsIPCC, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s new report: “Climate Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability”Learn More and Support this Podcast:Compassionate LivingHope for the Animals Podcast

Today on the podcast we dig into the philosophy and practice of Effective Altruism (EA) and how it permeates and influences the animal rights movement. Krista Hiddema, Executive Director of For The Greater Good, has written a chapter in the new anthology, The Good It Promises, The Harm It Does: Critical Essays on Effective Altruism edited by Carol Adams, Alice Crary, and Lori Gruen. Krista offers a broad introduction to EA and how in the last decade, it has informed and now enveloped the animal advocacy movements strategy and tactics and why this may be a detrimental path for the animals. She shares stories of how campaigns that are unquantifiable can have profound impact and should not be pushed aside by the EA trend. Krista holds a doctorate in social sciences where her research focused on the need to utilize ecofeminist principles in matters of board governance within the animal rights movement. She holds five other degrees in areas of leadership, human resources, and organizational development, she teaches strategic planning and board governance, she is a fellow with the Animals & Society Research Initiative, and a reviewer for the Journal of Critical Animal Studies, and much more. She resides in outside Toronto, Canada.  Resources:Book: The Good It Promises, The Harm It Does: Critical Essays on Effective Altruism edited by Carol Adams, Alice Crary, and Lori GruenKrista: ·      www.DrKristaHiddema.com·      https://drkristahiddema.com/blog·      https://drkristahiddema.com/blog/2022/12/14/effective-altruism-the-impact-is-fear-corruption-and-it-is-also-not-good-for-animals·      https://www.facebook.com/Krista.HiddemaLearn More and Support this Podcast:Compassionate LivingHope for the Animals Podcast  

Naijha Wright-Brown is the Executive Director of the Black Veg Society, a 501c3 non-profit organization that educates predominantly Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) communities on the benefits of holistic living, the plant-based diet, and veganism.  She is also the co-creator of Vegan Soulfest and Maryland Vegan Restaurant Month. Naijha shares her journey creating a soul food restaurant called The Land of Kush as well as an incredibly successful Black-focused vegan festival all while running the Black Veg Society. Naijha is on a mission to help people find their vegan soul!Resources:Naijha Speaks- YouTubeBlack Veg SocietyVegan SoulFest- August 19 & 20, 2023 About the Egyptian Kingdom of KushSoul of Ahimsa: Vegan Spiritualty Retreat in NYLearn More and Support this Podcast:Compassionate LivingHope for the Animals Podcast

On today’s episode we have a recurring guest joining us, Hope’s husband, Cogen Bohanec. Hope and Cogen start us off with a big announcement and then Cogen discusses his work as a constructive theologian in the Dharma Traditions and how he connects Hindu, Jain, and Buddhist Dharma with environmental and animal rights issues. He talks about eco-psychology, eco-theology, karma theory, and the dangers of “human exceptionalism.” Cogen also talks about his recent writings regarding animal personhood, animals’ intrinsic value, and how we can remove systems of oppression through religious and cultural transformation. “It is a false binary to say that we are either altercentric (other centered) or egocentric. That’s a false binary. Actually it's more of a dialectic, care for ourselves is care for the other. Care for the other is care for the self. It’s a both/and solution.” – Cogen Bohanec, PhD We would like to thank A Well-Fed World (AWFW) for their generous support of this podcast! A Well-Fed World is an international hunger relief and food security organization advancing plant-based foods and farming to create a sustainable, nourished, and climate-friendly future. Learn more at awfw.org.Resources:Ahimsa, Animal Advocacy, and Veganism is an online, self-study course with Hope Bohanec, offered by Arihanta Academy. Learn more and register for the spring semester here.Other Episodes with Cogen:Episode 48: Vegan Love and Rescue with Cogen and Hope BohanecEpisode 57: The Vegan Hypocritical Imperative with Cogen and Hope BohanecLearn More and Support this Podcast:Compassionate LivingHope for the Animals Podcast

Ryuji Chua is an animal activist and filmmaker who is currently working as a video producer at Surge Activism, an advisor for the Vegan Hacktivists, and was recently featured on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah to talk about animal rights and his latest independent documentary "How Conscious Can A Fish Be?" Hope and Ryuji talk about the importance of including fish in our advocacy and discuss fish pain, fish sentience, and fish farms. Ryuji offers advice about effective communication as a vegan, how focusing on the animals is critical for our messaging, and  how protecting wild animals is often seen as preserving the species or ecosystem, without consideration to the individual animals. Resources:Ryuji’s YouTube ChannelRyuji on The Daily ShowVideo: How Conscious Can a Fish Be?Learn More and Support this Podcast:Compassionate LivingHope for the Animals Podcast

 Today Hope starts us off with some interesting information about lobsters, crabs, oysters, and other marine life. Then we have Kathy Stevens joining us. Kathy is the founder & director of Catskill Animal Sanctuary, a 150-acre refuge in New York’s Hudson Valley for 11 different species of farmed animals. She was an educator for many years and in 2001, she co-founded Catskill Animal Sanctuary, where her love of teaching, her belief that education has the power to transform, and her love of animals come together. One of the world’s leading sanctuaries for farmed animals, Catskill has saved more than 5,000 non-human individuals through direct rescue — and even more through programming that encourages humans to adopt veganism.Hope and Kathy talk about Kathy’s journey starting Catskill Animal Sanctuary, how elderly farmed animals are so rare and only found on sanctuaries, and how Tucker the cow has changed thousands of lives with his love of people. Resources:Catskill Animal SanctuaryKathy’s books: Where the Blind Horse SingsAnimal CampLearn More and Support this Podcast:Compassionate LivingHope for the Animals Podcast

Happy New Year! Today on the podcast we have Sangita Iyer joining us. She is a journalist, biologist, award-winning filmmaker, National Geographic Explorer, and founder of Voice for Asian Elephants Society. Sangita was born and raised in Kerala, India, home to captive elephants used in temple ceremonies, documented in her award-winning film Gods in Shackles and now her new book called Gods in Shackels: What Elephants Can Teach Us About Empathy, Resilience, and Freedom.  Considered the “Blackfish for elephants,” the film exposes the heartbreaking plight of these amazing gentle giants in India. From her home in Canada, Sangita now oversees teams on the ground in India who combat elephant poaching, illegal trade, habitat loss and more. Hope and Sangita discuss the precarious situation for elephants in India, for both the wild population and for the captured elephants used in rituals.  “Elephants are the largest animals on earth, and they are literally designed to play a vital role in the ecosystem. Climate change has no borders, so what happens to elephants in India and Africa reverberates and impacts other countries at a devastating pace.”   -Sangita IyerResources: Gods in Shackles (website)Gods in Shackles (film)Gods in Shackles (book) Voice for Asian Elephants SocietyLearn More and Support this Podcast:Compassionate LivingHope for the Animals Podcast