Hope for the Animals

Happy Holidays! In this episode, Hope is flying solo and  wanted to share with you some exciting things coming up in the new year for Compassionate Living and our signature projects, the Humane Hoax Project and the Ahimsa Living Project. She also talks about the mixed message of the holidays with tidings of love and peace wrapped up with overconsumption and meat eating.  “If we haven’t changed our hearts and we just change our habits, then any progress is built on a flawed foundation” -Hope Bohanec DONATE TO COMPASSIONATE LIVING’S MATCHING CHALLENGELearn More and Support this Podcast:Compassionate LivingHope for the Animals Podcast

Elly Nakajima is the founder and director of Animal Alliance Asia – a movement building organization dedicated to empowering and training animal justice activists across Asia. Born in Japan and currently based in the UK, Elly is passionate about building a more inclusive, culturally relevant, and effective movement across Asia. She was one of the first Japanese language educational content providers for vegan advocates in Japan. Hope and Elly discuss the need for vegan advocacy to adapt and change for different cultures and different audiences in Asia. Elly explains why truly local leadership across Asia is critical for the ideas of veganism and animal rights to thrive. Elly is on a mission to empower woman and people of the global majority to embrace leadership roles in animal rights and to feel confident advocating for animals in their countries and regions. Resources: Animal Alliance AsiaLearn More and Support this Podcast:Compassionate LivingHope for the Animals Podcast

This episode is a rebroadcast of a solo show from last year at this time where Hope explores the Thanksgiving holiday in the US, the malleability of tradition, and the plight of the millions of turkeys that suffer and are killed for the holidays. We hope you enjoy this episode replay. Happy ThanksLiving! Learn More and Support this Podcast:Compassionate LivingHope for the Animals Podcast

Dr. Jason Hannan is Associate Professor in the Department of Rhetoric, Writing, & Communications at the University of Winnipeg. He is the editor of Meatsplaining: The Animal Agriculture Industry and the Rhetoric of Denial. Jason and Hope talk about this edited volume and about “meatsplaining” as a PR tactic of the animal agriculture industry. They talk about how animal exploiters use the law, social media, anti-vegan trolling, and the humane hoax to justify and sanitize atrocities in animal farming. They also talk about Jason’s current book project, New White Saviors: The Colonial Mythology of Meat, which examines the meat industry as a form of cultural and ecological imperialism. He is also the Chair of the Winnipeg VegFest, the largest vegan and animal rights festival in central Canada.Resources:Meatsplaining: The Animal Agriculture Industry and the Rhetoric of Denial Episode 48: Love and Rescue with Hope and Cogen BohanecLearn More and Support this Podcast:Compassionate LivingHope for the Animals Podcast

Welcome to our spooky and fun episode where Hope explores the connection between Halloween, horror movies, and veganism. Then we have Marla Rose joining us. Marla and her husband, John Beske, own Vegan Street Media,  a full-service marketing, design, and communications company for vegan businesses and nonprofits. Marla also co-founded Chicago VeganMania, a popular festival that ran for ten years, and the author of several books including Fun, Festive and Fabulous: Vegan Holidays for Everyone and Humane Halloween: 22 Quirky, Fun and Bewitching Vegan Recipes for the Spirit of the Season. Hope and Marla talk about being vegan around the holidays, explore why it seems that so many vegans love Halloween, and overcoming the feeling of isolation during the holidays and the joy of finding like-minded community to celebrate with! Resources:Vegan Street Vegan Street MediaHumane Halloween: 22 Quirky, Fun and Bewitching Vegan Recipes for the Spirit of the SeasonHumane Halloween FaceBook PageLearn More and Support this Podcast:Compassionate LivingHope for the Animals Podcast 

Vegan Festival Season is here! Today Hope chats with Erika Hazel. Erika is a popular social media influencer and food blogger known as the Bizerkeley Vegan. Erika became The Bizerkeley Vegan after she transitioned to the vegan lifestyle and the name comes from her love of everything others see as bizarre or unique about Berkeley, California. Erika organizes the Bizerkeley Food Fest and she and Hope talk about the importance of vegan food fests for building community, supporting small businesses, and showing pre-vegans how good plant-based food can be.  “Going through the stomach is my form of activism.” -Erika Hazel, The Bizerkeley VeganResources:Instagram: The Bizerkeley VeganLearn More and Support this Podcast:Compassionate LivingHope for the Animals Podcast

Today on the podcast it’s all about leather-free materials—fabrics that mimic leather, but are animal-free and more ecological. We have two guests with us to talk about their businesses that focus on innovations in non-leather goods. First up is Paras Doshi, founder of Doshi, that offers fashionable and durable non-leather items like belts, wallets, and purses. Then we have Troy Akin, founder of the company EcoSports. Troy makes footballs, basketballs and more using a material that is vegan, chemical free, biodegradable and that retains the feel and bounce that you would expect from a high-quality ball. Join us to hear about the future of vegan products beyond food and how these fabrics are helping to revolutionizes eco and ethical living.Hope also reminds listeners about her upcoming 6-week course on nonviolence and vegan ethics called Ahimsa, Animal Advocacy, and Veganism starting on Saturday, September 24. Resources:Hope’s Course: Ahimsa, Animal Advocacy, and VeganismDoshiEcoSportsMore about the leather industry from BiteSizeVeganSonoma County VegFestLearn More and Support this Podcast:Compassionate LivingHope for the Animals Podcast

On this episode we are joined by Christopher Jain Miller, the co-founder and Vice President of Academic Affairs of Arihanta Academy, a Jain Dharma college. He completed his Ph.D. in the study of Religion at the University of California, Davis and is the academic advisor for the global Jain Vegan Initiative. Chris and Hope dig deep into the parallel philosophies of Jain dharma and vegan living. They explore the concept of Ahimsa, Sanskrit for non-violence, and how young Jains are seeing veganism as a way to practice their principle of non-harming in a modern context.  They also discuss Arihanta Academy, a new online Jain college, and Hope’s class in starting Sept 24 called Ahimsa, Animal Advocacy and Veganism.Resources:Arihanta AcademyHope’s Class- Ahimsa, Animal Advocacy, and Veganism Chris' Classes- Jain Philosophy in Daily Life, Yoga Sūtra: The Classical Yoga of PatañjaliInstagram- @thejainveganinitiative Learn More and Support this Podcast:Compassionate LivingHope for the Animals Podcast

Did you know that ducks like to take a swim before breakfast and that cows like to have a view? Paul Drake is the designer and construction leader of the animal housing at Piedmont Farm Animal Refuge, where he is helping to pioneer a new process called animal-centered design. Paul has a Master’s of Architecture and has a passion for designing sustainable structures that can improve the lives of animals. Lenore Braford is the Founder and Animal Care Director at Piedmont Farm Animal Refuge in Pittsboro, North Carolina. Lenore has nearly a decade of experience working with and enriching the lives of animals. On this episode, we will hear all about the new process of animal-centered design and how this unusual animal refuge is innovating sanctuary life and creating unique spaces designed for each individual species of farmed animal to feel safe and thrive. Resources:Ryuji Chua on The Daily ShowAnimal Centered DesignPiedmont Farm Animal RefugeCompassion Consortium (monthly online spiritual vegan gathering) Learn More and Support this Podcast:Compassionate LivingHope for the Animals Podcast 

 Why not dog meat? Molly Elwood is the vegan activists who created the website, Elwood’s Organic Dog Meat which launched in August 2021 and has gone super viral with over 1.3 million unique views. The Facebook page has over 42k followers, and one post has reached nearly 10 million people and has 21k comments and 42k shares! This fictional farm raises dogs for meat with claims like “local,” “organic,” “free-range" and "ethical." The idea was to satirize meat industry's messaging, encouraging consumers to explore their cognitive dissonance around the animals they choose to put on their plates. Molly and Hope discuss the emotional and visceral reactions that this unique campaign has created, the use of satire in political action and change, and how Molly herself fell for the humane hoax before going vegan. Resources:www.elwooddogmeat.comLearn More and Support this Podcast:Compassionate LivingHope for the Animals Podcast