This year’s issue of Vegan Outreach News is now available.
Inside: Record-Setting Outreach • Measuring Effectiveness • Keeping Vegans Vegan • Doubling Your Impact for Animals, and much more!
Thank you for all you’ve made possible this year – and here’s to even more success in 2016!
(click to image to play video)
Vic Sjodin, VO’s Director of International Outreach, recently spoke at the International Animal Rights Conference in Esch, Luxembourg on effective activism, leafleting and staying inspired. The talk was very well received, you can see it here!
By Vic Sjodin, VO Director of Outreach
The fall semester has officially started at many colleges and universities across the country, which means ample opportunity for animal advocates to get out there and do outreach to an open-minded crowd of people.
Whether you’re new to leafleting or you’ve been leafleting for years, we want to give you a few easy-to-implement, time-tested tips that are guaranteed to help you leaflet like a pro.
A warm greeting and a friendly smile will undoubtedly increase the number of booklets you hand out. You can also try saying statements like, “Info on helping animals.” or “Help stop suffering.”
People who are new to leafleting will often say these statements as questions—”Would you like some info on how to help animals?” Doing this will actually decrease the number of booklets people take from you. Tweaking something so little can increase your take rate dramatically.
You’ll want to lean a little towards the receiver and extend your arm fully, locking your arm straight out when handing off the booklet. Do your best to pass the booklet right into the receiver’s hand.
If you have your arm close to your body and bent at 90 degrees, you won’t appear as confident. This is another small change that will make a huge difference!
For a bonus tip—make sure to square your shoulders and face the person walking toward you. Hand the booklet forward, slightly to the left or the right of your body. Be mindful not to hand out booklets with your arm to the side of your body.
Saying “Thank you!” or “Have a nice day!” or even “You’re the best!” with a little enthusiasm will have a profound cumulative effect by keeping the momentum of leaflet takers going. The person who took your booklet will appreciate the kindness, and, more importantly, the next person approaching will take note of your kindness and likely grab the booklet you’re offering.
Once a few people start taking booklets, more and more people will take them as they see others doing it. This simple act can often double or triple your take rate when done with warmth and sincerity.
Watch a Demonstration
Want to see these tips in action? Check out this video—a recording of Vegan Outreach’s first Facebook Live leafleting demonstration.
Have more questions about leafleting? Check out our detailed Helpful Tips page on the Adopt A College Website.
Want to get involved and start leafleting? This is how to get started.
Good luck and happy leafleting!
by Jack Norris, Executive Director
Vegan Outreach recently joined with ReadingRewards to do a pilot study to determine the effectiveness of paying people to read our booklets. Participants were given a small reward as part of a rewards program.
We tested the booklets Your Choice (YC), Even If You Like Meat (EI), and a control pamphlet about immigration. Participants were then surveyed to see if they intended to change their diet. All participants were surveyed a month later to see how they changed.
You can see the basline report by clicking here and the follow-up by clicking here. As of this writing, I didn’t have an official study design report yet, but will add that as soon as I receive it. [Added Dec 18, 2014; click here.]
For the initial study, 223 people read YC, 181 read EI, and 213 read the control pamphlet. For the follow-up, 167 of the YC, 134 of the EI, and 158 of the control readers took part.
The takeaway messages were as follows.
EI was the stronger pamphlet in terms of getting people to change. Compared to YC, EI has more text, citations, and more graphic images. It doesn’t focus as much on trying to convince people based on the fact that others are also going veg.
The finding that people were more persuaded by EI goes somewhat against the social research that suggests that seeing other people like you doing something is the most powerful motivator for change. On the other hand, older people were more likely to change in this survey (which was a surprise), and YC shows pictures of college students, not older people.
Speaking of the age of people who changed, among those over 50 years old, 14.3% reported changing their diet due to the pamphlet. The rates were 5.5% for readers between 40-50 years old, 2.9% for readers between 30-40 years old, and 1.9% for readers between 18-30 years old. These differences were statistically significant.
Predictably, women were more likely to change than men as 6.8% of female respondents who read a VO pamphlet reported changing their diet due to reading the pamphlet, compared to only 1.4% of male readers.
In terms of how much change the pamphlets created, the results suggested that 1 out of every 60-100 readers may have become pescetarian, vegetarian, or vegan due to reading the pamphlet. These results are highly uncertain due to lack of statistical significance. If true, then at a cost of $0.44 per read, it would be $26.50-$44.15 per major diet change.
Some of these results were surprising. We had been planning to make all our booklets more like YC, but this has given us a strong reason to continue having a couple booklets with more graphic photos and more text and citations.
The fact that older women were more likely to change their diet than younger women or men was also surprising. It’s hard to believe that this finding isn’t an anomaly, but definitely worth paying attention to more for the future.
In the meantime, I don’t think this survey should necessarily be taken as the final word on which booklet to use. The fact is, for most leafleters, YC is a lot easier to hand out and possibly handing out more could overcome the fact that if someone reads the entire booklet, they are more likely to change from an EI. And we don’t really know the differences between the booklets among a large number of college students.
The benefits of this Pay Per Read model for studying our booklets is that it solves some of the significant logistical problems of going onto college campuses and surveying people over time (especially finding the people to re-survey over time). In the not-too-distant future, I am interested in testing:
That should keep us busy for a while.
By Josie Moody, VO Office Manager
If you’re looking for vegan shoes, you’ve come to the right place—my husband Mitch and I have compiled a list of vegan shoes below!
First, there are a number of sites that sell only vegan shoes. Wills is one of Mitch’s favorites for buying professional work shoes.
Other vegan companies are MooShoes, Vegan Essentials, and The Vegetarian Site.
If you aren’t buying from one of the great sites listed above, one invaluable resource we discovered is Vegan Kicks. Vegan Kicks is dedicated to helping you find vegan shoes, avoid ones that aren’t, and contact companies to ask them to include vegan options.
Vegan Kicks includes information about the workers’ conditions in their yearly reports—Vegan Shoe Policies 2015.
After discovering fashionable options from all-vegan companies such as Native Shoes, Newton Running, Unstitched Utilities, Vegan Chic, and Xero Shoes—where you can make your own sandals!—I’ll be spending my money at businesses whose values align closely with mine.
A special shout out to Vans, who, as of this writing, has dozens of vegan options for toddlers, kids, and adults alike!
Are there any vegan shoe companies you didn’t see in the Vegan Shoe Policies 2015 list? Let us know in the comments below!
By Jack Norris, Executive Director, and Rania Hannan, Research and Assessment Specialist
On August 1, Gallup released a poll in which they asked people whether they were vegetarian and vegan, and then compared the results to the same poll they conducted in 2012 (1). Gallup framed their results as, “Few Americans Vegetarian or Vegan,” but that really depends on your perspective—applying their results to the adult population shows that 7.6 million U.S. adults consider themselves to be vegan and that’s a considerable increase from earlier decades.
Gallup found that while the percentage of vegetarians has remained at 5% since 2012, the percentage of vegans had increased from 2% to 3%—a 50% increase in six years. And if you do the math based on the U.S. adult population from 2011 and 2017—the years they used in their calculations (2)—the number of vegans has increased by an estimated 2.8 million in those six years.
There are two caveats to this poll:
That said, the trends point in the right direction and reinforce our experience on the ground—the number of vegans is growing. Thank you to everyone working to spread a vegan lifestyle and end the suffering of farmed animals!
References
1. Snapshot: Few Americans Vegetarian or Vegan. Gallup. August 1, 2018.
2. Adults U.S. population taken from U.S. Census Bureau, Population Division (2011). Accessed August 10, 2018. Found U.S. adult population to be 237,734,073 in 2011 and 252,063,800 in 2017.
By Lisa Rimmert, Vice President of Strategic Communications
As the fall semester ends and we gear up for spring outreach, these dedicated campus leafleters have inspired us with their incredible work for animals this semester. They’ve spread a message of compassion to hundreds of thousands of people, making a huge impact in bringing us closer to a vegan world.
Let’s take a look at what they’ve been up to this fall!
Drawing on her experience as a life coach, Jevranne Martel stays upbeat and engages people in thoughtful conversations as she leaflets. As our lone Canada Outreach Coordinator, she keeps her schedule jam-packed, traveling from British Columbia to Prince Edward Island, advocating for the animals. This semester, Jevranne handed leaflets to 26,580 students and showed virtual reality slaughterhouse footage to 198.
Carlos Contreras [above, left] joined Emmanuel Marquez as the two embarked on Vegan Outreach’s first-ever tours in Peru and Ecuador. Encouraged by the positive response in both countries, Carlos finished the semester in his home country of Mexico. He handed leaflets to 25,742 students at a total of 42 schools this semester and he showed virtual reality videos to 220 people.
In addition to supporting outreach by numerous volunteers, Emmanuel Marquez personally showed virtual reality videos to 263 people—bringing his total to nearly 5,000 over the past two years! He also handed leaflets this semester to 28,690 people at 54 schools on outreach tours in Mexico, Ecuador, and Peru.
Sarai Garcia wrapped up her second semester of leafleting with Vegan Outreach, covering New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. In the spring, she handed leaflets to 13,200 students at 26 schools, and now she’s more than doubled those numbers! This fall, Sarai handed out 35,004 leaflets at 60 schools.
Sam Tucker has handed leaflets to 44,530 people throughout Australia and New Zealand, and he’s shown virtual reality videos to 396. He’s also helped develop leaflets for Australia outreach and was instrumental in creating and launching Vegan Outreach’s 10 Weeks to Vegan program in Australia and New Zealand.
Carlos Yanez completed his first solo tour of the Southeast U.S. this semester. He set a personal record of handing out 1,756 leaflets at North Carolina State University on October 10th, and overall this semester he handed out 49,436 leaflets at 74 schools.
This was Richa Mehta’s second semester with Vegan Outreach India. She handed leaflets to 24,775 people and showed virtual reality videos to 403. On top of that, she was instrumental in working with food companies to reduce their use of animal products and introduce vegan options.
Miguel Marron received a Vegan Outreach leaflet at his college, then started an animal rights club, volunteered for Vegan Outreach, and is now an employee. He celebrated his 14th anniversary as a vegan in October, and we’re celebrating that he handed out 44,818 leaflets and showed 330 virtual reality videos this fall!
Leafleting in the southern U.S., Sarah Weldon uses her experience as a Marine Corps veteran and reformed hunter to relate to people who are initially resistant to the vegan message. As a result, she handed out 53,164 leaflets this fall and has had many hunters and farmers shake her hand and thank her for having a genuine conversation with them.
Brian Chavez [above, middle] started leafleting with Vegan Outreach in Southern California and has traveled all over the midwest U.S. to spread veganism. Brian leaflets heavily during class changes, then during slow times he takes the opportunity to have more meaningful conversations with curious students. As a result, he has handed out 58,643 leaflets on 55 campuses, and so many people have told him they’re going veg!
Last but certainly not least is Steve Erlsten. Steve began leafleting in an official capacity for Vegan Outreach in the fall of 2013—and he hasn’t stopped since! While handing leaflets to 71,925 students this semester, he reached—and exceeded—his goal of personally handing out one million pro-veg leaflets! Congratulations, Steve, and thank you for your dedication!
These activists’ work is far from flashy—they wake up early, lug heavy boxes, and remain on their feet for hours at a time. We’re happy to be able to celebrate them any chance we get. Thank you for helping us do so! And thank you, of course, to the donors whose generosity made this work possible!
If you want to honor these activists and see Vegan Outreach do even more for animals next year, please consider making a donation by December 31st. It will be matched dollar-for-dollar for twice the impact!
Thank you!
Take two minutes to help both dogs and farmed animals!
Los Angeles community members, along with ten veterinarians, started a petition to get all six city animal shelters to feed their dogs plant-based food. LA Animal Services Commissioners voted in December to do a 60-day feasibility study to analyze the benefits and risks of making the switch.
According to the veterinarians, a plant-based diet could eliminate harmful chemicals found in meat-based dog food—which may help prevent canine ailments like cancer and allergic dermatitis*—while also sparing the lives of thousands of farmed animals who are used in the food.
We need your help to make it happen!
*Heinze, C. R., VMD, MS, DACVN, Gomez, F. C., BS, & Freeman, L. M., DVM, PhD, DACVN. (2012). Assessment of commercial diets and recipes for home-prepared diets recommended for dogs with cancer. Journal of American Veterinary Medical Association, 241(11), 1453-1460.
By Michelle Alvarado, Guest Contributor
Michelle Alvarado is a contributor to Cria Vegano Magazine, and lives in Chicago with her family where the winters seem to never end!
The winter season can be tricky with little ones, especially if you live in places that snow. Personally, it can be painstaking to even get in the mood to leave the house when the weather is in the single digits. Once I do muster up the courage to leave the house, I never regret it. My 19-month-old, Joey, enjoys it, too—we’ve just learned to layer like pros.
We’re fortunate enough to have found a moms’ group where we not only get together with our little ones and chat, but we get a good indoor workout in as well. The best part is that Joey gets the opportunity to socialize and make friends with kids of all ages. If you’re able to join a local moms’ group, whether it’s a vegan, church, or Meetup group, I highly recommend it.
The library has become a favorite go-to during the winter. I must admit that before I had my son, I only went there to pick up books I’d called in ahead of time for my preschool class. When he turned one, a friend of mine suggested a play date at the library, and Joey ended up having a blast!
A lot of libraries have story times, a play area, and even allow you to sip on some coffee while you sit back and talk with other parents. And don’t forget to take advantage of that library card! You can pick up some books to read at bedtime. But don’t be like me, return those books on time!
We live in a city where there’s a nearby children’s museum. When my husband and I took Joey, it did not disappoint! Holy sensory stimulation—it was magical! We played in a huge water table, built structures with glow in the dark tiles, and played house. Our little musician thoroughly enjoyed the music exhibit. And the staff at the small café even worked with us to put together a vegan-friendly snack!
This activity wasn’t free and is usually best to pay for a year membership if you plan on going more than a couple of times per year.
If you like brisk, chilly weather and you are an outdoorsy family, going for a nature hike at the nearest park is a perfect winter activity for you. You get to breathe in the fresh cold air, get a little exercise and can work together to spot different types of animals. Some parks even have nature centers where you can take a break and thaw out.
As Joey gets older and I learn from other mamas about how to stay busy during the cold winter months, I look forward to watching him participate and stay active. There’s so much to explore out there!
If you’re staying indoors today, don’t forget the latest issue of Raise Vegan is out now, and our mini magazine, Raised Vegan, is available to purchase!
By Kim Sujovolsky, Guest Contributor
Kim Sujovolsky is the founder of Brownble.com, an online resource for aspiring or longtime vegans who are looking for guidance and inspiration in the kitchen.
Ready to try a new flavor combination? Give this hardy, flavorful Maple and Mustard Glazed Tempeh a try!
Maple and Mustard Glazed Tempeh
Yields 2-4 servings.
Ingredients
Directions