IVU Online News

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Report from EVU Talks 2009
Shabari Monica Saha, European Vegetarian Union (EVU) Secretary General and IVU Liaison Officer for Europe, submitted the following report.
The EVU Talks for this year, between Thursday 30 April and Sunday 3 Mayl 2009, were held 30 Mar-3 Apr in the great city of Zagreb, the capital and largest city of Croatia, the first time the event had been hosted by Croatia. Titled ‘Vegetarian Solutions For A Sustainable Environment’, EVU Talks 2009 was organised with the help of Animal Friends Croatia, who did an amazing job of arranging the event for the four days and making sure it was a big success. There were people who came from all over Europe including England, Northern Ireland, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Italy and Slovenia.
For more information: www.ivu.org/europe/zagreb.html

Welcome to New IVU Member Society and Supporters

Humane Society of Louisiana - mission is to investigate and prevent cruelty to animals. The group also hosts the annual NOLA Veggie Fest in New Orleans.

Eau+ Ltd - V-Pure - The 1st EPA & DHA Omega3 supplement from algae. The only true vegetarian alternative to fish oil and has become a brand consumers trust.

The Gentle Gourmet B&B, Paris - The Gentle Gourmet is the vegan place in Paris for a green and gourmet travelling experience. Vegan, organic dining and B&B and kitchen garden tours

How Many Vegetarians Are There?
Vegetarian societies are often asked how many vegetarians there are in their country, city, etc. Often, no data are available. However, there was a new poll in the U.S., which you can read about at www.vrg.org/press/2009poll.htm Approximately, 3% of the population are lacto-ovo vegetarian and about 1% are vegan. You might be able to use the survey’s questions to do a similar study of your own. The webpage also has a link to data for the U.K.

How I Became a Vegetarian
Here’s an autobiographical stories about a person’s recent vegetarian journey. Please send such stories from your country to george@vegetarian-society.org Stories should be no longer than 300 words. We can help with polishing the English, if you’d like.

I have been a vegetarian since 5/Jan/09. My shift towards vegetarianism started when I read a book about the horrendous treatment of the non-human animals whom we eat. I learned more and found that livestock’s food is not regulated, including the amount of chemical pesticides and fertilizers used in growing their food. I saw how our fellow animals are treated as profit making machines, how they are mutilated and confined with almost no space to move and how some go insane due to the unnatural and cruel conditions. This got me wondering how we are able to inflict so much pain on other species just for our personal gain.

I also learned more about the many ways that meat production wastes food and other resources and how this damages our planet. For instance, many hectares of forests are cut down to provide space for animal herding, and animal faeces pollute seas and rivers. The seas also suffer as marine species are decimated by overfishing. Our Earth is dying at our own hands.

Frankly speaking, I knew these reasons for sometime before I eventually switched to vegetarian. Why did I take so long to switch? No matter how compelling the reasons were, I had been brought up thinking of other animals as food rather than as fellow beings who can feel pain and love and can even think. Refraining from meat also seemed too limiting and too difficult a lifestyle to follow, especially when everyone around me was a non-vegetarian. Despite these obstacles, on that fateful day last January, I decided to do a 30-day vegetarian trial.

When the 30 days ended in February, I decided to keep going, and I am still happily a vegetarian. It has not been as hard as I thought it would be, and I can see all the benefits that it has brought to my life. For instance, my family members are now taking more vegetables. I also feel a self-esteem boost knowing that I am doing something good for the Earth and the other animals every time I choose not to eat meat. Currently, I’m moving toward a vegan diet.

I Love Vegetarianism!

Andrewson Tan, Singaporean, 28 years old, andrewsontan.blogspot.com

Request from a Not Yet 100% Veg Reader
No doubt you receive many requests like this one for advice on how to go veg.

I enjoy the newsletters that come through the email. While I’m not totally vegetarian, I’m wondering if you could offer tips on how a meat eater can become vegetarian. Maybe some 'challenges' other meat eaters had when attempting to change and what they did to overcome them.

Please send your advice to george@vegetarian-society.org Please keep to below 75 words. Pretend you’re posting on Twitter. Thanks in advance.

Swine Flu and Factory Farming
According to Dr. Michael Greger, Director of Public Health and Animal Agriculture for the Humane Society of the United States, the way animals are farmed in factory farms suppresses their immune system and gave rise to swine flu (now known as H1N1). American Public Health Association has called for an end of factory farming: www.jhsph.edu/. . . /farm_moratorium.html

According to the Pew Commission, factory farms pose unacceptable risks to the environment, animal welfare and public health: www.ncifap.org

Watch Dr Greger at www.youtube.com/. . . v=S5rd2

Read a New Scientist article at
www.newscientist.com/. . . swine-flu-the-predictable-pandemic.html

View a PETA factsheet at
www.peta.org/mc/factsheet_display.asp?ID=119

Read an article from Wired magazine at
www.wired.com/wiredscience/2009/05/swineflufarm

H1N1 Pandemic: An Even More Serious, Global Health Crisis Continues
While the H1N1 pandemic is serious and merits all the attention it is receiving, an even greater health crisis persists with sooooo much less urgent attention: world hunger. The UN's Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) reports that the number of hungry worldwide has grown of late by 100 million to 1 billion, almost one in six people in the world: news.bbc.co.uk/. . . /8109698.stm/
www.fao.org/. . . /item/20568/icode /
www.fao.org/. . . /index_en.htm

Many deaths result directly or indirectly from the world’s unequal distribution of food. This inequality occurs in part because of all the food that goes to feed the non-human animals whom we eat. If humans could reduce our meat consumption (sadly, the global figure continues to rise), there would be even more food for those without food.
www.earthtimes.org/. . . criticism-of-who-methods.html

New Movie – Food, Inc.
This film, Food, Inc. - www.foodincmovie.com/about-the-film.php - is not a pro-veg movie, and right now, it’s only showing in North America, but people who’ve seen it say there’s lots of good stuff in it. Here’s a review by one of the top US film critics - rogerebert.suntimes.com/. . . /REVIEWS/906179985 and one from Time magazine - www.time.com/. . .1904144,00.html

However, one North American vegetarian activist was less than thrilled with the film. He reported that there is a scene where a farmer "jokes" that the animals have many good days and one very bad day - as he is slaughtering chickens calmly on camera. The activist’s overall view is that it is “vegetarian neutral or even a bit antagonistic”.

Support Grows for One Meatless Day a Week (at least)
1. Former Beatle, Paul McCartney, and Yoko Ono, the artist of wife of another Beatle, John Lennon, have both come out in favour of a Meatless Day:
www.grist.org/. . . mccartney-yoko-meat-free-mon/

2. FARM (Farm Animal Rights Movement) has long campaigned for Meatless Mondays: www.meatoutmondays.org/index.php

3. Many Buddhists refrain from meat twice a month, on the 1st and 15th of the lunar calendar. Now, the idea has been raised to extend the practice to once a week. This idea might be useful with other religions that have meatless days.

Welcome to Organisations That Have Recently Registered with IVU

ARGENTINA
Yoga San Isidro - www.yogasi.com.ar

CUBA
El Romero Restaurant - www.cuba-restaurants-guide.com/. . . /el_romero.htm

GERMANY
Edith Hallberg - www.facebook.com/ehallberg

JAPAN
Vegan Society of Japan - www.vegan.jp

THAILAND
Free Bird Cafe - NGO Vegetarian Cafe - www.thaifreedomhouse.org

UK
vegetarian.sudeshkumar.com - vegetarian.sudeshkumar.com

USA
Beyond the Garden - www.mybeyondthegardentv.com
Vegan 101 - www.meetup.com/vegan101
VeggieFest Chicago 2009 - www.veggiefestchicago.org

To view a listing of international upcoming events online, visit www.ivu.org/congress

NAVS (North American Vegetarian Society) Summerfest – 8-12 Jul, 2009 - Johnstown, Pennsylvania, USA
Minding Animals Conference - 13-18 July, 2009, Newcastle, Australia
FARM Animal Rights Conference – 16-20 Jul, 2009 - Los Angeles
12th International Vegan Festival - 22-25 Jul, 2009, Rio de Janeiro
The world longs for peace, respect and dignity. The Environment is being mercilessly destroyed and gives back its answer. Natural resources are being exhausted by the unsustainable exploitation imposed by a wasteful mode of life. We lose species diversity without even knowing it. Diseases, obesity, suffering and hunger abound.
After so many years of ideals of 'peace and love', 'gender and ethnic equality', ‘freedom of speech' and 'respect for nature' we still crawl on, delegating to others the task of bringing about lasting, real changes. By changing our life style we can play a vital role in the construction of the better world we all want, where the white dove of peace can rest her tired feet.
Seminar for Vegetarians and Esperantists – Poland, 25 Jul, 2009
On the first Saturday of the World Esperanto Congress, the World Esperantist Vegetarian Association (TEVA), is organizing a seminar for vegetarians and others interested in the ethical treatment of animals. People from various countries will be giving short talks, followed by discussions, on the following themes:
- History of TEVA; Vegetarianism and Esperanto: what have they in common? ; Vegetarianism in Poland ; The first meatless city: Ghent, Belgium ; Meat and its consequences for the environment
Venue: Bialystok Technical University (Politechnika Bialostocka), Wiejska 45, 15-089 Bialystok
Time: 14.30 to 17.00
What to bring: An open mind, and a willingness to share opinions
Languages to be used: Esperanto, Polish (translation will be provided), English
Registration: Heidi Goes - teva@ivu.org
Vegan Music and Arts Festival - 19-26 Aug, 2009, Largentière, Ardèche, France.
There will be concerts, discussions, food and more at this first ever event. They are looking for volunteers and associations/groups to get involved.
2009 Healthy Lifestyle Expo – 16-18 Oct, 2009, Burbank, California
West African Vegetarian Congress - 29 Oct-1 Nov, 2009, Accra, Ghana
Asian Vegetarian Congress – 6-10 Nov, 2009. Batam, Indonesia
The 4th Asian Vegetarian Congress, organised by the Asian Vegetarian Union and the Indonesia Vegetarian Society, will be held on Batam Island, Indonesia, near Singapore from 6-10 Nov. People from everyone in the world are warmly welcome to enjoy delicious Indonesian vegetarian food.
Among those who have agreed to speak are 2007 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, R.K. Pachauri, well-known vegetarian crusader Maneka Gandhi, and IVU Regional Coordinators for India and for Asia-Pacific, Shankar Narayan and Susianto Tseng.
China Xiamen International Vegetarian Food Fair - 12-15 Nov, 2009
IVU World Vegetarian Congress – 1-7 Oct, 2010, Jakarta and Bali
The 39th IVU World Vegetarian Congress will be held in Indonesia in two places, Jakarta, the capital (and the economic centre of the country) and Bali, the country’s most famous tourist destination. The Congress starts in Jakarta and then moves to Bali. An outline of the programme is available.

Other Online Sources of Veg News
In addition to IVU Online News, there are many other places to go online for general veg-related news, rather than news mostly about one country or one organisation. Here are some.

1. Dawn Watch
2. European Vegetarian Union News
3. Farmed Animal Net
4. Vegan Outreach
5. VegE-News
6. AnimalConcerns.org doesn't have a newsletter, but they post stories daily

Please Send News to IVU Online News

Dear Veg Activist

Please use this newsletter as a way to share your knowledge, ideas and experiences with fellow veg activists.

Thx. -–george jacobs – george@vegetarian-society.org

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International Vegetarian Union (IVU)