Run, vegan, run! A new blog post from The Vegan Society CEO.
Last weekend Bristol was yet again the scene of vegan progress. Over 25,000 people visited sunny VegfestUK Bristol over the weekend, making it the largest vegan event anywhere in the world to date. Now in its tenth year, VegfestUK Bristol attracted vegan food producers from across the UK and Europe and with over 120 stalls there was no shortage of produce to choose from, with many free samples and special discounts on offer. The show was partly sponsored by The Vegan Society, and with four talks given by Vegan Society staff on diet, vegan living and shopping, and overcoming hurdles in being a teen vegan, it was great to be there.
Top vegan athlete Fiona Oakes, who runs Towerhill Stables Animal Sanctuary in Essex gets up at 03:30 every morning and spends the day looking after over 400 animals, and train for marathons and other extreme events. She recently completed the Marathon des Sables, the toughest foot race on earth, with broken toes in hot and dusty conditions! Being so busy, she rarely attends events, but on Sunday she shared her story with VegFestUK visitors who were all in awe. There was no doubt she deserved to win in the 2012 VegFestUK Awards as ‘Best vegan athlete’ with 28.5% of the vote share.
Inspired by Fiona’s extreme feat I foolishly signed up for a half marathon in the hilly Lake District on 17 June. My level of fitness and running experience are nowhere near that of my colleague Mike Tomkins, Sales and Membership Coordinator, who easily runs half a marathon in cold, wet and windy conditions getting hailed upon, in just one hour and 35 minutes, let alone approaching anything like Fiona’s stamina. However, the Lake District trail challenge is only my second race I will ever have done, so I was hoping that you, our valued supporters, would be so kind to sponsor me to help raise funds for the Vegan Society.
If you like our recent ‘Make History’ animation; our new ‘Guide to Vegan Living’; our advocacy work, for example we hope to set up a befriending scheme for older people; our influencing of caterers, retailers and manufacturers to increase vegan options; and encouraging people to take the Vegan Pledge and learn about the benefits of a plant-based lifestyle, please make a donation. I am trying to raise at least £440, which would be £20 for every kilometre run.
Please donate today to help even more people and companies transition to a vegan and sustainable world. It would really help me to know that your support for The Vegan Society is ultimately the best solution to address animal cruelty, environmental damage and social food justice issues.
Thank you very much!
Jasmijn de Boo, CEO, The Vegan Society
