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Vegan Outreach India
’s Richa Mehta joins us this week to talk about the spread of veganism in India. As Director of Programs, Richa tells us how Vegan Outreach is focusing on college students and explains in detail what they are doing to educate those students about the atrocities of the dairy and meat industries while advocating for veganism, as not only more compassionate, but as a greener, more environmentally conscious approach to living. In this conversation with Jasmin, Richa also focuses specifically on dairy, and delves into the Western perception of the sacred status of cows in India, explaining the dichotomy between this belief and the reality of the country’s large dairy industry.
Richa Mehta is based in Agra, India, where she is the Director of Programs at Vegan Outreach India, an organization founded in 1993 that aims to end violence towards animals. Richa has many years of experience with animal and environmental protection nonprofits and has been instrumental in the success of Vegan Outreach’s Green Tuesday Initiative, in addition to her extensive in-person outreach activities in India. Richa is also the Vice President of the Pratibha Foundation, Gujarat, India, which focuses on facilitating quality education and healthcare for underprivileged children in rural areas.
“In the long term, veganism and a complete evolution in the way we eat are the only ways we can change what is happening to animals.” – Richa Mehta
Highlights for Episode 630:
- How the 10 Weeks to Vegan program works and why it smooths the transition to becoming vegan
- How Richa and her team’s outreach activities help bust the myths people believe about veganism
- How COVID-19 changed the way Vegan Outreach pursues their campaigns
- The surprising discovery that webinars are even more effective than in-person outreach
- Measurable results they’ve seen as a result of their efforts to help people become vegan
- How the Green Tuesday campaign works with corporations and other organizations to change the way that people eat
- Why it’s so crucial in any outreach effort to not just talk about problems, but offer a solution
- Richa’s factory farm investigations and why she focuses on the environment when encouraging people to change their eating habits
- The background of vegetarianism in India and how it fits with modern vegetarian and vegan practices
- Whether arguments regarding animal welfare have more traction In India than in other places
- Richa’s work with the Pratibha Foundation and what they have been doing to improve the lives of children in India during the pandemic
- What gives Richa hope for the future
Resources:
- Farm Forward Survey Reveals Widespread Confusion about Welfare Labels
- Our Hen House Episode 585 w/ Soledad Robledo
Connect with Richa Mehta:
Connect with Our Hen House:
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Don’t forget to check out Our Hen House’s other podcasts: The Animal Law Podcast, The Teaching Jasmin How to Cook Vegan Podcast, and the Antiracism in Animal Advocacy Audio Series.
The Our Hen House theme song is written and performed by Michael Harren.
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This episode is brought to you in part through the generosity of A Well-Fed World. A Well-Fed World provides the means for change by empowering individuals, social justice organizations, and political decision makers to embrace the benefits of plant-based foods and farming. Learn more at awfw.org.