IVU Online News – February 2008
To receive your own copy of this Enewsletter by email go to: www.ivu.org/news

Table of Contents

1. IVU World Vegetarian Congress – Culture Night Volunteers Needed
2. Message from the IVU Chair Regarding Future Congresses
3. Interview with IVU Regional Coordinator for Latin America
4. IVU on Facebook
5. Welcome to New IVU Member Society
6. Veggie Valentines
7. Israeli Parliament Marks First Animal Rights Day
8. More on Veg-Friendly Kids’ Books
9. UpComing Events
10. ‘A Sacred Duty’ Now Available Online
11. ‘Sharkwater’ Highlights the Bigger Picture
12. “God Does Not Eat Meat” Now Available Online
13. Welcome to Organisations That Have Recently Registered with IVU
14. In Praise of Peanut Butter Sandwiches
15. Important Reading on Global Warming and Meat
16. Vegan Tunes
17. The True Cost of Cheap Chicken
18. Blogging for the Animals
19. Please Write for IVU Online News

IVU World Vegetarian Congress – Culture Night Volunteers Needed

The IVU World Vegetarian Congress, 27 Jul – 3 Aug in Dresden, Germany, is fast approaching: www.ivu.org/congress/2008/index.html The Congress marks the 100th anniversary of the first World Vegetarian Congress, held in the same city in 1908.

On Monday evening, 28 Jul, of the Congress, organisers have scheduled time for the delegates/participants from outside Germany to present something of their country’s culture, such as music, theatre, dance or costumes, preferably to be understood without translation. If you have something you and others from your country would like to do that evening, please contract the Congress organisers at hscholvien@vebu.de

And, if any IVU member societies would like to have a stall/booth during the Congress, please contact hscholvien@vebu.de There is no charge, but space is limited.

Message from the IVU Chair Regarding Future Congresses 

World Vegetarian Congress 2010

IVU council is pleased to announce that the venue of the 2010 congress has been decided as Jakarta, Indonesia. Three formal bids for the 2010 congress were received, Indonesia, North Carolina (USA) and Taiwan and after very careful consideration Indonesia was chosen as the venue most likely to bring benefit to the overall vegetarian movement. Council is pleased to report that Susianto Tseng, IVU Regional Co-ordinator for East/SE Asia & Oceania, will be heavily involved with the Indonesia Vegetarian Society in organising this event and ensuring its success.

The Council would like to thank all those who submitted bids and we appreciate the work that goes into them.

For further details of the Indonesia Vegetarian Society, and photos of their recent activities, see www.ivu.org/east/ivs2007.html

World Vegetarian Congress 2012

We are now inviting formal bids for 2012 and Dilip Barman, proposer of the North Carolina (USA) Congress, has agreed to resubmit this proposal for 2012 and will be making a presentation at Dresden. Ideally, the venue for 2012 should be agreed by the members at Dresden, so all formal proposals should be made by mid June 2008 in order to allow any questions to be asked. We would also prefer groups making formal bids to have a representative at Dresden if possible to make a presentation. If any member group wants further information on making a formal bid please go to the website at www.ivu.org/members/con-rules-2000.html - further enquiries should go to John Davis - manager@ivu.org

International Council Elections

A new Council will be elected during the Congress in Dresden, summer 2008, and we would ask each member society to consult your board/committee with a view to making nominations. All nominees must be members of member societies. For details of the current Council see www.ivu.org/members/council/contacts.html Further information from John Davis as above.

Best wishes to all
Tina Fox
Chair of the IVU International Council

Interview with IVU Regional Coordinator for Latin America

This interview, with Marly Winckler - www.ivu.org/members/council/marly-winckler.html - is the fourth in a series of interviews with IVU representatives in various parts of the world. To find the contact information for the representative in your part of the world, visit www.ivu.org/members/council/contacts.html. 

Hi, Marly. When and why did you become a vegetarian?

I became vegetarian in 1982 for ethical reasons. Since then, I have learned about many other good reasons to be vegetarian, and now I am vegetarian for many reasons.

You are the IVU Regional Coordinator (RC) for Latin America. How were you involved in vegetarianism before that?

Before that, I was working for vegetarianism at the local level in my native country, Brazil. For example, in 1992, I wrote a booklet on vegetarianism, just after coming back from India, where I had lived for 5 months. At that time, I started corresponding with people involved in the international vegetarian movement – including the secretary of IVU, Maxwell Lee. In 1994, I attended my first IVU World Vegetarian Congress, in The Hague, Netherlands. In 1995, I went to San Diego for the International Vegan Festival, and the more I saw, learned and did, the more I wanted to do to promote vegetarianism. So, in 1999, I became Latin American Regional Coordinator for IVU. In 2004, I organized the 36th IVU World Vegetarian Congress in Florianopolois, Brazil.

How did you first learn about IVU?

I believe it was in the Vegetarian Times magazine. Afterwards, I started to correspond with the IVU Secretary. At that time, there wasn’t Internet; so, communication was much more difficult.

What are some pro-veg factors in the Latin America context, and what are some anti-veg factors?

The pro-veg factors are that we have a wonderful climate and can grow an enormous variety of tasty, healthy vegetables and fruits. Also, we have a heritage from the times of the Incas and other Latin American native peoples who were mostly vegetarians – we only need now to return to our past eating habits. Anti-veg factors are the still very new veg organisations we have all over Latin America and a lack of resources for promoting vegetarianism.

What are some of your plans for promoting vegetarianism in Latin America?

We have already organized our 1st Latin America Vegetarian Congress and intend to go ahead with more such congresses – each time in a different country. This is a very good way of creating ties among activists across the Latin American continent, inspiring action and empowering more people to become active. We experienced this same energizing phenomenon after the IVU World Vegetarian Congress in Florianopolis, Brazil. Many local organizations of various kinds sprouted up all over the country, including on the Internet, such as Orkut (a social networking site). In 2004, we created UVLA (Latin American Vegetarian Union) – to unite different veg organizations so as to better spread vegetarianism in the region. Now, we are again organizing an international gathering – the 12th International Vegan Festival, in 2009, in Rio de Janeiro.

Do you do your RC work full-time, or do you have a regular job, too?

I work 12 hours a day for vegetarianism, and in the rest of my time, I work as a translator to earn a living. I don’t earn money from my vegetarianism work.

What is one idea or strategy that vegetarian activists elsewhere in the world can learn from what our Latin America colleagues do?

Maybe the way we are organized – the structure of our vegetarian groups, with representatives at local, regional and national levels, can be a contribution. We also have a very open, happy and creative way of spreading our message – this can maybe serve as an inspiration to others.

Please share a vegetarian joke from Latin America with us.

I’m not sure where these jokes came from but here are two.

a. How many vegans does it take to change a light bulb?
Two, one to change it and one to check for animal ingredients.

b. In search of some romantic private time away from prying eyes, two vegetarians go behind a row of plants, but instead of making love, they end up eating the plants.

IVU on Facebook 

By now, Facebook – facebook.com - and other social networking sites, such as MySpace, are well-established, yesterday’s big new thing on the Internet. Many NGOs are using Facebook and its cousins to promote their efforts.

We have an IVU page on Facebook: facebook.com/group.php?gid=6300360685

And, various IVU member societies have their own Facebook pages. If you’d like help setting up a Facebook page for your own society, contact Pauline Vegemight, who set things up for Vegetarian Society (Singapore): a_pauline_m@hotmail.com

Welcome to New IVU Member Society 

New Member Society:
Vegetarian Society of Liberia - Jacob Bright - jacobbright@yahoo.com

New member society website:
Chong Hua Vegetarian Union (Taiwan) - now has a website at: chvu.org.tw

Valentines Day is promoted as a time to show our affection for a special someone, but why not use the day to also show affection, of a non-romantic type, for our fellow animals? In that spirit, Animal Aid, a U.K. group, is organising what it believes to be the first ever Valentines event for vegetarians and vegans: animalaid.org.uk/h/n/CAMPAIGNS/vegetarianism/ALL/1715

Here’s what Animal Aid has in mind:

It will be a fabulous night out for anyone looking for love or like-minded friends – or simply a great night out with their loved one.
 
Leicester University's The Lounge will be the venue, with its stylish, modern décor and relaxed atmosphere providing the ideal setting. A DJ will host the evening, spinning tunes from the '70s to the present day and there will be a licensed bar all evening. There will also be a free glass of champagne as people arrive and goodies, including Redwood and Beanie's food and Booja Booja truffles, throughout the night, as well as great prizes to be won.
 
Animal Aid intends to play matchmaker, make some vegetarians and vegans very happy, and at the same time raise funds for its vital vegetarian and vegan campaigns.

Israeli Parliament Marks First Animal Rights Day

The Israeli organization for Animal Rights, Anonymous - anonymous.org.il/english.htm - organised the first Animal Rights Day in the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, on Jan 1, 2008, including the highlighting of vegetarian food at the Knesset cafeteria. The focal point of the event was the launching of "The Declaration of Animal Rights", which states:

"Out of a ethical recognition of the fact that animals go through countless experiences similar to those experienced by all of us – agony and joy, fear and happiness, curiosity and boredom, social contacts, parent-offspring attachment and more – I hold that there is no justification for ignoring the basic needs of animals, and that it is our duty as humans and as a society to take action to protect their basic rights. These rights include, among others, the right not to suffer violence, hunger and thirst, the right for living in a space allowing free movement, and the right for natural behavior.

I believe the state of Israel has the duty to protect the rights of the animals, and pledge to try to adopt habits in my personal life as well, that will prevent harm to animals."

More on Veg-Friendly Kids’ Books

The Jan 2008 issue of IVU Online News included a listing of veg-friendly books for kids. A reader suggested another book. Katie Kazoo Switcheroo, a series of more than 30 books about an 8-year-old girl in the U.S., who switches into the body of another person or non-human animal at least once per book: katiekazoo.com

In Book 2 of the series, published by Penguin and written by Nancy Krulik, we learn that Katie is a vegetarian who doesn’t eat anything that had a face. The book, entitled ‘Out to Lunch’, tells about the terrible canteen food in Katie’s school. The action heats up when Katie switches into the body of the disgruntled ‘lunch lady’, a food fight breaks out among the students, the lunch lady is fired, the students boycott canteen food, the lunch lady is rehired, and the menu choices are drastically revamped to include fresher vegetables. At the end of the book are recipes, including vegan alternatives, for food kids can make for lunch.

However, there is still room for improvement. Katie’s class has a hamster who is referred to as ‘something’, not ‘someone’: upc-online.org/summer2001/animal_equality.html

Meatout - On (or around) March 20 — the first day of northern hemisphere spring  — thousands of people around the world will hold informative and educational Meatout events. Events will include colorful 'lifestivals,' street theatre, lectures, public dinners, cooking demos, food samplings, leafleting, information tables called 'steakouts,' and a Congressional Reception in Washington, DC.

Before going international, the occasion originated as The Great American Meatout, the world's largest and oldest annual grassroots diet education campaign. Every spring, thousands of Meatout supporters educate their communities and ask their friends, families, and neighbors to pledge to "kick the meat habit (at least for a day) and explore a wholesome, nonviolent diet of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains" meatout.org

National Town Meeting and Summit on Human-Animal Bonds, 8-10 June

Many human-animal bond researchers are working in a specialty area called "the Link," the connections between animal abuse and other forms of family violence. In the past 20 years, many Link coalitions have been formed, many educational materials have been published, many conferences have been held, and many laws have been passed addressing these links. How well are we
succeeding? What have we learned? More importantly, what best practices can be replicated? How can we sustain and grow this work?

These are the issues that will be addressed at "Strategizing the Link", a historic National Town Meeting on June 8-9, to be followed on June 10 with a national invitational summit to chart a future direction, in Portland, Maine USA.

To register for the National Town Meeting, visit americanhumane.org or  LinkageProject.org; for more information: Ken Shapiro or Phil Arkow phila@americanhumane.org

Reflecting On Our Relationships: Animals and Agriculture:
A Multidisciplinary Workshop, University of Auckland, New Zealand, 18 Jul, 2008.

Enquiries and expressions of interest to Natalie Lloyd - n.lloyd@auckland.ac.nz - by 15 Feb.

4th annual Raw Spirit Festival Sep 12-14, 2008 in Sedona, Arizona USA
RawSpirit.com

‘A Sacred Duty’ Now Available Online

The Jewish Vegetarians of North America - jewishveg.blogspot.com – has produced a film, ‘A Sacred Duty’, mentioned in this newsletter a few months back: asacredduty.com

The film highlights the link between meat eating and environmental destruction. ‘A Sacred Duty’ can now viewed online at  youtube.com/watch?v=Y9RxmTGHZgE
Or at blip.tv/file/602351

Read more about the film at european-vegetarian.org/lang/en/news/news.php?id=29563

‘Sharkwater’ Highlights the Bigger Picture

A new documentary, titled ‘Sharkwater’, about the plight of sharks, has been receiving major publicity, is being shown in movie theatres and has won many international awards: sharkwater.com

While the film focuses on efforts to protect sharks, it also looks at the bigger picture of humans’ treatment of our fellow animals generally.

The two people with the most talking time in the film apparently are both vegetarians.

Interview with the producer and star of Sharkwater, Rob Stewart:
www.emagazine.com/view/?3890&printview&imagesoff&src=QHA143

Interview with Paul Watson of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society:
www.permaworld.org/members/permaworld/weblog/a_very_inconvenient_truth_-.html

‘God Does Not Eat Meat’ Now Available Online 

Here is a promotional statement about the free version of the book ‘God Does Not Eat Meat’.

This thought-provoking and controversial story cuts between a violent and bloody present world in which millions of animals are slaughtered daily, to a future where all meat has been removed from the food chain. The unlikely hero goes against the status quo with unyielding determination to set an example of the many benefits of kindness to animals.

all-creatures.org/book/gdnem.html

Welcome to Organisations That Have Recently Registered with IVU

BELGIUM
georgette.be - non-leather fashions - www.georgette.be

CHILE
DIPROVENA Productos Vegetarianos y Veganos - www.diprovena.cl

CZECH REPUBLIC
Trisha - myspace website - www.myspace.com/patriciacz

FRANCE
Amitabha Terre Pure - www.amitabha-terre-pure.net

GERMANY
Vegetarische Inintiative e.V. - www.vegetarische-initiative.de

INDIA
Bishnoi Village Camp and Resort -  www.bishnoivillage.com

KOSOVO
Vegjetarianizmi ne Kosove - www.freewebs.com/vegjetarianizmi

MEXICO
artmosferas (myspace) - myspace.com/artmosferas

SPAIN
Medicos Descalzos - www.medicosdescalzos.es

TURKEY
Dodo Foods LLC - www.dodogida.com

UK
Green Valley Trading Co. - www.gvtc.co.uk
Surti Pure Vegetarian Restaurant, Walsall - www.surtifoods.co.uk
whygoveggie.com - www.whygoveggie.com

USA
Brandon Raynor's School of Natural Therapies - www.brandonraynor.com
The Bridal Chamber - vegan musicians (myspace) - www.myspace.com/thebridalchamber
The National Institute Of Ayurvedic Medicine - www.niam.com
The Vegan Culinary Experience - www.veganculinaryexperience.com
The Vegetarian Alliance - www.vegetarianalliance.com

In Praise of Peanut Butter Sandwiches

Here’s something from a website that promotes peanut butter sandwiches as a means of fighting Global Warming: pbjcampaign.org

Next time you have one [a peanut butter sandwich] you'll reduce your carbon footprint by saving the equivalent of 2.5 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions over an average animal-based lunch like a hamburger, a tuna sandwich, grilled cheese, or chicken nuggets.

That's about forty percent of what you'd save driving around for the day in a hybrid instead of a standard sedan.

Important Reading on Global Warming and Meat

In a related story - afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5iIVBkZpOUA9Hz3Xc2u-61mDlrw0Q - the head of the United Nation's Nobel Prize-winning scientific panel on climate change, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Rajendra Pachauri (a vegetarian), is quoted as saying, "Please eat less meat -- meat is a very carbon intensive commodity".

He also said that earlier the Panel had been afraid to talk about such lifestyle matters.

And, one more important article ‘Rethinking the Meat-Guzzler’. Great graphics: nytimes.com/2008/01/27/weekinreview/27bittman.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

Vegan Tunes

Lance Morrison is a police officer who has been a vegetarian for 37 years and has a 14-year-old daughter who has never eaten animals. Lance has produced an 18 track vegetarian music CD called 'Pasture Prime': vegantunes.com

The True Cost of Cheap Chicken

The UK newspaper, ‘The Independent’, recently included a video (2mins, 16 secs) by Compassion in World Farming – ciwf.org.uk – about the conditions of chickens on a factory farm in the UK news.independent.co.uk/uk/this_britain/article3307570.ece

You can click a link in the article to watch the video which shows, “what looks like a white carpet of thousands of birds shuffling round aimlessly in a dimly lit shed. Some are limping or lifeless. Outside are dustbins stuffed full of dead chicks.”

A related story in the ‘New York Times (free to view, but registration required) - nytimes.com/2008/01/16/dining/16anim.html?ref=dining - reports how Jaime Oliver, the famous Naked Chef - jamieoliver.com – killed a chicken in front of a tv audience. Some tv chefs are also talking about factory farming However, it seems that they are advocating consumption of free range animal flesh not vegetarianism.

Blogging for the Animals

Here’s a new animals blog... voa-voiceofanimals.blogspot.com

One feature of the blog that organisations might want to learn from is the use of ‘Ads by Google’ as a fund raising tool. The blog’s developer says that for every click, around $0.05 is earned. This will all be donated to charities that help our fellow animals. IVU also uses the Google ads on our site – www.ivu.org – as a fund raising tool.

Please Write for 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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