It’s All About Food

It's All About Food - Guest: JL Fields and Jasmine Leyva - 07.25.17

Part I: JL Fields, The Vegan Air Fryer
JL Fields is the founder and culinary director of the Colorado Springs Vegan Cooking Academy. She is a Master Vegan Lifestyle Coach & Educator, Food for Life instructor, chef instructor in the culinary program at the University of New Mexico-Taos, personal chef, career coach, and a corporate consultant offering wellness training, brand representation, and strategic planning services.
JL is the author of The Vegan Air Fryer: The Healthier Way to Enjoy Deep-Fried Flavors (Vegan Heritage Press, June 2017) and Vegan Pressure Cooking: Delicious Beans, Grains, and One-Pot Meals in Minutes (Fair Winds Press, January 2015) and co-author of The Main Street Vegan Academy Cookbook: Over 100 Plant-Sourced Recipes Plus Practical Tips for the Healthiest, Most Compassionate You (Ben Bella, December 2017) and Vegan for Her: The Woman’s Guide to Being Healthy and Fit on a Plant-Based Diet (Da Capo Lifelong Books, July 2013)She is the co-creator of The Real World Vegan Meal Plan, producer and host of the radio program Easy Vegan, and writes the monthly vegan dining review for the Colorado Springs Gazette.
JL is the owner and lead consultant for JL Fields Consulting, providing governance and strategic planning services to nonprofits and culinary and online outreach services to food associations and marketing firms. She writes the blog JL goes Vegan. Follow JL on Twitter,  Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram.
Part II: Jasmine Leyva, The Invisible VeganJust “Jas” to her friends — she is unapologetically an artist. Born in D.C., a city that used to be more appreciative of doctors, lawyers, and politicians, she moved to Los Angeles for college to pursue her dream while completely dismissing America’s. After three years of itching to “do” and despite uninvited judgments, she left school a year shy of her degree for a TV production job. She is debt free! From there, she went on to work as an associate producer on a NAACP winning docuseries entitled Unsung, and shortly after, was given the opportunity to write and produce on Being, a docuseries highlighting dynamic entertainers in film and music. Happy to be doing what she loved, but simultaneously unhappy about putting that passion into someone else’s vision, she decided to let go of her nine-to-five and come into her own reign of pure artistry. Just Jasmine. No limits and no boss except for her own creativity. She went on to star in commercials and print ads for major brands like Nissan, Sony, Apple, Uber, American Express, Diesel, BlackPeopleMeet, Credit Sesame, Michelle Watches, Elle magazine and more. She also starred in the Lifetime show, My Crazy Ex, and is scheduled to star in her first indie film in 2017. However, she did not lay her behind-the-camera talents to rest. Jasmine and her fiancé, Kenny Leyva, are currently producing their own feature length documentary, The Invisible Vegan, a film that chronicles Jasmine’s personal experience with plant-based eating. The film also explains how plant-based eating is directly linked to African roots and how African-American eating habits have been debased by a chain of oppression stemming from slavery, economics and modern agribusiness. Not to sound pedestrian, but the sky is the limit and her evolution will be televised!

It's All About Food - Guest: Laura-Jane Koers and Laurelee Blanchard - 07.19.17

Part I: Laura-Jane Koers, Cook LivelyLaura-Jane Koers is a food writer, stylist, and photographer and the blogger behind TheRawtarian.com, known for doable, approachable plant-based recipes. She also hosts the Raw Food Podcast on iTunes. She lives in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.      
Part II: Laurelee Blanchard, Leilani FarmsLaurelee Blanchard, Founder and President of Leilani Farm Sanctuary, left a lucrative career as Senior Vice President at the national firm of Lee and Associates Commercial Real Estate Services to devote her life to animal protection and humane education. In 1999, she cashed out her life savings and moved from Orange County, California, to Haiku, Maui. There she acquired an eight-acre parcel of land, on which she created a farm sanctuary—a refuge where animals would be protected from neglect, abuse, and slaughter. Leilani Farm Sanctuary, an all-volunteer, non-profit organization, is now home to nearly three hundred rescued animals, including goats, chickens, rabbits, ducks, donkeys, geese, deer, cats, pigs, sheep, turkeys, guinea pigs, tortoises, and a cow. The Sanctuary provides educational programs for school groups and special-needs visitors; it also offers tours to the general public. Since the mid-90s, Ms. Blanchard has focused her attention on the protection of farm animals. She served as a pro- bono communications director for Farm Animal Rights Movement (FARM), a national non-profit that devotes its efforts to bringing to an end the practice of using living, sentient beings for food. She also worked for three years as campaign consultant to Farm Sanctuary, the nation’s largest farm-animal protection organization. In 2010, Laurelee was hired as consultant to the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA), specifically in its campaign to end the long-distance transport of live farm animals from the Mainland U.S. to Hawaii. She successfully negotiated with Foodland and Times Supermarket chains to implement policies against purchasing pork from pigs shipped to Hawaii, thereby reducing the number of pigs transported and slaughtered by approximately seventy-five thousand per year. In 2012, Laurelee was presented the “Vegan of the Year in North America” commendation for her outstanding animal activist work; and in 2015, she received a national award and grant from the Godiva Company for embodying the attributes of Lady Godiva through selflessness, generosity, leadership, and the spirit of giving back to the community.

It's All About Food - Guest Michael Suchman and Ethan Ciment - 07.12.17

Part II: Michael Suchman and Ethan Ciment – The Vegan Mos, NYC Vegan
Michael Suchman is a recovering lawyer. After practicing in the field of Corporate Litigation for 12 years, he was tired of representing corporations over the interests of individuals. Since stopping practicing, he has come to recognize that the law needs to work more on helping all individuals, regardless of species. When not running the show at Chelsea Foot and Ankle, Michael can be found either in the kitchen trying out new recipes, watching Dr. Who, or taking photos the old fashioned way, with an actual 35mm camera. You can check out his photography at here. He and Ethan are proud to be Barnyard Benefactors for Our Hen House and Guardian Circle members of The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM). Michael is a certified Vegan Lifestyle Coach and Educator and a proud graduate of Victoria Moran’s Main Street Vegan Academy. He is also a certified by PCRM as a Food For Life Instructor. Michael lives in Williamsburg, Brooklyn with his husband Ethan and their vegan dogs, Riley and Charlie.
Ethan J. Ciment is passionate about social justice and is a vocal advocate of equality for all, regardless of species. Raised in an Orthodox Jewish family, and coming from a long family line of kosher butchers, Ethan woke up in his late thirties to the realities of animal exploitation when caring for his ailing dog, Chandler. When not lending his voice to those who cannot speak for themselves, Ethan is a podiatric surgeon in private practice in at Chelsea Foot and Ankle in New York City. Ethan is proud to serve on the Board of Directors of Woodstock Farm Sanctuary. Both Michael and Ethan are proud Barnyard Benefactors for Our Hen House and Guardian Circle members of The Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM). Ethan lives in Williamsburg, Brooklyn with his husband Michael and their vegan dogs, Riley and Charlie.

It's All About Food - Guest Philip Wollen - 06.29.17

Philip Wollen, The Kindness TrustIn his early thirties, Philip Wollen was Vice President of Citibank. The Financial Press rated him in the Top 40 “The Brightest and Best” headhunted executives in Australia.Traveling the world he saw egregious cruelty on such a massive scale that it affected him profoundly. By the age of 40 he was an outspoken advocate for social justice. He describes himself as a “Venture Capitalist for Good Causes”. He decided to take everything he possessed. . . Houses, factories, commercial buildings, apartments, share portfolios, everything . . .. . . . And give it away with warm hands . . .and die broke. He jokes “So far, we are right on budget!” He has supported 500 humanitarian projects for children, animals, the arts, the terminally ill, and the environment in 40+ countries. His words, articles about him and his speeches have been seen by tens of millions of people. The projects are assembled in “silos”. Kindness Kids, Kindness House, Kindness Farms, Kindness Oceans, Kindness Skies, Kindness Streets (ABC – CNVR), Kindness Mobile Restaurants, and Kindness Gold Medal & Cash Prize. One common theme of these projects is to have a strong pro-vegan theme. He supports schools, hospitals, and orphanages; shelters, museums, anti-whaling campaigns, ocean plastic clean-up, turtle hatcheries, ships, marine craft; and bay protection campaigns; bore-wells, social justice films, wildlife protection, lion camps, anti-hunting campaigns, undercover clandestine operations to eradicate trade in exotic animals, bio-gas plants, medical equipment, food, fodder and fuel supplies, oncology, road trauma, ambulances and palliative care projects; Kindness Farms growing fruit, nuts, vegetables and flowers; rehabbing land and feeding fledglings for migratory birds under his Kindness Skies program; Kindness Mobile Restaurants for impoverished street dwellers, and disaster relief. Philip likes to be invisible. The National Australia Day Council wrote: “Essentially a private man, Philip seeks no personal publicity. But he is not afraid to step into the limelight for a just cause”. Rupert Murdoch’s press described him as “reclusive”. He has spoken in the Parliament in The Hague and in the Israeli Knesset – and in Universities around the world. He has shared his views with Presidents, Heads of State, Prime Ministers and Ministers in in many countries.
• In 2005 he received the Queen’s Birthday Honours “The Order of Australia”.• In 2007 on Australia Day he received the award “Australian of the Year Victoria”.• In 2012 he was made an Honorary Fellow of the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics• In 2014 he received The Distinguished Alumni Award from The University of Adelaide.

It's All About Food - Guests Patti Breitman, Carol Adams, Ginny Messina, and, Eunice Wong - 06.20.17

Part I: Patti Breitmen Carol Adams, Ginny Messina, Even Vegans DiePatti Breitman is a co-founder of Dharma Voices for Animals and director of The Marin Vegetarian Education Group. She is the co-author of many books including Even Vegans Diet (with a foreword by Dr. Michael Greger). She is on the advisory councils of the Animals and Society Institute and Jewish Veg. In 2016 she was honored to receive the Lisa Shapiro Award for Unsung Vegan Heroes. Patti lives in Fairfax, CA where her neighbors and friends include coyotes, foxes, rabbits, bobcats, spiders, birds, snakes, deer, and countless other beautiful creatures.
Carol J. Adams is the author of the landmark book The Sexual Politics of Meat: A Feminist-Vegetarian Critical Theory and The Pornography of Meat. Besides advancing scholarship and developing theory in the area of interlocking oppressions, Carol has created a series of books that address the vegetarian/vegan experience: Living Among Meat Eaters: The Vegetarian Survival Guide, Help! My Child Stopped Eating Meat! and The Inner Art of Vegetarianism and Meditations on the Inner Art of Vegetarianism. She lives outside Dallas, Texas.
Virginia Messina, MPH, RD, is coauthor of Vegan for Life and Vegan for Her and of the first textbook on vegetarian nutrition for medical professionals. She writes and speaks on vegan nutrition for both consumers and health professionals. Ginny serves on the board of directors of Vegfund and on advisory boards of One Step for Animals, Veg Youth, and the Vegetarian Resource Group. She lives in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, with her husband and an ever-changing population of rescued cats. Find out more about Ginny at TheVeganRD.com.
Part II: Eunice Wong, What the HealthEunice Wong is a multiple-award-winning actor, writer, editor, and teacher. Her most recent book is “What The Health,” the official companion book to the documentary of the same name. She also wrote “The Sustainability Secret,” the official companion book to the documentary, “Cowspiracy.” She was a speaker in 2017′s Asheville Vegan Fest in North Carolina.
Eunice is Chief Editor of the Countering Violence Against Women series on Truthdig.com, as well as the editor of the Truthdig Book Review, which under her direction has won two National Entertainment Journalism Awards (Los Angeles Press Club) for Online Critic, and a Maggie Award for Best Regularly Featured Web Column. She has written for Truthdig’s Arts and Culture section, the Truthdig Book Review, and the Philadelphia Inquirer Book Review.
As an actor, Eunice trained at the Juilliard School and has appeared nation-wide and internationally in professional theaters, including New York’s Atlantic Theater, Classic Stage Company, Target Margin, Pearl Theatre, NAATCO, La MaMa, Working Theater, Boston’s Huntington Theatre, the Guthrie in Minneapolis, Yale Rep in New Haven, Cincinnati Playhouse, Studio Theater in Washington D.C., Walnut Street Theater in Philadelphia, Virginia Stage Company, Berkshires Theatre Group, Merrimack Rep, among others. TV and film appearances include “Law and Order” (NBC), “Sex and the City” (HBO), “Strangers with Candy” (Comedy Central), “The Job” (ABC), “Deadline” (NBC), and “My Sassy Girl” (Gold Circle Films). Her most recent role was Lavinia Mannon in New York’s critically acclaimed revival of Eugene O’Neill’s “Mourning Becomes Electra” this spring.
Eunice is the recipient of a Helen Hayes Award (Lead Actress), a My Theater Boston Award (Best Actress), a Barrymore nomination (Lead Actress), and an IRNE nomination (Best Ensemble), as well as being a member of Actors’ Equity Association and SAG-AFTRA.
As a teacher she has taught English and poetry at New Jersey State Prison, a men’s super-max facility in Trenton, New Jersey, as well as yoga at Princeton’s YogaStream studio, where she first learned about the primary precept of yoga, ahimsa: do no harm — to the planet, to the beings around us, and to ourselves..

It's All About Food - Guest David Yeung - 06.13.17

David Yeung, Green MondayDavid Yeung is the co-founder and CEO of Green Monday, a social venture founded in Hong Kong that takes on climate change and global food insecurity through public advocacy, impact investing, corporate consulting, and specialized retail. Under Green Monday, David launched Green Common, the world’s first plant-based green living emporium. Green Monday is named by Fast Company as “Top 50 Most Innovative Companies in China,” while David is named by Fast Company as “100 Most Creative People in China,” “PE 100 Asia” by Purpose Economy, “17 Rising Social Entrepreneurs” by Conscious Company Magazine, and received Hong Kong’s “Ten Outstanding Young Persons 2015″ award. David is the Director of Search Inside Yourself Leadership Institute, Hong Kong AIDS Foundation, and Hong Kong Buddhist Association. He also authored a number of best sellers on applied Buddhism and Zen philosophy.
Two articles regarding David Yeung and Green Monday were just published:Bloomberg: This Guy Is Trying to Cure Hong Kong’s Meat Addiction
SCMP: Flexitarianism – shift towards vegetarian diet – identified as a major food trend

It's All About Food - Guests Robbyne Kaamil and Carl Pope - 06.06.17

Part I: Robbyne Kaamil, Saving BenjaminRobbyne Kaamil is the Executive Producer of the PBS television show, Urban Animals. She is a passionate animal rights activist who has written several award winning public service announcements for PETA which ran on Fox, ABC and Bounce television affiliates nationwide. She co-wrote the song, “Free the Monkeys”, with fellow activist and HLN Television Host – Jane Velez-Mitchell which shed light on the mistreatment of monkeys being used in lab experiments in Hendry County, Florida as well as the song “Free Lolita: Let the Girl Go” to raise awareness about the Orca Lolita who is being held captive at the Miami Seaquarium. Her children’s books, Saving Benjamin and Food for Alex, were recently published. Each of the books encourages social responsibility and community involvement. Robbyne is also a comedian who has matched wits with Howard Stern and has been featured on numerous television and radio shows. She is currently on tour with her comedy show, “2 Queers & A Bitch”. Her monthly advice column “Dear Diva” is featured in Australia’s DNA Magazine. She has also served as executive producer on several independent films.
 Part II: Carl Pope, Climate of HopeCarl Pope currently serves as the principal advisor at Inside Straight Strategies, looking for the underlying economics that link sustainability and economic development. Former executive director and chairman of the Sierra Club, he has served on the Boards of the California League of Conservation Voters, Public Voice, and National Clean Air Coalition among many others. He is the author of three books. He writes regularly for Bloomberg View and Huffington Post. Find him on Twitter: @CarlPope

It's All About Food - Guests Amber Bodily & Dr. Ian McDonald - 05.30.17

Part I: Amber Bodily, Holistic Health: Start at the FeetAmber Bodily is a natural health practitioner who has helped 100s of thousands of people regain their health and well-being.  She is a Master Footzonology practitioner and instructor, Master Herbologist and Master Aromatherapist. She also writes a popular column on natural ways to boost your health and overcome everyday health issues for MindBodyGreen, Thrive [and Huffington Post] and is the Health Editor and contributor for Fulfillmentdaily.com. She also has a keen intuitive ability to discern her clients’ health concerns. Amber, who holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Hawaii in design, was busy running 3 successful businesses when her first two children were born. She originally had no intention of going into the field of natural health. However, when her childrens’ health became severely impaired she began to research and delve into natural forms of healing including foot zoning, herbs and aromatherapy. After the successful recovery of her first child from a respiratory infection so severe that he nearly died, and of her second child born with large brain tumors, Amber realized that she needed to share the health information she had learned with others. Amber’s services are in such great demand (with clients traveling from all over the world including China and India) that she now trains others in the healing modalities she has learned, and has a large and devoted following among her clients and trainees. She both trains people to learn Footzoning (including foot zoning, back zoning and face zoning) and also holds community health classes including Children’s Health, Men’s Health and Women’s Health. Thanks to the methods she uses, she has seen children reverse hemophilia, “infertile” women get pregnant, and people reverse autoimmune disorder and Lime symptoms. When she’s not seeing clients or caring for her three boys, she is a triathlete and triathlon coach who surprises triathletes by showing them how a plant-based diet can drastically improve their performance. Her story has been told in the press in Psychology Today and MindBodyGreen.
Part II: Dr. Ian McDonald, The Vegan OptionIan McDonald is a BBC-trained radio producer who started The Vegan Option because he wanted to do baketivism for the brain – really interesting radio that just happened to be vegan. He’s taking sabbatical from paid employment to record interviews with world-leading experts, pore over esoteric research in the British Library, and travel to the places where the story unfolded – including the length and breadth of India – to bring the story to listeners. The UK’s leading art radio station, Resonance FM, broadcasts “Vegetarianism: The Story So Far” on the first Tuesday of each month. This 15 part story is approaching its conclusion, to be broadcast on June 6, 2017. You can discover The Vegan Option, including Vegetarianism: The Story So Far, at http://theVeganOption.org/.

It's All About Food - Guests Del Sroufe, Allie Feldman Taylor and John Phillips - 05.23.17

Part I: Del Sroufe, The China Study Family CookbookDel Sroufe is the author of The China Study Family Cookbook, The China Study: Quick & Easy Cookbook, Forks Over Knives—The Cookbook, and Better than Vegan. Sroufe is also the co-owner and chef at the Wellness Forum, where he delivers great tasting, plant-based meals to clients in Columbus as well as throughout the continental U.S. Sroufe also joined The Wellness Forum as a member where, after a lifetime of yo-yo dieting, he has lost over 200 pounds on a low fat, plant-based diet. He teaches cooking classes at local venues like Whole Foods, Community Recreation Centers, and The Wellness Forum. Learn more at chefdelsroufe.com.
Part II: Allie Feldman Taylor and John Phillips, Empire State Humane Voters
Allie Feldman Taylor is the founder of new political advocacy organization for animal protection, Empire State Humane Voters which launched in 2017. She was named to New York Observer’s “Political Power 80″ in 2014 and named to City & State Magazine’s “40 Under 40″ political people to watch in 2016. She’s an alumni of Florida State University. Allie lives in Bed Stuy with her husband, Scott, and three rescued cats – Willa, Waffles, and Feline Dion.
John Phillips is a well-known political figure in New York and a nationally-recognized leader in the animal protection movement. Hailed by former Governor David Paterson (D-NY) as one of the “great animal rights activists” in the U.S., his numerous successful efforts to pass laws protecting animals have earned him accolades and awards from the U.S. Congress, the New York State Legislature and the New York City Council. In March 2009, John was named one of the “20 Under 30 Standout Stars” of the animal protection movement by VegNews Magazine, the premier magazine covering vegetarian issues and animal welfare. John’s been active in the animal rights movement since he was a teenager, vegetarian since age 9 and vegan since age 14. He founded and was executive director of the New York League of Humane Voters which was a force in NYC politics for years. John was an early supporter of NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio and helped to defeat the animals’ greatest enemy in city government, Christine Quinn, in the 2013 mayor’s race. He’s the current political advisor for Empire State Humane Voters, a statewide political organization for animals. He lives in the East Village with his partner Chris and their two rescue guinea pigs, Neptune and Blackberry.

It's All About Food - Guests Milton Mills, MD and Ted Genoways - 05.16.17

Milton Mills, MD, Health and PoliticsCritical Care Physician, Inova Fairfax HospitalMember, Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine National Advisory BoardMember of the Board of Directors, Plant-based Prevention Of Disease, Inc.Milton Mills, MD practices urgent care medicine in the Washington DC area, and has served previously as Associate Director of Preventive Medicine, and currently as a member of the National Advisory Board, for Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM). He has been a major contributor to position papers presented by PCRM to the United States Department of Agriculture regarding Dietary Guidelines for Americans, and is the lead plaintiff in PCRM’s class action lawsuit that asks for warning labels on milk. Dr. Mills earned his medical degree at Stanford University School of Medicine, and completed an Internal Medicine residency at Georgetown University Hospital. He has published several research journal articles dealing with racial bias in federal nutrition policy. He frequently donates his time via practicing at free medical clinics, and travels widely, speaking at hospitals, churches and community centers throughout the country. A major focus of his patient advisement as well as his lecturing, is the use of nutritional measures to reduce the risk of major chronic diseases. Dr. Mills notes that the scientific research literature shows plant-based diets as supporting better overall immune system function, and during work with HIV-positive and AIDS patients at clinics, he’s observed that those who go vegetarian seem to improve, with increased energy and higher T-cell counts. He therefore hopes throughout the future to examine further the relationships between diet and immune functionality, particularly the effects of plant-based eating choices upon outcomes for HIV-positive patients.
Part II: Ted Genoways, New Republic/Food & Environment Reporting Network (FERN)Ted Genoways is an award-winning writer and editor. He is a contributor for the New Republic and reporter for the Food & Environment Reporting Network. In addition to The Chain, he is the author of two books of poems and the nonfiction book Walt Whitman and the Civil War, named a Best Academic Title of 2010 by the American Library Association. He is under contract with Norton for two new books, This Blessed Earth: A Year in the Life of an American Farm and Tequila Wars: The Bloody Struggle for the Spirit of Mexico. Genoways is a contributing writer at Mother Jones, The New Republic, and OnEarth. His essays and poetry have also appeared in The Atlantic, Bloomberg Businessweek, Harper’s, The New York Times, Outside, and the Washington Post Book World. He is a winner of a National Press Club Award and the James Aronson Award for Social Justice Journalism, and he has received fellowships from the NEA and the Guggenheim Foundation. He served as the editor of the Virginia Quarterly Review from 2003 to 2012, during which time the magazine won six National Magazine Awards. He lives in Lincoln, Nebraska, with his wife Mary Anne Andrei and their son.