Here are some of the resources we have offered when mentoring new vegans and vegans dealing with particular challenges. For other helpful links, see the FAQ page. If you have a suggestion for a resource we should add, please contact us.
Activists and others working for animals will find Our Hen House a treasure trove of news, opinion, and perspective. Creators Mariann Sullivan, an animal rights lawyer/professor, and Jasmin Singer, a writer and raconteur, also produce a ridiculously entertaining and thought-provoking weekly podcast. Don’t forget to check out their merchandise, including “the totebag that’s more ethical than most people.”
Photojournalist Jo-Anne McArthur has spent more than a decade photographing animals in captivity to bear witness to their suffering, and share their stories with the world. The photo project, and book of the same name, has brought worldwide attention to the plight of animals.
Author/artist/activist Ruby Roth’s books for vegan children are inspiring a generation of kids to love deeply, think critically, and act responsibly. If your kids don’t already have a hero, they do now. Ruby is also one of the most insightful and inspiring speakers and advocates we know.
Are you up for a challenge? Try The 30 Day Vegan Challenge from expert chef and guru Colleen Patrick-Goudreau. It’s an online multimedia program based around a daily email with resources, audio, video, and other helpful tips to go vegan “healthfully, joyfully, and deliciously.” (Available at two different subscription levels; $20 or $40).
http://www.the30dayveganchallenge.com
Still need a challenge? This free month-long action plan aims to either get people to eat a vegan diet for one month (and at least think about their clothing and other choices), or go vegan within one month in a phased, guided approach.
http://www.getvegucated.com/take-action/take-the-vegucated-challenge/
Mark is the author of Striking at the Roots: A Practical Guide to Animal Activism, a guide to empowering people to get active for animals around the world, and Bleating Hearts: The Hidden World of Animal Suffering. He is also a frequent contributor to VegNews magazine. His blog offers in-depth, unparalleled reporting on animal activism. He also likes bunnies.
http://strikingattheroots.wordpress.com/ & http://www.markhawthorne.com/
Doris, your guide on About.com’s Animal Rights page, is a New Jersey-based animal rights lawyer who is always ethically on point. Browse her pages for some valuable primers on subjects such as companion animals, fur, and vivisection.
http://animalrights.about.com/
James is a professor of American history at Texas State University who writes frequently on farmed animal issues on his influential blog, and covers animal ethics stories for a variety of mainstream publications.
OGP has loads of content that skews to the healthy and eco side of living vegan, but still includes plenty of animal news bites as well as recipes contributed by top vegan chefs running the gamut from simple to spectacular.
Follow Free from Harm for a thoughtful, diverse, yet morally clear vision of animal rights activism, featuring top writers and thinkers such as Dr. Holly Wilson and Ashley Capps.
The Vegan Feminist Agitator herself, writer Marla Rose, and artist John Beske have developed a unique resource combining activism, lifestyle, food, news, and their psycho popular daily vegan meme. If you lived on Vegan Street, you’d want to live next door to Marla and John.
A vegan education begins when one watches “Earthlings,” the definitive animal rights film; it isn’t complete until you’ve seen it so many times you can quote it from memory, and its images are seared in your mind forever. Sometimes it’s necessary for your heart to break in order for it to open itself.
Mercy For Animals’ 12-minute video on the modern food system was made from videos of the most current undercover investigation available at its time. If you can’t make your friends commit to Earthlings, which is understandable, you can probably get them to sit still for 12 whole minutes.
http://www.mercyforanimals.org/farm-to-fridge.aspx
Hilarious, fast-paced road trip documentary follows four friends who take a journey to the USDA in search of the truth about dairy. Includes not-to-miss interview footage from milk pushers.
Filmmaker Liz Marshall’s intimate portrait of photojournalist Jo-Anne McArthur reveals truths about the animals who supply our consumerist machine with their very bodies, and celebrates the survivors fortunate enough to live the rest of their days in freedom.
http://www.theghostsinourmachine.com/
In this fictional film, animal rights activist Charlie Cranehill and his ragtag posse plot a coordinated series of ALF-style liberations around the country, while an idealistic animal welfare advocate seeks corporate reforms.
You won’t look at the sixth mass extinction the same way again. This fascinating documentary examines how the biggest threat to the planet and animals today is, well, us.
This low-budget but extremely comprehensive and convincing Australian documentary addresses the health, environmental, and ethical reasons for veganism.
http://www.adelicatebalance.com.au/
Turlock is the story of the biggest farmed animal rescue in U.S. history. Northern California sanctuary Animal Place found out a factory farm in Turlock had closed, and abandoned about 50,000 hens to die without food and water. After a dramatic standoff with local authorities, ultimately, Animal Place was able to save thousands of lives.
The feature-length environmental documentary uncovers the toll industrial agriculture is taking on the planet, and investigates why the world’s leading environmental organizations are too afraid to talk about it.
The makers of Cowspiracy bring you the health film that health organizations don’t want you to see. With heart disease and cancer the leading causes of death in America, diabetes at an all-time high, and healthcare costs in the trillions, What the Health reveals possibly the largest health cover-up of our time.
If you’re fortunate enough to live in vegan heaven, AKA Portland, you can go in-person to Food Fight for your supplies. If not, you’ll have to content yourself with their online store.
http://www.foodfightgrocery.com/
If you’re fortunate enough to live in the other vegan heaven, the San Francisco Bay Area, Berkeley’s Vegan Republic carries food, personal care items, books, and more. Popular items are also available online, and all profits support Animal Place sanctuary, so you might as well buy from them.
http://www.veganrepublicstore.org/
Nearly everything on your vegan shopping list can be acquired at this store, also known as Vegan E$$entials. Pricey, but if you’re in a pinch, and need a pinch of something you can’t buy locally, you can find it here.
http://www.veganessentials.com/
Pangea is another reputable and venerable source for your vegan needs, from winter boots to vitamins.
For more than 10 years, Alternative Outfitters has been supplying shoes, bags/wallets, and other accessories at reasonable prices to fashionable vegans. AO is staffed by quite possibly the nicest people on the planet, so shop with the confidence that your money is helping create a livelihood for many animal activists. Follow them on the social medias for sales.
http://www.alternativeoutfitters.com/
The Vegan Collection makes men’s and unisex belts and wallets suitable for the corporate office, plus clever, original tees and gear for the weekends.
http://www.thevegancollection.com/
Motive Company makes some of the best and least subtle vegan message shirts on the planet. Clickbait: this shirt is a Thinking Vegan favorite.
http://motive.merchnow.com/search/?q=Vegan
It’s payback time, and these shirts of animals out for vengeance start a conversation. Profits support local animal rescues.
http://armtheanimals.bigcartel.com/
In addition to tees, jewelry, bags/wallets, kitchenware and other gear, Portland-based Herbivore also sells books, so you can support vegans instead of Big Retail.
http://www.herbivoreclothing.com/
Endangered species are the stars in this line of ethically produced tees and some accessories. Proceeds benefit animal charities.
http://www.rareteeclothing.com/
Vegan glamazon Chloe Jo Davis dishes on style, shopping, healthy eating, green living, and more recently, fierce mothering.
“Fashion, food, and etiquette for the ethically handsome man” by guru Joshua Katcher, who also created the Brave Gentleman line of men’s shoes and et ceteras.
http://www.thediscerningbrute.com/ & http://www.bravegentleman.com
Nice non-silk neckties for those who are still wearing a tie to work while they save up to open their vegan café-slash-animal sanctuary-slash-tattoo parlor.
NYC store and site with lots of footwear from mid- to high-end, and select other goodies.
High-fashion coats by designer Leanne Mai-ly Hilgart are suitable for extreme weather, sustainably made in the U.S., by people who earn a living wage.
If you travel, or just like to eat out, HappyCow.net is an excellent site to bookmark. It’s vegan Yelp. (Velp? Does anyone own Velp.com? Quick, someone jump on that.)
Christy Morgan’s cookbook and website is full of healthy vegan recipes that err on the side of “I can do that.” More people ask us for her tempeh bacon recipe than probably any other recipe on the entire internet.
Brian L. Patton is a sexy guy who started making funny cooking videos for the YouTubes and became a mega hit. Then someone had the idea to put this popular, sexy guy’s videos on paper, and, well, long story short, he also has some cookbooks with accessible, tasty, sexy food.
http://www.thesexyvegan.moonfruit.com/
Susan at Fat Free Vegan is popular for her healthier approach to home cooking. Healthy or not, her crustless tofu quiche recipe should be permanently bookmarked.
Josh Latham’s recipes are easy and require no specialty ingredients, so are great for beginning cooks.
http://www.myvegancookbook.com
Chloe Coscarelli stunned cable TV viewers everywhere when she won Cupcake Wars with her vegan adorableness. Her site and books include homestyle recipes that don’t take too much fuss.
In addition to how and why vegan, this easy-on-the-eyes site hosted by Mercy For Animals has a selection of recipes, many contributed by top chefs.
Wholesome describes Angela Liddon’s recipes, many of which are gluten free, soy-free, and unprocessed.
Miyoko Schinner is a master of vegan cheese (see here for more information). Her book, Artisan Vegan Cheese, was a revelation for cheese-loving vegans.
http://www.artisanveganlife.com/
Chef Skye Michael Conroy’s gourmet recipes are available in two books, including The Non-Dairy Formulary (see here for more information), and enough are on his site to plan an excellent dinner party.
Foodie and photographer Jackie Sobon’s recipes are do-able, delicious, and photogenic.
While Jenn Shagrin’s blog hasn’t been kept up in a couple of years, her cookbook is full of gourmet gems including homemade seitan that will knock your socks off.
http://jennshaggy.blogspot.com/
Supercook Rhea Parsons specializes in veganized, up-market comfort foods based on whole food ingredients. Can’t stomach processed vegan meats? Try homemade, gluten-free, easy to make soy-free, Italian sausage made from black-eyed peas. What. Yeah.
The people behind the public television series “Vegan Mashup” and the web series “Vegan Hotspot” have a delicious selection of recipes for chefs of all skill levels from vegan celebs Miyoko Schinner, Terry Hope Romero, and Toni Fiore.
Isa Chandra Moskowitz is known for wildly popular cookbooks, but there’s a sampling of recipes on her site, particularly desserts.
http://www.theppk.com/recipes/
People call her the Queen of Vegan Desserts for a reason. As if we needed another excuse to eat chocolate.
Don’t go to the liquor store without consulting Barnivore to find vegan-friendly wine, beer and spirits. It’s not complete, nor is it perfect, but it’s better than nothing, which is pretty much what we’d have without it.
California wines, available online and in select states/stores, made without the animal ingredients typically used in the winemaking process. Check availability in your area, or just order directly through their site, and read more about the wines here.
Find abundant information on vegan cosmetics and personal care products, plus an exhaustive list of companies/brands and products. According to Sunny, beauty-in-chief, “you can be vegan and cruelty-free and still be über girlie and have fun.” So there you go.
http://www.veganbeautyreview.com/
Mostly focused on cruelty-free (though not necessarily vegan) cosmetics, skincare, etc., blogger Jen Matthews has assembled an excellent resource for beautyholics.
The Leaping Bunny program, spearheaded by the American Anti-Vivisection Society, the New England Anti-Vivisection Society, and other organizations, provides a database of cruelty-free (though not necessarily vegan) products.
http://www.leapingbunny.org/indexcus.php
Virginia Messina, MPH, RD, is the most credible nutrition authority working today. The author or coauthor of at least three books on vegan diets, her website is also loaded with practical, sensible, do-able advice.
There were vegan bodybuilders before Robert Cheeke, but none as charismatic or as outspoken about their ethics. A must for any physical man or woman interested in achieving peak athletic performance.
http://www.veganbodybuilding.com/
While we have no personal experience with this program, it is free, aimed at nutrition, fitness, and training, and is developed by the admirable Brendan Brazier. Loads of whole foods recipes too.
Matt Ruscigno, MPH, RD, focuses on nutrition for athletes and healthy weight loss, and is a frequent speaker on nutrition issues.
Jack Norris founded the nonprofit organization Vegan Outreach, and then, to strengthen his arguments in favor of a vegan diet, he became an RD. Both his eponymous site and VeganHealth.org contain tiresome volumes of information.
http://jacknorrisrd.com/ & http://www.veganhealth.org/
Learn how to make legislative change for animals from teen wunderkind Thomas Ponce, and don’t miss our interview with the Mozart of animal rights.
http://thomasponce.wix.com/lobby-for-animals
Wouldn’t it be cool if nonprofits with a mission to help animals would stop exploiting them? The ingenious “Food For Thought” campaign is aimed at animal shelters and humane societies to help them get animals off the menu at their fundraising events. The campaign is spearheaded by Animal Place, one of the oldest and largest farmed animal sanctuaries in the country.
http://www.foodforthoughtcampaign.org/
VegFund is a unique nonprofit that issues grants to individual activists and grassroots groups for vegan food-based outreach activities. “Food activism” can open minds and tummies. See their site for eligibility requirements.
If you’re an underage thinking vegan, and want to act on your ethics, you’ll find a wealth of information and advice here from peers and mentors.
http://www.vegetarianyouth.com/
This foundation awards $1000 grants to individual activists who are working to make the world a better place. From elephant conservation in Cameroon to circus protests in the U.S., from teen animal activists to crazy cat ladies doing trap/neuter/return, The Pollination Project has helped kickstart some of the most innovative ideas in animal activism today.
http://thepollinationproject.org/
The Sabina Fund, a project of FARM, awards $500-1000 grants to grassroots animal activists around the world.
If you work or volunteer for an animal nonprofit with a mission to rescue or raise awareness, and you’re not using the LoveAnimals.org platform for crowdfunding and online donations, well, there’s something wrong with you, and we just can’t be friends anymore.
If you support health charities, it’s imperative to only donate to those that do not test on animals. This site offers a database of health charities that do and do not conduct animal testing. If you’re ever pressured to kick in for a health charity, please look them up here first. Do not give to any charity that harms animals, and if they aren’t on either list, contact the charity directly to find out if any of their funds go toward animal research.
Animal Equality is a multinational/international animal rights organization active in Spain, the UK, Germany, Italy, India, and Venezuela. The group undertakes dramatic animal rescues, undercover investigations, and eye-catching public demonstrations that make Animal Equality perhaps the most interesting animal rights organization in the world.
http://www.animalequality.net/
Animal Place is one of the oldest and largest farmed animal sanctuaries in the U.S. In just three years, their Rescue Ranch program saved around 12,000 former egg-laying hens, including the biggest farmed animal rescue in U.S. history. Animal Place actively places adoptable animals into appropriate homes, and is a leader in vegan education.
ARC specializes in large-scale, complex rescues such as those from hoarding cases, dogfighting, and puppy mills, plus public education to stop these practices in the first place. With impressive military precision, ARC swoops in to save hundreds of animals, performs triage, works with law enforcement, and secures placement with rescue partners around North America.
FARM, one of the nation’s oldest and most established animal advocacy organizations, is still an innovator with its creative campaigns including the 10 Billion Lives Tour, Sabina Fund grants for grassroots activists, and annual conference.
The Food Empowerment Project connects the dots between injustice to animals and workers, environmental racism, and sustainability, among other critical issues affecting the health of the food system locally and globally.
MFA is the most effective national animal advocacy organization focusing on farmed animals. Known primarily for its hidden-camera investigations, MFA also produces consumer education campaigns and promotes animal-free diets. MFA’s work exposing animal abuse in the nation’s factory farms, slaughterhouses and hatcheries have triggered international outcry as well as legislative and criminal justice victories on behalf of animals.
http://www.mercyforanimals.org
MFA’s new sister organization north of the border has made major strides in introducing Canadians to the realities of the food system. Like MFA in the U.S., MFA Canada has made its mark through shocking undercover investigations that have sparked national conversations about the treatment of animals.
http://www.mercyforanimals.ca/
NAPSA is a nonprofit network of primate sanctuaries such as Chimp Haven, Save the Chimps, Primate Rescue Center, and other sanctuaries advocating for the highest possible standard of care for primates in captivity and an end to their use in research, entertainment, the exotic pet and meat trades.
http://www.primatesanctuaries.org/
The Whale Warriors, SSCS is singlehandedly fighting commercial whaling as well as global campaigns to protect dolphins, sharks, and other aquatic animals from their greatest enemies: we humans.
UPC is the leading organization looking out for the interests of chickens, turkeys, and other birds trapped in the modern food system.