Tim Thorpe (vegan): Campaigning for A Vegan World, Part 1 of 2

Today, we are honored to share with you an interview with Mr. Tim Thorpe, a Campaigns and Policy Officer of The Vegan Society. The Vegan Society is a non-profit organization based in London, U.K and has been promoting the plant-based lifestyle since 1944 when one of its founders, Donald Watson, first introduced the word vegan to the world.

With a background in environmental conservation, Mr. Thorpe assists the organization with research, policy work and campaigns to promote the benefits of veganism. He also leads the Grow Green Campaign, which is helping the current agricultural system to change to a plant-based operation. With the climate emergency, the Grow Green Campaign is unwavering in bringing awareness of the importance of rapid and strong reductions in emissions from animal livestock raising which severely causes environmental damage and climate change. The Grow Green campaign puts forward essential policy recommendations to transition to plant-based agriculture and other sustainable forms of land management. They covered areas such as providing subsidies to farmers that produce food intended for direct human consumption; allotting funds for research on protein crops and how to boost yields; implementing a farmed animal tax; encouraging the serving of plant proteins in public canteens; and consulting on policy with a wider range of stakeholders.

Demand plays a key role in food production adjustments and policy alterations. The more people make the connection and switch to a vegan diet, the closer we get to reaching the tipping point where the governments and food producers take action. “I think people are getting increasingly interested in the importance of vegan diets. So, for some people, they might initially be interested in health and they might be looking for healthier foods and as they learn more, there’s opportunities there to teach them about sustainability as well. Or people might initially be interested in animal rights, the welfare, and compassion for animals. And then through those conversations, we can introduce the subject of sustainability as well. It’s about reaching people where they are and what they’re interested in to begin with, and making sure that you give them the information that’s relevant to them at that time.”