Motivation and Coping as an Activist

We all will probably face times when we lose our drive to get active for animals or find ourselves feeling “burnt out”. We may still care about animal rights, but we suddenly lack the drive to get involved in activism.

Obviously if there are big personal problems affecting your activism drive then you need to get those sorted, for your own sake as well as for the animals. Otherwise, it might be worth taking a moment to think about why your motivation’s gone – pinpointing the problem can help you find out how to tackle it.

Ways to get motivated:

• What got you interested in AR in the first place? Re-read that book, re-watch that video, remember that conversation you had with another activist that first got you involved

• Find out what activism’s going on. I personally find going on Veggies ARC (an absolutely essential resource for UK activists) and seeing the list of demos, events etc makes me want to get involved

• Read about what other activists are doing. Let their commitment to AR inspire you to get active yourself

• If pessimistic thoughts about activism are holding you back, just think of all the positive changes various movements, including the AR movement, have created. Read a book like “Animal Century” by Mark Gold that illustrates the changing attitudes to towards animals in the last hundred years or so

• List everything you could do to help animals. This will get you thinking about activism again, as well as hopefully giving you ideas as to how to make a difference

• Go visit an animal sanctuary or other place with animals that aren’t being exploited. This will hopefully remind you of the main reason why you’re an activist – to help animals.

• Communicate with other activists. Going on the boards may be enough, but if you can, join a local AR group or become a member of a national organisation. This communication with other activists will again help inspire you, and the information about animal abuse and ways you can stop it should help motivate you to take action

• Think of times when you’ve taken part in activism and (hopefully!) how happy it made you feel afterwards. If you want that warm fuzzy feeling of having done good to come back, you’ve got to get out there and get active!

Preventing motivation loss:

It’s obviously much better if you don’t lose motivation in the first place. Looking after yourself will help a lot. Take time to relax. It’s a bit like when you’re revising for an exam: most people find that if they revise 24/7 without a break they end up getting more stressed and tired and remember less. Whilst you should aim to be as active for animals as possible, you still need time for yourself to avoid burn out, where you basically become so stressed or disillusioned by animal suffering you can’t bring yourself to be active anymore.

Exercise regularly. If possible get outside for some good old fresh air, but obviously if the weather’s not on your side or you live in a very polluted area this may not be ideal.

Things like yoga are very relaxing and good for you – great if you get stressed out a lot. Meditation also helps and is a good way to chill and de-stress. Doing aerobics, swimming, running, cycling – basically any exercise will help you not only physically, but mentally. Eat a healthy, balanced diet (because being a junk-food vegan is all too easy these days!) and take time to do the things you enjoy.

Even if you think your motivation levels are fine, doing the things mentioned for motivation will help stop you ever losing your activism drive or getting burnt-out.

Remember that small actions can make a difference. Whilst attending demos is awesome if you can, remember that door dropping leaflets or selling vegan cakes to people you know to raise money for an animal charity is still important. Be the best activist you can be without getting so active you end up burnt-out and unable to do any activism at all. That’s not an excuse for sitting around doing nothing, though!

Even if, for whatever reason, you can’t go out there, still try and get active. Make a recipe book with your favourite vegan recipes to sell to your friends to raise funds for an animal charity; write an article for a local / regional paper about any aspect of animal abuse; write a letter or email to a company that abuses animals; or use it as an opportunity to read up on animal issues, ethics, and activism so you can be the best activist you can be.

Stay motivated, stay driven, and stay active!

Running a Bake Sale

I enjoy baking; most people enjoy eating baked goods and are willing to pay for them... Combine the two and it's clear that a bake sale is the way to go.


A vegan bake sale is great for two key reason: Fundraising and Outreach. Obviously any money raised can go to a good cause, such as your local campaign group to fund future campaigns, to a national campaign group, to an animal shelter, and so on. The outreach aspect also makes activities such as bake sales well worth while. It sends out a positive image of vegans and veganism, and - so long as the food is tasty! - it shows off how good vegan food can be.


We held ours on campus, which took a quick email to the student activities organiser to arrange. There's a usual spot at my uni for holding stalls, bake sales etc, just outside the Students' Union building and by the student pub / bar.


Chocolate brownies (which disappeared within about 15 minutes of us setting up - will make more next time!), flapjacks, chocolate fudge, and lots of different flavour cupcakes were on sale. In the four hours we were out we raised £50.60 - not bad, especially considering it wasn't a very busy day at the Uni and that we'd almost ran out of the food by the end!


Having others help with a bake sale is crucial. There were two of us on the stall the entire time, and a friend who was unable to help on the day kindly baked cupcakes for the sale. Make sure you know what everyone's making so you can get a good range of baked goods.


We used an inexpensive cake stand and some pretty plastic plates to make it look nice, as well as a table cloth, as pasting tables aren't really that attractive! There were a few different vegan leaflets to the side too, such as the Animal Aid "I can't believe it's... Vegan!" one which I always try and have on stalls. I also printed off some copies of some of the recipes I'd used too. People may ask you questions about veganism or other animal issues, so treat this in the same way you would any vegan / animal rights stall, and make sure you know your stuff!


That was our first bake sale. Once I'm back at Uni come September, there'll be more bake sales organised. I know now to bake more brownies, and have some form of bags for people to put their purchases in if need be. I've also got copies of "The Cake Scoffer" booklet to sell to raise some extra funds too.


It's things like bake sales which I enjoy probably more than many other forms of activism, as they're more relaxed but still have an important place.

Review - The Beautiful Mountain Cafe

Whenver I visit somewhere, I do a bit of research into if there are any vegan, or vegan friendly, places to eat.

So earlier today, I decided to try The Beautiful Mountain Cafe (http://www.thebeautifulmountain.co.uk/index.php) in Aberdeen, Scotland. It's not exclusively vegan or vegetarian, but there are a few options suitable for vegans.

My partner and I both ordered a sandwich with the soup of the day. The soup and the sandwich filling I had ordered (grilled vegetables) turned out to be unavailable, so I had a bean pate sandwich instead. My partner had the avocado and pepper sandwich, which he describes as being "slightly above average" - same with the sandwich I had.

The staff were very friendly and helpful, knowing which options were suitable for vegans. My sandwich was "on the house" because of having to change due to my original choice being unavailable. It was busy when we went, but we managed to get a table, with a view outside.

They also have a takeaway area downstairs.

I would recommend giving The Beautiful Mountain Cafe a try if you are ever in Aberdeen. Finding places to eat when you're out and about, especially when you are staying somehwere you are unfamiliar with, can sometimes be difficult, so it is always nice to find a cafe where there are good vegan options and staff who understand what veganism is.

Positives:

• The staff were very friendly and helpful, and saying I could have the sandwich "on the house" was very much appreciated
• Nice atmosphere, doesn't feel too hectic

Negatives:

• A bit on the expensive side for what it is
• Accessibility may be an issue as the cafe's on the first floor
• Limited number of vegetarian and vegan options

"No More Torture, No More Lies" - Reflections on the World Day for Animals In Laboratories March and Rally

Listening to speeches in Whitworth Park

Yesterday I joined hundreds of fellow activists for the annual World Day for Animals In Laboratories march and rally, this year held in Manchester.

The group I went with arrived sometime just after midday, joining the large gathering in Whitworth park, where there were various stalls with vegan food, campaign materials, t-shirts etc, and the speeches - and some poetry. After these the march left the park, down Oxford Road. At first, there didn't seem to be much chanting, but soon enough those with megaphones were leading us with shouts of "No more torture, no more lies - Every six seconds, an animal dies" and "Close down the animal labs!"



As we reached Manchester University, the chant turned to "Shame, shame, shame on you!" Manchester Univiersity are one of many Univiersities in the country who carry out animal experiments. A two minutes' silence was held to remember all of the animals who have been killed because of vivisection, and to think about all of those millions of animals still suffering in labs right now.

After the silence, the march continued through Manchester, with protesters banging on drums, blowing whistles, shouting down megaphones, or chanting the various anti-vivisection chants.

Around two hours after we set off from Whitworth Park, we arrived in Albert Square. There were more speeches. Listening to information about the torture inflicted on animals is heartbreaking, but we need to be armed with these details if we're to get the largely apathetic public, as well as politicians and scientists, to realise that vivisection is cruel and unnecessary.

This was the first World Day march I've been on. We got our message out there - after all, how could the thousands of shoppers we marched by ignore our placards, leaflets, banners, costumes and chanting?! But, of course, we don't leave it here. We simply can't forget the animals' suffering. We must keep campaigning with activities such as more demos, info stalls, leafletting and letter writing. 

We must do what we can for the animals.

Leafleting: Door Dropping Leaflets

I wrote a little "Guide to Leafleting" a while back and posted it on a message board, where it got a good response. This post is based on the section about door dropping leaflets from that guide. If anyone has any comments, e.g. legal info or general tips, please share!

Door dropping is where you post a leaflet through a letterbox in someone's door. It's used by many people for advertising businesses or for campaign purposes.
 You have what is known as an "implied license" to door drop. If you didn't, you wouldn't get mail, free newspapers and other random leaflets through the door! If someone asks you to leave their property (e.g. their front path) you must oblige, or else you are trespassing.

Avoid door dropping in the same area too often. Not only will it potentially annoy people who may view the leaflets as "junk mail" after a while, you might as well door drop in other places to spread the message further. I don't door drop the same houses more than a few times a year. Be sure that you don't leave leaflets hanging out of letterboxes so they can be seen, as a leaflet left like this is a sign that a house is empty (i.e. the occupants are on holiday), leaving them more open to the risk of theft. And remember to leave things as you left them - if a gate was closed, close it once you're done!

While I think directly handing people leaflets is more effective as you can talk to them about the issues, door dropping is really quick and easy and can be done as you walk to the shops, to a friend's house etc. In about 15 minutes you could have covered around 40+ houses. That's 40+ households, many of which will have more than one occupant, who you are giving the chance to be informed about important issues. I'm not going to pretend that some of the leaflets we distribute don’t end up going straight in the bin, but I'm positive that some people read them, and hopefully take on board what they say.

Don't door drop anything with graphic imagery (e.g. of animals being slaughtered) in case a child picks it up. If you feel you really need to door drop such materials, place the leaflet in an envelope, or at the very least make sure it is well folded. I feel it's best not to door drop leaflets with graphic imagery at all. Be aware of leaflet content by being careful there's nothing libelous, threatening, or anything else that could land you in trouble. If you're using leaflets from the "main" organisations then it should be OK as they will have checked the content is legal, but still have a read through before distributing. Of course, you should be reading through the leaflet anyway so you know the issue!

Door dropping is also really good if you're a bit nervous about directly giving out leaflets as it usually doesn't involve communicating with anyone.

I definitely recommend you door drop leaflets with someone. Firstly, it'll be quicker and you'll be able to leaflet more houses. Secondly, it's safer in case there's the unlikely event someone is angry because they disagree with the leaflet or don't like you being on their property. I've never had a problem when door dropping leaflets, but I strongly advise you don't go on your own.

Recently, someone showed me a technique for pushing leaflets through letterboxes. Use a large wooden spoon to push the leaflet (which you fold over the spoon end) through. It can help get it through and is often safer, too. If there's an excited dog on the other side of the letterbox, I'd much rather they grabbed the wooden spoon poking through than my fingers. It can make door dropping slightly slower as you have to take a moment to fold the leaflet round the spoon each time, but now I've been shown this method, I'm definitely sticking with it.

Basically, door dropping leaflets is a simple way to quickly distribute campaign materials, so go for it!

Easter Nests

With Easter just over two weeks away, I deiced to try making some Eastery treats!
These Easter nests are really simple to make. There are various ways to make them - I went for the recipe from the wonderful Vegan Family website

(That page has some other good recipes for Easter treats  - in fact the site has lots of great recipes!)

 I ended up using Whizzer's chocolate beans rather than their mini eggs as I couldn't get hold of any! I used melted Humdinger's chocolate buttons to mix with the Weetabix which worked pretty well - I did try using dark chocolate but it wasn't as good.
You can also use cornflakes or rice crispies instead of broken up wheat biscuits.

Why You Shouldn't Bet On Lives

Two horses were killed at this year's Grand National

20 horses have died on the Grand National course since 2000.

It's not just the Grand National race that claims race horses' lives:

• Out of approximately 18,000 foals who are born into the British and Irish racing industries each year, only 40% will get to the race track. Some of the foals who don't make it are sent to slaughter.
• The horses kept to produce these foals are forced to endure a life of boredom, manipulation using drugs and artificial lighting to control and speed up reproduction, and long periods of isolation. Their misery can go on for more than 20 years.
• For the 7,500 horses who leave British racing every year, the future is often bleak, with few getting the decent retirement they deserve.
• Around 420 horses are raced to death every single year

PLEASE DON'T BET ON LIVES - BOYCOTT HORSE RACING

 click for more info on horse racing