Hello and welcome to Eight Years In! There’s a book called, “How to Create a Vegan World: a Pragmatic Approach” by Tobias Leenaert. And believe me when I tell you that with a title like that, I had been itching to read it for quite some time. So I finally got my hands on it and I read it. Voraciously. Here’s what I thought. 

Explanation of pragmatic

   I think the first place to start is to explain what is meant by pragmatic. Because I certainly didn’t know what he meant when I first saw the cover. 

   In this book specifically, the author is talking about pragmatic in the juxtaposition of idealistic. His whole point of the book is that where we are now, societally speaking, requires different, more pragmatic forms of activism as opposed to idealistic ones. These approaches, for now, will be more effective often because our world is very far from aligning with the vegan ethos. 

   He mentions that, in the future, more idealistic activism and arguments will be more viable as we build support of the general population. But for now, he realizes where we’re at and how, in his opinion, much more needs to be done to be able to make those sorts of arguments and activism worth something. 

Pragmatism vs idealism, my thinking

   And you know, I hadn’t really thought of it in those terms before. In the beginning as he provides his basis for this opinion I found myself connecting a lot of dots that I honestly hadn’t before. 

   I reflected back on my previous conversations and actions and was able to see them as more idealistic or pragmatic. I had some self-reflection and asked myself if I was more idealistic or pragmatic in both my attitudes and presentation of them, and I definitely saw parts of myself in both. 

   The more I thought about it, the more I found myself agreeing with him. We need far more pragmatism in the vegan community, if we’re going to change people’s actions. The reason I say this is I’ve noticed that pretty much nothing I do in my own personal life is working. And I would wonder why. After years, I am still the only vegan in my life. And even those who were vegan curious, I managed to mangle the situation further, to the point where they became obstinate and uninterested. Obviously, something wasn’t working. 

Does attitude follow behavior?

   Another thing I wasn’t necessarily convinced of was this idea that attitude often follows behavior. At first it seemed a trite idea, thrown in to make the more idealistic vegans just basically shut up. 

   Tobias throws the point out there, and in the beginning it seems unsubstantiated. But as he explains with data and more exploration, it really got me thinking, and hoping that he could be correct. 

   The point was that if you can get people eating more plant based and less dependent on animal products in general, they will then look back and alter their idea of who they are—a person who eats less animal products. This, in turn, has a psychological effect where they start to justify their own actions (just like we see with meat eating and a whole host of other behaviors, good and bad in society). The fact is, we look back and justify ourselves all the time. 

   I’ve seen it in my own life too. I justify my thoughts and behaviors, and that can be a good or bad thing. For this reason, I do try to line up with my values as much as I am able right off the bat. Because I know that if I ignore what I know is right or right for me, then I’ll just justify it and forget about it later, and that’s not the kind of life I want to lead. 

   But I mean, he’s right. We see it in how people lay out the information that’s on forms, for example. Countries that list being an organ donor as the default have more organ donors. This is a well known fact. And if you ask these people why they chose to be an organ donor they’ll often cite things like maybe caring about their fellow man more, having a good upbringing, etc. Yet we know, that at least a portion of them were simply influenced by the placement of the options on the form. 

   If we get people acting first, by making vegan options and behaviors easier and more accessible, we’re going to create more vegans. That’s just ostensibly correct. 

But are these people “really vegan”?

   So now we get into this idea of what constitutes “actual veganism”, which is a concept that is tackled in this book briefly as well. And we talk about the vegan society’s definition of veganism which tackles both behavioral and philosophical aspects of veganism. But even as this definition shows, there is not one single, black and white definition of vegan or not vegan. 

   I figure this is an interesting point to mention, and it was eloquently posed in the book itself. There is definitely a continuum of both suffering and “levels” of veganism. It’s something that I’ve been aware of for a long time, as well as something that makes me uncomfortable from time to time. Because I know that it’s not really possible to be 100% pure vegan in the current state of the world. 

   We do know one thing, however. If a person has no ethical reasoning for their habits, then according to the vegan society’s definition, they’re not “really vegan”. They’re something else. 

   But I thought it was interesting (though perhaps a little cavalier) the way this truth is addressed in the book. Essentially, it’s “so what?” Like, so what if they’re not really vegan? If their actions are making a difference in supply and demand, that’s a good thing. 

The double demand

   This is something the book mentions too. Veganism, in itself has a double demand. To be vegan, you’re going to do these things because you feel this way. And well, at a certain point (especially after reading this book), I wonder how productive that actually is. 

   The animals certainly don’t care if you’re not killing them because you think they’re valuable individuals or they’re really cute when their babies or you know that eating their flesh would be more likely to give you a heart attack or heck, if you’re just trying to get in that cute vegan’s pants. They just don’t want to be tortured and killed. So if someone decides not to eat meat for some off the wall reason, instead of immediately correcting them, we ought to instead make their way easier and more sustainable. 

Intention is important, eventually

   Now this is when we get into another point covered in the book, which is that, at some point, it does matter why people decide to go vegan or veganish. 

   It has been shown that people who have ethics among their reasoning stay vegetarian or vegan for the long term a lot better—it’s got a lot more sticking power. 

   Not to mention that it does matter why they’re going veganish, because often the why will also motivate the manner in which they do so. For example, if someone mistakenly believes that a vegan diet is the holy grail of health, they might simply eat plant based with very little regard for what they’re actually eating. Because veganism is so healthy right? 

   This is another reason we want to give good, honest information. Not simply the information that we think will attract people to veganism, even if it’s not really accurate. It may make people try plant based diets, but it won’t keep them eating that way and it won’t leave them with a good impression of veganism. And this is something the book covers as well. 

   The ethical arguments, Tobias figures, are better left for later, once we demonstrate that being vegan is doable and they seem convinced of that fact. 

You are not your audience

   I think one thing that was touched on in the book that really hit me in my previous reasoning was the part about us not being our audience. Let me explain. 

   When I first went vegan, I was convinced by ethical argumentation. I saw slaughterhouse footage and family farm footage and listened to animal activists and I was like, “dang, I’ve gotta stop participating in this.” Like I said, I have never met a vegan in real life and I certainly wasn’t equipped to eat a healthy or sustainable plant based diet. And I didn’t know how to cook. My family was on food stamps and we hardly ever bought any fruits or vegetables. 

   I was scared; I thought maybe I could never have a delicious meal again. Honestly, I didn’t even actually know that this was doable, health-wise. I just kind of heard from a couple people online that it was and hoped that it was good enough because I didn’t feel morally comfortable continuing my life as I always had. 

   And this extremely sub-optimal situation was enough for me. But, as Tobias highlights, that’s not enough for a lot of people. In other words, the people I’m wanting to convince to be vegan (or at least closer to it) are not going to just go vegan at all costs like I was willing to do. As much as I wish that more people would be convinced by simple facts and ethical conversation, that’s just not going to happen. No, scratch that. That’s just not happening. 

   And you know what? We shouldn’t ask people to do what I did. We shouldn’t have to and we definitely shouldn’t expect that effort from everyone. Veganism is about lessening the suffering of animals, not causing the suffering of humans. (Humans, by the way, are also animals. I’m not equating the suffering of animals to the strife someone may feel going vegan in a suboptimal situation in a bad way. But that doesn’t mean that doing so isn’t also suffering, to a degree.) No, instead, let’s make “vegan” easier for people. More attractive and doable. Instead of expecting them to leap over the same bounds that we had to. If we have the ability to make the switch easier and better for others in the future, then we should. 

How to make a vegan world

   In an interesting turn of events, this little book has convinced me that not only is a vegan world possible. It is also likely, given time. As it points out, it’s not that most people really support animal cruelty or being dependent on the usage of animals. It’s that they honestly can’t fathom a different way of living. 

   For many ethical vegans, this is upsetting. But when you frame this truth in a certain lens, it can be encouraging. Not because of the state the world’s in, but because you actually have less “adversaries” than it would otherwise appear. 

   This book explains that getting more people reducing will have a greater effect than your veganism alone. And it’s right. It explains that more veganish people pave the way to make more vegans and it’s right. It says that sharing vegan food with nonvegans is awesome, and you know what? It’s right. 

My one qualm

   There is one extra bit that this book has not managed to tie up in a neat bow for me. (Which, one thing really isn’t that much of a bad reflection on a book. I’ve read many more books that have left a lot more questions. But if you’re wanting to make a book that thoroughly explains “how to create a vegan world”, one piece still out there isn’t necessarily what you want.) 

   You see, loosening the definition of veganism so more people can “join the club” is another thing this book advocates for. And I get it, people like to feel included and on the side of the good guys and stuff. I’m all for helping feel included in veganism, especially now after reading this book. But the problem is, words have to mean something. And I have no doubt that making more veganish people will make more vegans and an increasingly vegan world. 

   But in the short term, deciding that vegan can basically mean someone who’s “mostly plant based” (which, kudos actually, that’s a good step) has varying levels of usefulness. Especially when it comes certain foods and goods being considered “vegan”. 

People are confused

   I’ve been interviewed about being vegan a lot by others. When I tell them I’m vegan they feel the need to ask about a whole list of exceptions. “So like, you really don’t eat meat ever?” No, never. “What about eggs?” No, eggs come from animals too. “Wait not honey either? But bees don’t die for honey!” I know, but it’s not just about animals dying either. “Well, it’s Christmas. Don’t you want just a little bit on Christmas?” No, no thank you, I really don’t consume that stuff. 

   And even when people are trying to be nice and make you food they get so confused about what constitutes vegan food. They’re prone to think that it’s fine to put a little bit of egg in the noodles or make your sandwich with a little mayo smeared on it. As much as I appreciate the veganish and reducetarian messages, I feel that they add to this already present sense of confusion about what vegan food (and lifestyle, for that matter) actually is. 

   I know that in the book, Tobias states this sort of thing as “a small price to pay” for the greater consequence of making veganism more common and accessible. And I’m not saying it’s not worth it, broad strokes. I’d need data to back that up, which I definitely don’t have. But it is really a “small price to pay”? I’d argue that’s oversimplifying things a little. 

Getting clearer

   If our goal is to create a vegan world, I don’t see how it helps anyone to obscure the meaning of veganism in general. I think it’s great to help people feel like they can be more aligned with the growing vegan movemen. And welcoming those that we don’t perceive as “all the way there yet” is important. But to call things vegan when they’re not, I don’t think that’s the direction we need to take. Perhaps there are other better ways of helping people become more comfortable with the idea and behaviors of veganism than refusing to adhere to the definition of a word to safeguard their feelings. I would like to think so. 

   Funny enough, in consideration of this idea of a vegan world, I think that the idea of veganism as a term would become incredibly obsolete. Like, if everyone was a plant based eater and all animal use and abuse was made illegal and had satisfactory alternatives, most everyone would basically be vegan by default. They wouldn’t have to think about this philosophy of valuing animals as individuals not to be consumed or commodified. And to be honest, I don’t think everyone would necessarily agree anyway. You can’t get everyone to agree on philosophical and moral stances, no matter how baseline they may seem to you. But if everyone was behaviorally vegan, I don’t think the word vegan would be that useful. 

   It’s a weird thing to think about. But I think a vegan world would end up being a world without vegans. We would be free of all sorts of things that we accept as part of the vegan experience now. Like looking at the ingredients every time we buy something new. Or researching hygiene products before we buy them. Telling people that yes, I am a vegan. In a vegan world, the idea of having a vegan identity would be really odd. Redundant. And I suppose this is what Tobias is envisioning when he talks about creating a vegan world. 

    The more people can see we can live without our dependency on animals, the more supply and demand will be affected. And the more people will be willing and interested in working on non-animal alternatives to what we currently use now. Perhaps this forward movement will eventually propel us into veganism completely, as a society and a world. Perhaps not. I’m not entirely convinced of his opinion that the final steps will take care of themselves. 

All in all

    I am, however, quite convinced of one thing. For now, this pragmatism is the way forward. This idea that we can make more reductionists which will in turn make more vegans and vegetarians, as well as more vegan-friendly people and demand for vegan products in the system—it seems to be the way to go, for now. 

   I really enjoyed this book. I’d definitely recommend it for anyone who is vegan or vegetarian and wanting to influence others through their activism. I know it has changed my outlook on how I communicate with nonvegans. It brings up a lot of good points. And even if you’re inclined to disagree with this book’s conclusion, it offers a lot of food for thought. 

   Thank you for reading my thoughts. If you’re looking for more vegan content (whether you’re vegan or not), subscribe to the blog. We talk about tips about how to make veganism work for you. (Whether you’re just starting out or a long term-er.) And if you’ve read this book or have thoughts about the ideas discussed in this post, leave a comment to let us know what you think. As usual, have an amazing day!