A Week of Veganism

The third annual Try Vegan Week starts today in Portland. This year, from August 14 – 21, events will be held at a number of locations to provide information for people contemplating a vegan lifestyle, making the switch and long time vegans looking for more information. The events are advertised for vegans and “vegan curious” and range from a bike rally to a prom held on the 21st. Try Vegan PDX also offers a mentoring program to people considering veganism or who are new to veganism.
If you’re a vegan in Portland you can visit stumptownvegans.com to read reviews of local vegan restaurants and add your voice. Portland is also home to an all vegan grocery store, Food Fight! Portland is even has a vegan strip club.
Events for this years Try Vegan Week begin at 11 am today with a bike rally in Southeast Portland and move on to mentoring sessions, panel discussions, a fitness and nutrition lecture and conclude with a vegan Bar-B-Q. Many of Sunday’s events take place at Whole Foods in Northeast Portland. At 2 pm on Sunday there will be a lecture on the environmental impact of veganism. Heading this discussion will be Peter Spendelow, the current president of Northwest VEG. This organization promotes vegetarian and vegan diets to reduce the impact of our diets on the environment. They accomplish this through a number of social events including potlucks, classes and an annual VegFest. You can read more about Spendelow and this organization at www.nwveg.org. The sixth annual VegFest in Portland will happen on September 18-19 at the Oregon Convention Center.
So if you’re curious about veganism and you live in the Portland area, you should stop by one or more of the events this week. You can find the times and locations for events at http://www.tryveganpdx.com/events/try-vegan-week-schedule/ If you can’t make it to any of these events, the try vegan website is a great resource on its own.