MEATLESS MONDAY: Vegan cauliflower buffalo wings
Cauliflower is versatile. It tastes great when eaten raw, steamed, roasted, grilled, baked into a pizza crust or cooked and mashed as a substitute for
VEGAN STORYTELLER
I am Jeanette McDermott
I'm part of the vegan movement for change
Welcome to Vegan Storyteller
Hi there. I’m Jeanette McDermott, a photojournalist from St. Louis who has traveled in search of stories since the early seventies.
Throughout my travels, one thing has remained constant: my passion for veganism. When I returned to St. Louis after 40 years of reporting overseas and across the nation, I found few establishments with clean, whole-food vegan choices. The same holds true in my present travels throughout the Midwest — and that is not acceptable.
It was time for me to put my journalism skills into play. I launched Vegan Storyteller to raise vegan awareness, grow the vegan movement, and play a role in changing attitudes and menus in St. Louis and the Midwest.
From the very beginning of my reporting career, I have traveled to many reporting assignments in many places with many cameras, many pens, pads of paper, microcassette recorders, and video cameras. These tools helped me hone my skills as a newspaper reporter, magazine editor, magazine designer, disk jockey, television news anchor, photographer, and videographer.
Storytelling had become my passion. Today I am helping to grow the vegan movement through stories.
My passions: telling stories and protecting animals
Aside from storytelling, my deepest passion is compassion for animals. I became vegetarian and then vegan for them. I have been plant-based for 40 years. Since returning to St. Louis, I have been disappointed in the number of vegan eateries that are available to vegans. Options are slowly increasing, but not nearly at the rate that is necessary to support the growing demand for veganism.
Change can be slow in the Midwest. There are no restaurants, cafes, or bakeries that focus on low FODMAP foods for vegans with IBS. I’m tired of having to settle for scraps and sub-par food on menus. There is work to be done at the local and regional levels to enhance the quality of life for vegans who live in and travel through Midwestern cities and towns.
I’m ready to do the work. I am using Vegan Storyteller to support my passions of veganism and animal rights.
Join me in the cause!
THE VEGAN STORYTELLER JOURNEY
Vegan Storyteller shares the lessons, hardships, and challenging dark nights of the soul in people’s lives that eventually led them to enlightened consciousness and veganism.
VEGAN ACTIVISM
Vegan Storyteller is a blog for change. Through it, I connect with other activists, promote vegan advocacy actions, and provide information that helps activists strengthen their actions and campaigns. I tell stories about vegan activists who are changing the world through their vegan lifestyle, artistic expression, and entrepreneurial spirits. I tell their stories to inspire and motivate others and to engage in meaningful conversations to drive the agenda of veganism forward. And for me personally, the blog is a liberating act. It allows me to stay engaged in actions when I am absent from the streets.
LOW FODMAP AND VEGAN
Vegan Storyteller helps vegans who suffer from IBS overcome challenges they face on a Low FODMAP diet through blogs that inform and instruct.
LOOK & LISTEN
MOTIVATION & EVENTS
Quotes remind us that life is bigger than our own small internal world and motivate us to open our minds to creative thought.
Events keep us on the cutting edge of grassroots and global activism so that we can join efforts to grow the vegan movement.
RECENT POSTS
25 popular vegan podcasts people listen to
As the popularity of the vegan lifestyle grows, many voices have emerged through the medium of podcasts. With 25 exciting vegan podcasts currently making waves, there’s something for everyone in this growing community.
Vegan Honey Clothing spreads awareness about compassion for animals
Jackie O’Donohue calls herself the Plant-Based Babe. Her Vegan Honey Clothing brand is cute and colorful and spreads awareness about being vegan and loving animals.
It’s a good day to be Black and vegan opens conversations
The merchandise brand “A Good Day To Be Black and Vegan” breaks down stereotypes and opens the conversation to people who may not have thought about becoming vegan.
Joanne Kong, vegan Renaissance woman of the 21st century
A true Renaissance woman, Joanne Kong excels at whatever she sets her mind to. On Being Vegan with musician, professor, author, TED Talk presenter, and vegan activist Joanne Kong.
Tips for beginner vegans: 7 ways to stay motivated as a new vegan
You have made the best decision of your life by deciding to go vegan. Veganism saves animals, protects the environment, and makes you healthier than ever before.
Breeding Nigerian dwarf goats for all the wrong reasons
From what I observed through their writing, bloggers who express views about Nigerian dwarf goats believe the animals have no inherent worth of their own and, instead, are birthed into being for the express purpose of serving the whims of humans.
Nigerian dwarf goats – they are gentle, lovable, and exploited
We seem to be hell-bent on negating the obvious: namely, that animals are capable of a range of emotions, that they feel joy and sadness, have unique personalities, likes and dislikes, and care about others. They feel pain and despair, suffer loss – of family, friends, freedom, and ultimately their lives – all because we see them only as providers.
Fighting for Animal Liberation enhances Shriya’s life with purpose
Fighting For Animal Liberation Fills Shriya’s Life With Meaning And Joy. On Being Vegan With Researcher, Entrepreneur, And Animal Activism Mentor Shriya Swaminathan.
I Am are the two most powerful words we can say
“I Am” statements affirm the truth of our nature. These two powerful words are like a mechanism that triggers how we feel in our bodies and minds and what we believe about ourselves.
Gallery of Vegan ARTivists: Foodly Doodly Doo
Artistic expression can reach the depths of our souls in a way that words cannot. Through their art, artists expose us to feelings and struggles and remind us of the power we hold to change the world. Artists featured in Vegan Storyteller’s Gallery of Vegan ARTivists respond to veganism’s impact on people, animals, and the environment.
Vegan food photographer makes veggies look amazing
Kim Kardashian, step aside. A new celebrity has taken over the world stage, and she is beautiful! She is fresh and captivating. And she is green.
Philip McCulloch-Downs: Vegan ARTivist duty-bound to make a difference
By Jeanette McDermott Philip McCulloch-Downs Somerset, UK Phillip McCulloch-Downs is a featured artist in the Vegan Storyteller Gallery of Vegan ARTivists. In 2014 Philip’s artwork
What does tofu taste like? Is tofu vegan? These 2 questions and more are answered in this complete guide to tofu
Eastern cuisine has used tofu for more than 2,000 years. In the West, it is finding its way increasingly into recipes and onto menus. Tofu’s popularity has led to a host of questions about this humble bean curd.
Vegan stereotypes and Ciara Flack’s aim to dismantle 3 of them
Vegan stereotypes and myths are slowly falling away as veganism becomes more mainstream, and Ciara Flack is helping to dispel them.
How to go vegan in 1 easy step: follow a vegan starter kit
Are you thinking about transitioning from meat and dairy and wondering how to go vegan? It’s easy. Get a vegan starter kit. Vegan starter kits are your best resource for helping you learn how to go vegan.
PAGES OF INTEREST
Meatless Monday
Get your weekly vegan recipe from Foodly Doodly Doo and watch the behind-the-scenes videos of how the recipes were created.
ARTivists
See how vegan artists are responding to the way our attitudes and belief systems impact people, animals, and the environment. Through their powerful and thought-provoking creative expressions, artists remind us of the power we hold to change the world.
News Snippets
The Vegan News Snippets section of Vegan Storyteller is a roundup of headline news aimed to be of interest to vegans, animal lovers, and environmental advocates.
Vegan Storyteller is a platform that curates and shares white papers on relevant topics to veganism and animal rights. These documents provide educational information, expert knowledge, and authoritative and persuasive language in order for you to think about the issue or topic at hand more deeply than before reading them.