By Casey Brown

The other weekend I had the opportunity to volunteer with The Vegetarian Resource Group at Green Festival in Washington, DC. Green Festival is a sustainability event that showcases innovative brands and organizations so they can promote their products and services.

It was a unique experience that enabled the other VRG staff/volunteers and me to interact with a wide variety of people and educate them on vegan lifestyles. During the event we met with a man who has been vegetarian since the 1960s and many others who hadn’t yet made the transition, but were interested in learning more.

People expressed their concerns about not knowing what kinds of meals to make, not knowing where to begin, or simply not understanding all of the benefits behind the lifestyle. We were able to share a variety of resources with them including pamphlets, recipe books, and restaurant guides, as well as our own personal experiences to help answer their questions. Over the weekend we handed out over 1,000 copies of our Vegetarian Journal, which includes recipes, cooking tips, and other nutrition information. Our “Vegetarianism in a Nutshell” pamphlet and “My Vegan Plate” really helped people to understand the basics of a vegan diet as well. Everyone was appreciative for these resources, and they were enthusiastic about trying some new vegetarian meals. We also met multiple people who were already vegan and were hoping to get some resources and recipe ideas to share with their friends to help inspire them to consider the lifestyle.

It was an exciting opportunity to encourage everyone to take their next steps, whether they were planning to incorporate more plant-based meals into their lifestyle, trying to eat healthier, or adopting a fully vegetarian or vegan lifestyle. Overall, it was a great experience and I was honored to be able to spend the weekend surrounded by so many motivated and inspiring people that were so passionate about their health and the environment.

To volunteer at The Vegetarian Resource Group booths, please contact Brigette at [email protected]

To support The Vegetarian Resource Group outreach, please donate at http://www.vrg.org/member/donate_buttons.php

Join at http://www.vrg.org/member/2013sv.php

Casey Brown is doing an internship with The Vegetarian Resource Group this summer.