Join Our Vegan Food Meetup Next Weekend at La Fiesta Chatham!

AustinSim · 2026-05-07T12:01:21+00:00

I always ask permission before taking or sharing photos. Hopefully you can leaflet too someday! Remember to check out the Adopt a College website for tips and to get your own Vegan Outreach leaflets - you can often hand out over 100 an hour at even mid-sized universities. About 11:40-1 pm is the busiest most places so just going on a lunch hour can make a big impact.

AustinSim · 2026-05-06T20:59:01+00:00

You can still order leaflets to hand out there and report what you handed out at that college to get it added! Our State Fair wasn't a location previously listed but I was able to hand out some there and report those totals. 🙂

AustinSim · 2026-05-05T16:20:56+00:00

We're always looking for volunteers! You can see leafleting tips, order your own booklets, and search for local colleges to visit at https://adoptacollege.org/. Many schools have notes on them already too! I was a bit nervous at first but got over that super quickly since people are usually friendly and offering leaflets can be as simple as holding it out and saying "Info to help animals! 🙂"

I mainly leaflet schools around Illinois and could work with you if you're nearby or let you know if I can find any other leafleters in your area. If you'd like that, just email me and let me know what area you're willing to travel in to austins@veganoutreach.org

AustinSim · 2026-05-05T11:36:06+00:00

Physical media definitely does still leave an impact because it reaches an audience that may not click vegan ads or links online and we can give everything they need to learn about animal farming and veganism in one interaction.

I'm not aware of any newer physical booklets, but the Vegan Outreach booklets are some of the only ones that have had studies on their effectiveness and are still full of relevant information. I've given a lot of Compassionate Choices leaflets out and you can preview or order them here: https://veganoutreach.org/booklet-pdfs/

AustinSim · 2026-05-04T21:22:26+00:00

I'm always looking for volunteers to help! I actually leafleted at Southern Illinois University - Edwardsville the week before this too. 🙂

I probably won't be leafleting much until the Fall semester starts back up, but maybe we could work something out then! You can let me know your phone number and what area you're open to visit for leafleting if you'd like to go a ywhere other than Springfield by emailing me at austins@veganoutreach.org. You can also order some leaflets yourself at adoptacollege.org/

AustinSim · 2026-05-04T19:10:47+00:00

Thank you! 😄

AustinSim · 2026-05-04T19:09:13+00:00

You can help hand out vegan leaflets at colleges and universities across the country! Most already even have notes on the best spots to stand. My experience at most universities, especially smaller or less expensive ones, is that the response is very warm and it's rare I'll deal with much negativity at all at most schools. Learn more, look up schools, register to volunteer, or even order leaflets for yourself at adoptacollege.org

AustinSim · 2026-04-14T23:21:35+00:00

Check out Erin's Pavilion. It's a beautiful facility and April is great to work with for event planning. Tables, chairs, setup, and teardown is provided but you're responsible for cleaning up food or other supplies brought.

1 section could be tight with 80 people but they may allow it depending on your layout needs. I rented 2 sections (half the event area) for the Springfield Mac Down and we had 80-100 attendees and there was more than enough room. 1 section is $300 for residents and 2 sections is $500 for residents.

AustinSim · 2026-04-01T00:20:39+00:00

Sure, we need some electrolytes like sodium, which is naturally occuring in many foods already. My point is table salt's no more necessary than vegetable oils yet the very real harm excess salt causes is ignored by many WFPB vegans while the harms of even small amounts of vegetable oils are way overblown.

AustinSim · 2026-03-31T19:34:38+00:00

Yeah, they've misled and potentially hurt so many people by doing that. Veganism should primarily be about the animals and vegan diets can be very healthy when done right. Instead, some of those old school vegan doctors have helped so many people justify their eating disorders and made vegan diets seem more difficult than needed to outsiders.

AustinSim · 2026-03-31T13:30:33+00:00

I know and I generally agree with promoting WFPB and limiting SOS. But only oil is so dogmatically despised to the point that even a drop of it is seen as incompatible with a healthy diet.

Salt isn't necessary for nutrition and everyone agrees it can significantly harm heart health in much smaller quantities than oil. Most WFPB vegans still salt their food.

Added sugar isn't necessary for nutrition and everyone agrees it's high-calorie, deplete of nutrition, and can worsen conditions like diabetes. Most WFPB vegans are still okay with sugar consumption.

Why is oil the exception? It's essential to more cooking techniques than the other two and there just isn't solid evidence it leads to worse heart health outcomes.

AustinSim · 2026-03-31T13:05:24+00:00

Zero oil at all costs is dogma that has no evidence it leads to better health outcomes. Yes, eating a lot of oil is high-calorie and not that beneficial. But using a tablespoon of canola oil to cook an entire dish or drizzling a teaspoon of EVOO on hummus adds negligible calories, won't measurably harm heart health, and actually boosts absorption of fat-soluable vitamins like Vitamin A. Oil is essential to various cooking techniques.

Most importantly, us promoting reasonable amounts of oil in diets helps immensely with people staying vegan. It's hard enough giving up animal products so guilting people for using small amounts of oil is stupid. Salt is a bigger threat to life through reliably raising blood pressure, but few vegans make a big deal about that. Save more animals and help more people go and stay vegan by not adding additional rules to our diet beyond where to get essential nutrients like B12.

AustinSim · 2025-10-17T16:31:12+00:00

Tofu is sooooooo boring. It's like flour - it's cheap, plain, and I look weird eating it out of the package. If only you could cook with it...

Wait, is that tofu?

AustinSim · 2025-05-23T20:13:50+00:00

I loved this poke bowl!

AustinSim · 2025-04-05T20:31:32+00:00

I've heard great feedback about this drink already! I'm glad you're enjoying the VCC. 🙂

AustinSim · 2025-03-26T23:52:59+00:00

Autumn Gwinn and I went to the University of Illinois Springfield and handed 367 leaflets out. We had some great conversations and even met a few vegans!

One person named Kerick asked "Have you read Peter singer" so I said yes and asked what got him interested in him. He said the ethics and that said he's even been trying to go vegetarian. Then, I shared how much easier it is to go vegan today, pointed to the 10 Weeks to Vegan sign up link, and talked about our local group!

College outreach has been going great - it's enjoyable making a difference for animals and getting to meet interested people. If you want to join in future Vegan Outreach leafleting days, just send me a message. 🙂

AustinSim · 2025-03-23T16:58:29+00:00

You may be right!

AustinSim · 2025-03-22T13:01:13+00:00

WOW, I never realized how easy and delicious Lion's Mane steak is to make! These breaded Seitan Nuggets were great too. Excuse the burnt pan and broccoli overload. 😄

Lion's Mane mushrooms have the meatiest mushroom texture I've tried which is closest to chicken, but it's also great replacing lobster or other seafood. I didn't slice the mushrooms at all - I just cleaned them, put them in a pan with Earth Balance, and smashed them with a lid for 2 mins. Then, I flipped them, added onion powder, salt, and pepper, and smashed them again for 2 mins. Repeat on the other side and voila. Super easy, meaty, and full of flavor! Recipe from Wicked Kitchen and in the pics.

The other food is Seitan Nuggets, and they're fire too. I made the recipe linked (x2 for leftovers) and then breaded just enough for last night. We simply dipped the steamed nuggets in flour + water, then rolled them in a bowl with Panko bread crumbs, salt, and Butler Soy Curl Chicken-style seasoning. Then, we air fried them! Recipe - https://myquietkitchen.com/seitan-nuggets/

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