Helping to build a more inclusive and impactful vegan movement
If we hope to create a better world for all beings, we need to build a strong, resilient vegan movement. This involves understanding what privilege (and its flipside, oppression) is, as well as knowing how to effectively talk about the issue. Unexamined privilege, or privilege we’re not aware of, drives vegans apart from one another, and it drives nonvegans away from the movement.
The good news is that, with understanding and the right tools, we can significantly improve our ability to address the problem of unexamined privilege among vegans, to help build a more inclusive and impactful movement.
How this course can help you
This course is an engaging and immersive learning experience that will help you understand privilege and develop the skills to talk about the issue in a way that increases the chances that your communication will be productive.
You’ll come to better understand the drivers and consequences of unexamined privilege, as well as the importance of creating a more inclusive vegan movement. You’ll learn practical tools and strategies for communicating about privilege effectively and for fostering positive change.
Developed by leaders and educators with decades of combined experience in animal advocacy, this course features short, engaging videos accompanied by activities and resources to help you deepen your learning.
What we'll cover
- Unexamined privilege and its consequences among vegans
- Why inclusivity is important for the vegan movement
- The psychology of privilege
- A relational approach to ending oppressive attitudes and behaviors
- Practical tools for communicating about privilege in an appropriate and relational way
- How to practice solidarity by navigating the emotions we and others feel in response to witnessing or experiencing oppression
- And much more!
Who will benefit from taking this course?
- Vegans who want to understand the basics of what privilege (and its flipside, oppression) is, as well as how the problem is expressed in vegan organizations and the movement
- Vegans who find conversations about privilege challenging and want to more effectively communicate about the issue with others
- Vegans who want to foster inclusivity in their groups and organizations
Example Curriculum
- Video 1: Welcome to the Course (3:46)
- Video 2: What Is Privilege? (5:22)
- Video 3: The Privilege That Most Vegans Understand (4:30)
- Video 4: Carnism, Explained (4:48)
- Video 5: Understanding Systems of Oppression (2:34)
- Video 6: The Consequences of Unexamined Privilege among Vegans (2:23)
- Video 7: Inclusivity Is Strategic (5:20)
- Video 8: The Psychology of Privilege (2:08)
- Video 9: Unexamined Privilege in Our Movement: An Example (2:51)
- Video 10: A Relational Approach to Transformation (1:15)
- Video 11: The Formula for Healthy Relating (2:55)
- Video 12: Transforming Our Relationship with Our Privilege: Practicing Solidarity (2:26)
- Video 13: Appreciate the Emotional Toll of Oppression (3:58)
- Video 14: Communicate Appropriately (3:05)
- Video 15: Model and Require a Commitment to Inclusivity (3:02)
- Video 16: Communicate with the Person, Not to Their Privilege (1:42)
- Video 17: Focus on Process over Content (1:45)
- Video 18: Relate to Your Anger in a Healthy Way (4:09)
- Video 19: Aim to Connect with Your Empathy (1:08)
- Video 20: Stick to the Facts, and Try to Avoid Absolutes (1:02)
Your instructor
Dr. Melanie Joy
Dr. Melanie Joy is an award-winning psychologist and educator, and she’s the author of seven books, including the bestselling Why We Love Dogs, Eat Pigs, and Wear Cows; The Vegan Matrix: Understanding and Discussing Privilege Among Vegans to Build a More Inclusive and Empowered Movement; and How to End Injustice Everywhere. She specializes in the psychology of social transformation, relationships, and communication and in effective vegan advocacy. Her work has been featured in major media outlets around the world, and she has received a number of awards, including the Ahimsa Award—previously given to the Dalai Lama and Nelson Mandela—for her work on global nonviolence. She has given talks and trainings in over 50 countries, and she is also the founding president of the international NGO Beyond Carnism.
What people are saying about our courses
“I’ve really enjoyed taking the Sustainable Vegan Advocacy online course. By watching the videos and doing the reflection activities, I’ve learned so much about honoring my needs and prioritizing sustainability in my advocacy. I want to be able to keep speaking up for animals for as long as they need me, and using the tips and tools in this course will help me do that.”
Genesis Butler,
Youth Climate Save
“The skills gained in this [Effective Vegan Advocacy] course can be immediately applied to all types of advocacy in your life, from casual interactions with strangers to meaningful discussions with family. If you want to know how to get results with your vegan advocacy, then register for this course. Moreover, these skills can be applied to non-advocacy interpersonal communication too!”
Jessika Ava,
Grants Program Director,
ProVeg International
“Being vegan is incredibly fulfilling—but living and advocating in a nonvegan world can also be emotionally draining, and it’s a great loss to the vegan movement when people lose hope or burn out. The Sustainable Vegan Advocacy online course from CEVA is a fantastic tool to help vegans around the world take care of themselves and build resilience. I recommend it to any vegan who wants to stay healthy and fulfilled while helping animals for years to come.”
Ria Rehberg,
CEO, Veganuary
Frequently asked questions
How much time will I need to dedicate to the course?
The course consists of 21 short videos, which take just about one hour in total to watch. The time you’ll need to complete each learning activity will vary. Some activities can be completed in a few minutes, while others may take up to an hour, depending on how much you’d like to engage with the material.
In order for you to get the most out of the course, we recommend that you pace yourself as you progress through the video content and allow time to fully engage with the reflection activities. The reflection activities are designed to deepen your understanding of the issue.
Throughout the course, we recommend that you check out additional resources, so you might want to factor in some extra time for doing so.
Can I complete the course in my own time?
Yes. You can access the course anytime, anywhere, and work through it at your own pace.
Some people find that setting themselves a goal of completing the course within a certain timeframe helps them stay on track. We encourage you to pace yourself and give yourself time to fully process an exercise before moving on to the next video. This could take hours or even days.
Can I retake the course?
Yes. You will have lifetime access to the course.
Will I receive proof of having completed the course?
Yes. All participants who complete the course will receive a certificate issued by CEVA.
What does CEVA mean by “effective”?
CEVA uses the term “effective” for two reasons. Effectiveness reflects our focus, and it informs which methods we recommend.
We focus primarily on results. This means, for instance, that we may advocate using messages other than “go vegan” if there is reason to believe that those messages will lead to swifter and more sustainable change (as long as these messages don’t reinforce other problems or forms of oppression). Furthermore, much of our focus is on process, not content. We are not simply promoting one strategy or another but rather encouraging advocates to ask questions and approach issues in a way that increases the chances that they will make effective decisions when promoting veganism—decisions that will do the most good. We seek to enhance strategic thinking, not simply to discuss which specific strategies may be most effective.
The methods we recommend are, whenever possible, based on empirical evidence, as well as on our experience as vegan advocates. Melanie Joy has extensively researched strategic methods for social change and authored books covering vegan strategy, effective communication, and social change. Furthermore, she holds a PhD in psychology and specializes in the psychology of social transformation and in relational literacy. She has consulted for vegan organizations around the world and has a strong track record of success.
How does CEVA try to ensure that its courses are appropriate for different cultures?
We recognize that our approach to advocating veganism inevitably reflects our worldviews, and we take measures to ensure that we’re not promoting methods that simply reflect our own norms or biases.
We have delivered in-person trainings around the world, working closely with members of vegan organizations in local communities who have provided us with feedback and guidance. We try to ensure that the research on which we base the methods we advocate is as culturally diverse as possible. And we have found that the vast majority of the issues we discuss and the challenges vegan advocates face are similar across cultures.
How does CEVA address inclusivity?
We are aware that systemic oppression and unexamined privilege—white, male, etc.—is a serious problem in the vegan movement and beyond, and that this problem both enables unethical practices and damages the effectiveness of the vegan movement. Melanie Joy has written a book on this issue, The Vegan Matrix: Understanding and Discussing Privilege among Vegans to Build a More Inclusive and Empowered Movement. Furthermore, we are committed to ongoing development of our own self-awareness and education in this area, as we are aware that our own privileges influence how we perceive and relate to others.
I have a question not addressed here. How can I contact you?
Get in touch at [email protected] and we’ll be happy to try to answer it!