Main Street Vegan

Can a story change hearts more effectively than an argument?

Buddhist Blues is an intriguing feature film that tackles life and family with a by-the-way-he's vegan protagonist. Writer/director Glen Merzer takes us into his process and celebrates "accidental activism."
In this engaging conversation, Victoria Moran welcomes bestselling author, screenwriter, and filmmaker Glen Merzer to discuss Buddhist Blues, the first feature film he has written and directed. Set in St. Louis in 1993, the film follows a young vegan living outside the law. As family tensions rise, he must confront difficult choices and the fragile bonds that connect us.
Together, Victoria and Glen explore storytelling as a form of advocacy. Glen explains why he believes in "soft vegan messaging." Rather than preaching, he creates compelling characters and authentic stories that encourage audiences to reflect. They also discuss the challenges of producing an independent film and the unique ability of cinema to inspire empathy.
Beyond the film, Glen reflects on his decades as a writer and his lifelong commitment to vegetarianism and veganism. He also shares why creativity can help build a more compassionate world.
Whether you're passionate about filmmaking, vegan advocacy, or simply love a good story, this episode offers an inspiring look at the intersection of art, compassion, and social change.
In This Episode
Glen's journey as a writer and filmmaker
The inspiration behind Buddhist Blues
Why storytelling can be a powerful form of advocacy
The philosophy behind "soft vegan messaging"
The challenges of producing and directing an independent film
How creativity can inspire compassion and change
About Our Guest
Glen Merzer is an author, screenwriter, filmmaker, and longtime vegan advocate. He is the writer and director of Buddhist Blues, a feature film that explores family, identity, and compassion through a distinctly vegan lens. Glen also co-authored Moving Medicine Forward with Dr. Michael Klaper and wrote Food Is Climate. A vegetarian for more than five decades and a vegan for over 35 years, he hosts The Glen Merzer Show, where he explores food, health, ethics, and the environment.
More from Glen
Learn more about Glen's latest projects, including Buddhist Blues, his books, and The Glen Merzer Show.
Website: https://buddhistblues.com
YouTube: The Glen Merzer Show
https://www.youtube.com/@theglenmerzershow
Also Mentioned
Moving Medicine Forward (co-authored with Dr. Michael Klaper) - https://www.movingmedforward.org
Food Is Climate - https://www.amazon.com/Food-Climate-Response-Conventional-Narrative/dp/B09CGL854K
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Can the legal system become one of the most powerful tools for protecting animals?
In this compelling conversation, Victoria Moran speaks with attorney and animal law advocate Vanessa Shakib about the growing movement to secure meaningful legal protections for animals. Through strategic litigation and public-interest advocacy, Vanessa is helping reshape the legal landscape for farmed animals and challenging long-standing systems that treat sentient beings as commodities rather than individuals worthy of protection.
Together, Victoria and Vanessa explore the evolving field of animal law, the challenges of creating systemic change through the courts, and why legal advocacy is an essential companion to education, grassroots activism, and compassionate living. Vanessa also shares her own journey to veganism and explains how it inspired her to dedicate her legal career to advancing justice for animals.
Thoughtful, inspiring, and deeply hopeful, this episode offers listeners a behind-the-scenes look at the legal strategies helping to build a more compassionate future.
✨ In This Episode
How Vanessa found her calling in animal law
How compassion can shape public policy
Reasons for hope in the growing animal protection movement
👤 About Our Guest
Vanessa Shakib is an attorney, animal law advocate, and founder of Advancing Law for Animals, a nonprofit legal organization dedicated to protecting animals through strategic litigation and public-interest advocacy. After becoming vegan, she redirected her legal career toward advancing legal protections for animals and challenging institutional cruelty through the courts. Her work spans issues including factory farming, animal research, and government accountability, and she has become a respected voice in the rapidly growing field of animal law.
🔗 Connect with Vanessa
Website: https://advancinglawforanimals.org
Subscribe, rate, and review the Main Street Vegan Podcast to help more people discover the joy of living with vitality, spirituality, and compassion.
Sign up for the Main Street Vegan blog and newsletter at https://www.mainstreetvegan.com and receive your FREE e-book, Recipes to Help You Age Like a Yogi.
And become an insider by joining the Main Street Vegan Podcast Listeners Group on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/207997266555049
**Complement are supplements made by vegans, Pamela Fergusson, RD, PhD, Matt Frazier, and Joel Kahn, MD, to enhance diet. Check out their new product Sulfora HERE, and enter 'MAINSTREET' in the discount box to save yourself 10%.

Why do people who care deeply about compassion sometimes struggle to extend that compassion to one another?
In this thoughtful and timely conversation, I speak with psychologist, author and founder Dr. Melanie Joy about one of the most challenging issues facing advocacy movements today: infighting. Drawing on decades of research into psychology, communication, and social change, Melanie explores why passionate people can become divided and what we can do to foster greater understanding, effectiveness, and unity.
Together, myself and Melanie discuss the role of moral outrage in activism, the limits of shame as a tool for change, and the importance of creating what she calls a more "relational" world. While every justice movement has its own mission, Melanie argues that lasting progress depends on our ability to build healthy relationships, communicate across differences, and work toward shared goals.
This episode offers practical insights for vegans, activists, and anyone seeking to create positive change without sacrificing connection, kindness, or integrity.
✨ In This Episode
What infighting is and why it happens
Why passionate advocates sometimes become divided
The difference between righteous anger and effective advocacy
Why shame rarely creates lasting positive change
What it means to build a more relational world
How justice movements can work together while honoring their unique missions
Simple steps anyone can take to reduce conflict and strengthen community
Creating meaningful change through compassion and communication
👤 About Our Guest
Melanie is a Harvard-educated psychologist and author of 8 books, including Why We Love Dogs, Eat Pigs, and Wear Cows. She is a recipient of the Institute of Jainology's Ahimsa Award, joining honorees that includes Nelson Mandela and the Dalai Lama. She is the founding president of Beyond Carnism, dedicated to exposing and transforming the belief systems that shape our choices and relationships.
🔗 Connect with Melanie
Website: https://infighting.org/ &  https://carnism.org/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/beyondcarnism
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beyondcarnism
📚 Also Mentioned
Melanie recently published A Half-Hearted Death Wish, a darkly humorous psychological mystery about a psychologist whose desire to live suddenly vanishes, sending her on a quest to solve the mystery before it's too late.
Subscribe, rate, and review the Podcast to help more people discover the joy of living with vitality, spirituality, and compassion.
Sign up for the newsletter at www.mainstreetvegan.com and receive a FREE e-book, Recipes to Help You Age Like a Yogi.
Become an insider by joining the Main Street Vegan Podcast Listeners Group on Facebook:
www.facebook.com/groups/207997266555049
 
Complement are supplements made by vegans, Pamela Fergusson, RD, PhD, Matt Frazier, and Joel Kahn, MD, to enhance diet. Check our their new product Sulfora and enter 'MAINSTREET' in the discount box to save yourself 10%.

What does it really mean to live a life of kindness? Not simply kindness to the people we know, but to animals, the planet, ourselves, and future generations?
In this heartfelt conversation, Victoria Moran welcomes author, conservationist, and Kindness Is Everything podcast host Anitha Rao-Robinson. Together they explore the transformative power of what might be called "radical kindness"—a way of living that extends compassion beyond our immediate circle and into every aspect of our lives.
Anitha shares the story of her own vegan journey, inspired by her teenage daughter after watching Cowspiracy. The conversation also touches on her Indian heritage, her life in Canada, and how those experiences have shaped her understanding of compassion, conservation, and our responsibility to the natural world. Victoria and Anitha discuss the many meanings of the word "conservationist," the joys and challenges of eco-travel, and highlights from the AVA Conference in Toronto.
At its heart, this episode is an invitation to live more consciously, to embrace kindness as a daily practice, and to recognize that even small acts of compassion have the power to change the world.
✨ In This Episode
What "radical kindness" looks like in everyday life
Anitha's journey to veganism after watching Cowspiracy
Different perspectives on conservation and environmental stewardship
The influence of Anitha's Indian heritage and Canadian upbringing
The opportunities and challenges of eco-travel
Highlights from the AVA Conference in Toronto
How kindness benefits animals, people, and the planet alike
👤 About Our Guest
Anitha Rao-Robinson is an author, conservationist, and creator of the Kindness Is Everything podcast. A former accountant, she now devotes her life to helping animals and writing children's books, including A Family for Faru, Sari Sisters, and Music of the Bells. Anitha lives on a hobby farm with her family—both human and non-human—and continues to inspire compassionate living through her writing, podcast, and advocacy.
🔗 Connect with Anitha
Website: https://anitharobinson.com
Instagram: @anitharobinson4
Kindness Is Everything Podcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kindness_everythingpod/
Podcast: Kindness Is Everything (available on all major podcast platforms and through Anitha's website)
📚 Mentioned in This Episode
Cowspiracy
The Vegan Report with Rayane Laddi
Oblivious: A Vegan Memoir by Sande Nosonowitz
Anitha's books:
A Family for Faru
Sari Sisters
Music of the Bells
🌱 Also Mentioned
Main Street Vegan Academy — Cohort 39 begins this October via Zoom. If you've ever dreamed of becoming a vegan lifestyle coach or simply deepening your knowledge of plant-based living, we'd love to have you join us. Podcast listeners receive $250 off tuition with the code vegcoach250.
Subscribe, rate, and review the Main Street Vegan Podcast to help more people discover the joy of living with vitality, spirituality, and compassion.
Sign up for the Main Street Vegan blog and newsletter at https://www.mainstreetvegan.com and receive your FREE e-book, Recipes to Help You Age Like a Yogi.
And become an insider by joining the Main Street Vegan Podcast Listeners Group on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/207997266555049
 
Complement are supplements made by vegans, Pamela Fergusson, RD, PhD, Matt Frazier, and Joel Kahn, MD, to enhance diet. Check our their new product Sulfora and enter 'MAINSTREET' in the discount box to save yourself 10%.

Can a person raised in ranching culture have a change of heart so profound that it transforms not only their life, but the lives of countless animals?
In this inspiring and deeply personal conversation, Victoria Moran speaks with Renee King-Sonnen, founder of Rowdy Girl Sanctuary and author of the memoir Rowdy Girl: Confessions of a Vegan Cattle Rancher. Renee shares the remarkable story of how she went from life on a Texas cattle ranch to becoming one of the most recognized voices in the animal rights movement.
What began with a growing awareness of the individuality and emotional lives of the cattle in her care led Renee and her husband to make an extraordinary decision: save their herd from slaughter and transform their ranch into a sanctuary. Their story captured national attention when it aired on CBS Evening News and continues to inspire people around the world to rethink their relationship with animals.
Renee reflects on the challenges of questioning long-held beliefs, the power of compassion to create unexpected change, and the movement she has helped build through Rowdy Girl Sanctuary. This episode is a testament to the fact that no matter where we begin, it is never too late to align our lives with our deepest values.
✨ In This Episode
How Renee's life changed from cattle ranching to animal rescue
The pivotal moments that led her to embrace veganism
Saving a Texas cattle herd from slaughter
The national attention that followed their transformation
What ranching culture taught her—and what she had to unlearn
The mission and impact of Rowdy Girl Sanctuary
The story behind her new memoir, Rowdy Girl: Confessions of a Vegan Cattle Rancher
Why compassion has the power to change hearts, families, and communities
👤 About Our Guest
Renee King-Sonnen is the founder and executive director of Rowdy Girl Sanctuary. She became an international voice for animal protection after helping transform her family's Texas cattle ranch into a sanctuary for farmed animals. Her story gained widespread attention following a CBS Evening News feature in 2016 and helped propel Rowdy Girl Sanctuary into the forefront of the animal rights movement. A sought-after speaker and activist, Renee shares her journey in her memoir, Rowdy Girl: Confessions of a Vegan Cattle Rancher, published by Bloomsbury in June 2026.
🔗 Connect with Renee
Website: https://rowdygirlsanctuary.org/
Facebook: www.facebook.com/rowdygirlsanctuary
Instagram: instagram.com/rowdygirlsanctuary
TikTok: tiktok.com/@rowdygirlsanctuary
📖 Also Mentioned
Renee is currently traveling on a nationwide book tour for Rowdy Girl: Confessions of a Vegan Cattle Rancher. Watch for appearances at VegFests, conferences, bookstores, and special events across the country.
Subscribe, rate, and review the Main Street Vegan Podcast to help more people discover the joy of living with vitality, spirituality, and compassion.