UPDATED below to counter the nay-sayers!!
The World is Vegan, If you want it.
Did you know that the world’s current population of human beings is about 6.7 Billion?
That’s a lot of people!
If only 1% of them are vegan, that means that there are 67 Million vegans walking the earth right now. That’s a lot of people too!
So here’s the deal. Every vegan has one year to help one other person become vegan. Just one. Forget about reaching the masses, forget about starting a movement, forget about all that stuff. Just spend the next year finding one person who will commit, and I mean really commit, to ending all forms of exploitation of all other animals. If every person who is now a vegan would do that one simple thing, then 365 days from now there would be 134 Million vegans. Now we’re getting somewhere!
Guess what, in another year there would 268 million vegans. Just by having every vegan work all year long with only one goal in mind, and that goal is to find one new vegan.
In another year there’d be 536 Million, keep on working and the year after that over 1 Billion, and then there would be 2 Billion, and then 4 Billion and then, just 8 short years from now, there would be a Vegan World, if you want it.
One vegan, every vegan, each helping one new person become vegan every year for the next 8 years.
The World is Vegan, if you want it. It’s not a slogan, it’s a plan.
UPDATE: Some people have asked whether I’ve taken the increasing world population into account in writing this post. I have. I looked at the UN’s projections as reported on Wikipedia which predict 9.15 Billion people by 2050, or 40 years from now.
My use of the estimate of the proportion if vegans in the world at 1% has also been questioned. I’ve seen that number mentioned in connection with a Gallup poll taken in the US in 2007, but I do not know how accurate it is. But suppose that the actual proportion of vegans is only 0.01%, meaning that I guessed wrong by a factor of 100. Suppose that instead of 67 Million vegans alive in the world today there are really only 670,000. What happens to my vegan world plan them?
Well, if every current vegan can convince just one other person every year to become vegan as well, and if each of those new vegans can do the same, then in 14 years there would be over 10 Billion vegans, more than the entire population of the world.
Anyone who knows me knows that I am a realistic optimist; I am not a starry eyed dreamer. But the point remains. Advocacy for a cause is something that can be effectively done by a small group of committed activists who are intent on helping others make new decisions. We don’t need huge budgets, or high profile campaigns, or celebrity endorsements. If our message is a good one, and if our strategy is sound, and if our tactics are effective, people won’t resist. Convert a non-vegan, change the world.
55 Comments
That’s a great idea! I love it and will immediately start to go after!
Have you ever thought about how it would really be if everybody who’s treating animals bad or holding them for any purpose would just stop! What would these millions of animals do? how would they survive? Would they? …. trying to spin that fantasy!
GREAT IDEA WORTH SPREADING!
I could not agree more Tim, kudos to you my friend.
These innocent animals have hearts just like we do. The only difference is their hearts are under fur, gills or feathers.
They feel fear, love and pain of course they do, they are sentient beings. Their feelings are not human obviously, but they are sentient feelings. And no one and I mean no one has the right to put the voiceless through the hell they are put through.
One vegan a year, what an achievement………………….we can do it. xx
This is a great blog post! I love it, Tim. What a fantastic message.
vegansolution@wordpress.com
ROFL – thanks for the good laugh Tim. I remember a little company called Amway that had the same idea… didn’t work out the way they planned. Too much laziness, pathos, and bull-headed ignorance in the human race for something like this to work. If you want the world to be Vegan, you’ll have to establish a world government and make it a law, and even then… you’ll have the “meat eaters underground”.
Sweet dreams, my friend.
Brent:
Rather than laughing at me, you could join with me, couldn’t you?
Tim
Awesome idea, Tim!
Exponencial growth is always fascinating. That’s creative, non-violent vegan education!
Vegan regards!
Tim, I’m in… 1 vegan, I can do that- I hope!!
I’m giving it my best!
I can do that. One vegan in one year. I accept the challenge Tim Gier
That’s awesome Sharon!
I know you are!!
Hi Penny,
You are vegan, and you have hope. Sounds to me as though you 99% done!!
tim
Thanks Pablo!
Thanks Angel!!
Thanks Debbie!
“no one has the right to put the voiceless through the hell they are put through” — you are so right.
tim
Thanks Paul!
I have thought about what it would mean to stop the use, abuse, and killing of all other animals. There would be big problems at first – we would have to care for billions of creatures who are alive and but no longer being sent to slaughter – but the problems aren’t insurmountable. For example, the first step would be to stop bringing them into existence in the first place. No more forced breeding, no more raising beings just to kill them.
Thanks for asking and thank you especially for helping to spread a simple idea!!
tim
I’m in.
Yep and yep. Convert one new vegan per year: workin’ on it.
Harder than it sounds, of course…
Great post, Tim.
I am very happy to say that one person I speak with regularly has considered all the information and decided to become vegan (we still have discussions/differences in approach though) – I’m working on my ability to communicate, so that I can convey things to others and give them the opportunity to change also.
Tim – I’m sure that your blog has enabled many people to re-examine values/actions, and this will surely lead to more vegans in the world.
Lorraine:
That is awesome news, it is heartening to know that when presented with good information, people can change! Thank you for your kind thoughts about the blog, I do hope that it is of some value.
Oh yes!
I’ve converted 2 vegan, and yes they are now very passionate and fired up about animal rights and veganism (and are trying to convert others) so lets hope it lasts a long time. 
Guess I’ll have to find a new victim for next year! xD
The only problem with this plan is that most people will simply refuse to ever become vegan. Also, many people try veganism for a while and give it up.
Great post Natala. What a great goal. I dream of a world with more vegans!
Hi Bob,
The odds against every movement for social justice have always looked insurmountable. Still, change happens and justice ultimately prevails.
tim
I, for one, will never return to veganism. You’ll have to outlaw meat to get me to stop eating it.
I feel so much better now that I eat meat and cheese again. The mental fog and depression lifted – returning to being an omnivore makes me feel like a whole new person. Simply listening to my body brings me back to animal products.
@ bob the ex vegan. Firstly I don’t know how any one can turn back after they know the truth about what goes on. Secondly please look at this website: http://michaelbluejay.com/veg/natural.html. which highlights how unhealthy eating animal products is. Out of all the them, eating dairy products is extremely un-natural and one of the most unhealthiest things you can consume. Did you not eat a balanced diet when you were vegan? The other possibility is that the products you were consuming didn’t contain the right levels of certain vitamins or minerals due to where or how they were grown. I always taken a veg1 a day just to make sure I’m getting the right intake of vitamins and minerals and it’s a much more compassionate and environmentally friendly way to do so.
Am working on the vegan converting Tim. At least three people have turned vegan in the past two years due to the information I have provided them with, and now my dad has told me he is gradually making the transition because he can’t see a valid argument against it. I am a very proud daughter
Hi Kiwi!
Getting your dad to see that there isn’t a valid argument against it is fantastic!! Thank you so much for sharing your story, it gives me hope!
tim
Hi Bob:
I cannot discount what you say your own experiences are, only you can know that. I would ask you though to consider not only what is at stake for yourself in this, but what is at stake in the others lives as well. Other animals have lives that they want to live, and they assuredly don’t want to listen to their own bodies as they are sent to slaughter. If you consider at all the interests which other animals have, I’d encourage you to see a nutritionist or a dietitian who fully understand a plant-based diet to see if you can be vegan and healthy at the same time.
Thanks for your comments,
tim
Thanks again Tim
I got really down recently, as my neice who turned Vegan around 8 years ago (about 4 yrs after me) & who was extremely passionate about it, told me on the 31st August this year that she was no longer Vegan (while she was chomping on a nasty cream cake)… I really could’ve cried, for the animals & for my neice :’(
I must admit I asked my neice (she’s 23) how it’s possible to un-learn what she already knows, she looked embarrassed & said nothing.
In the 12 or so yrs that I’ve been Vegan I’ve helped convert around 5 non-vegans to Veganism (maybe more), it’s probably impossible to know how many non-vegans I’ve helped convert but I’ll never stop promoting Veganism in my life (in a peaceful, non preachy way).
@bobtheexvegan How can you sacrifice the lives of innocent animals to gratify your base desires. You can live a healthy life as a vegan – you may need to work on your diet some. The animals will thank you for your efforts.
In addition, Jesus was quite clear in the Essene Gospel of Peace that a vegan diet is the ideal diet. Do you really want to be a slave of Satan and punished for the suffering you are imposing on the voiceless innocent animals by eating meat and dairy?
Plus think of the health implications (do you really want cancer and heart disease) and environmental implications of eating meat (environmental devastation and starvation.) You are destroying your health, the planet, and your soul – all for the taste of a slab of dead rotting flesh.
All we really need to do is convert maybe half or 60% of the world to veganism. Then we simply elect officials who will give animals the legal rights they deserve, thereby outlawing animal exploitation. Those who will not voluntarily become vegan will become vegan whether they like it or not. If they continue to exploit animals, they’ll end up in prison eating a vegan diet.
If we can get most people, then we’ve won over the few who will continue to resist the message.
Hi there!
That’s very true, and the laws will follow once the hearts and minds of the majority have changed. Good point!
tim
Good god, I suck at math, so don’t laugh at me here. What about – for every vegan that is converted or made – all of the omnivores that are born and not converted or made? If omnivores were the ongoing majority, that is. If you get one person to go vegan, but with that 100 go or stay as an omnivore, wouldn’t the omnivores outpace? Make sense?
Hi Gina!
The population of the world is projected to be about 9.15 Billion in 2050, counting new births and subtracting deaths. If we could double the number of vegans every year, in no more 14 years every person on the planet would be vegan, and then every child born would be vegan from then on!!
tim
I converted TWO people this year. I like your optimism!! Maybe those two will convert 2 this year, making 4!!
Hi Sarah,
Tremendous!! Let’s all keep spreading the good news
tim
Hi Tim,
Once again my friend you have knocked it out of the park! Seriously, this is a GREAT and very telling blog post of how *we* can truly change the world into a place where no animal is considered the property of another and equality reigns for all. Thus, of course, I just had to add your voice to my Quotes on Slavery site! You can find it here: http://bit.ly/aBU2F5
Thank you,
Randy W. Sandberg
Hi Randy!
Thanks for the positive feedback, I am glad you like the post. It’s an honor that you’ve included it among the many terrific quotes on your site. You are doing incredible work!
tim
You can have my meat when you pry it out of my dead cold hands. I will never go back to veganism. I will never give up the exquisite pleasures of eating animal flesh.
Hi Bob:
Nice try, but if you think your comment will illicit an angry retort from me, or if instead you think yourself clever and witty, you’ve failed on those and any other counts. It’s a sad and pitiful thing to have said Bob, and I can only imagine the pain and fear your head and heart must harbor.
tim.
Yeah, Bob, take your negative, hateful comments elsewhere! Noone here wants to get dragged into this. Great post as usual, Tim.
It is true. I am afraid. Afraid that you vegans will attain the majority and then take away my meat by legal means.
Hey Bob,
Your voice just got added to Quotes on Slavery: http://bit.ly/aBU2F5
Thanks,
Randy W. Sandberg
Bob, I think someone forgot (better, burned down) his homework about nutrition… You described some of the symptoms that affect many B12-deficient vegetarians and vegans – the same ones described by that other ex-vegan guy at the “Let Them Eat Meat” blog. That guy also didn’t care about B12 (or any other nutrient by the way) nor took a single blood test to see what was going on. Very, very smart decision…
Read his interview with dietitian Jack Norris where he spilled the beans:
http://letthemeatmeat.com/post/938318830/interview-with-a-vegan-jack-norris-rd
Yeah, sure, veganism was the root of his health problems and not his total carelessness about nutrition. And I’m betting you, Bob, are in the same boat.
I suppose I should be honoured.
Great idea Tim. I’ve unintentionally converted 3 people to vegetarianism. Veganism is another story…
BIG IDEA!
Vegan regards!
http://www.RespuestasVeganas.Org
I’ve created a Facebook ‘event’: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=229608420386780
Thanks Matt!
That’s an excellent idea!
I will be shocked if this post sticks. 90% of all Vegans quit within 8 years that’s more like the true statistic!! You couldn’t convert me if I got paid for it!! It’s not a healthy lifestyle, it’s deficient in nutrients, and basic needs as a human!! WE are meant to consume fat and meat from animals! It’s in our DNA!! I’m quite the happy Omnivore and we we don’t need campaigns, rallies, hatred to get people to convert to live a Primal lifestyle! Vegans who are sick and getting diseases such as diabetes and obesity, and are allergic as celiac cannot eat grains. If Vegan life is so healthy, why do you get these diseases?? I probably eat more vegetables than most vegans because you all spend your days eating fake MEATS and processed foods containing soy that make you sick! 90% of all soybeans produced are Genetically Modified! You eat pesticide laced foods all day long!! No wonder you’re deficient in B12!! Guess where B12 comes from…yep, Animals!! Just eat animals, and many of your problems you suffer from will go away!! It really is that simple!! No hatred, no animosity, I don’t hate you for your choice, I eat to live! You find me one vegan who has CURED T2 DIABETES!! I know hundreds of Primal Omnivores that have myself included! Have a super day…I’m off to have my organically fed humanely treated happy steak and bacon for breakfast!!
Tried veg, lasted two weeks. Felt completely unnatural. Even more unnatural, eating things that were made to look like meat, but was made from beans. What is the point of not eating meat, but eating something that LOOKS like it, and tries to mimic it’s texture? Nothing can replace a good, bloody chunk of cow.
I’m sorry guys…..I know that a lot of people become vegetarians or Vegan for the moral/ethical reasons, and I can respect that in a way…..but to preach Veganism for health reasons, or to make it a goal to turn the whole world Vegan just isn’t correct, fair or realistic. A person can never be as truly healthy and thriving on a Vegan diet, like they can if the eat something like the Paleo diet.
The Paleo diet includes only ethically treated and slaughtered meats, organic vegetables and fruits,and no processed junk food. If a person likes to eat meat, but is worried about the unethical treatment of animals, Paleo is definitely the healthy alternative.
Like the model Tim ! An important assumption in the model is that every new person who adopts Veganism is equally committed to spreading the message.
The 1 % is in America and its from Vegetarian Resource Group- which hasnt published how they obtained that. What they did published is that the 1% is not actually vegan but a diet without animal products except honey. Nothing about anything else but diet. This is a really myopic vision of veganism for starters but even then the 1% is suspect and explanied coiuld be smaller. The US is not the world so to extrapolate 1% to the world is ridiculous. I been vegan for over 8 years and only one person – a teen that was already considering it changed to veganism because i discuss it and promote it to everyone. Pamphlets finish in the bin. WAKE UP
Hi Bob, I am quite awake, thank you. You may notice, if you care to read closely, that I do not suppose that a vegan world in 8 years is something that we will actually achieve. Rather, the post simply points out what would happen if it were possible for things to unfold as I imagine they could. It is logically possible, although practically not. Thanks for your comment.
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[...] Oui, évidemment !, me répondez-vous. Alors sachez qu’il ne tient qu’à vous de faire que cela change. Comment ? En convaincant une seule et unique personne par an. Une personne que vous allez accompagner, guider, une personne qui découvrira grâce à vous les avantages de l’alimentation végétalienne et du mode de vie vegan. Si chaque vegan met ceci en pratique, le monde sera vegan… dans 8 ans. C’est en tout cas le calcul fait par Tip Gier sur son blog : [...]
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