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North American Vegetarian Society facts for kids

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North American Vegetarian Society
Logo of the North American Vegetarian Society.png
Legal status 501(c) organization
Headquarters Dolgeville, New York
President, Treasurer
Sharon Graff
Website navs-online.org

The North American Vegetarian Society (NAVS) is a charity and activist organization with the stated objectives of supporting vegetarians and informing the public about the benefits of vegetarianism.

It was initially founded in 1974 to organize the International Vegetarian Union's 1975 World Vegetarian Congress in Orono, Maine, which has been called the most significant event of the vegetarian movement in the United States in the 20th century.

In 1977, the organization started an annual event, World Vegetarian Day. The following year the International Vegetarian Union joined in holding the event. The event is celebrated October 1 of each year and kicks off a month-long event, Vegetarian Awareness Month, which ends November 1 with World Vegan Day.

Vegan Hall of Fame

NAVS initiated the Vegetarian Hall of Fame (now the Vegan Hall of Fame) in 1990, which has enshrined 33 activists.

Vegan Hall of Fame members
Name Known for Year of award
Dinshah, FreyaFreya Dinshah American Vegan Society 1990
Dinshah, H. JayH. Jay Dinshah American Vegan Society 1990
Nearing, HelenHelen Nearing Simple living advocate and vegetarian 1991
Nearing, ScottScott Nearing Simple living advocate and vegetarian 1991
Klaper, MichaelMichael Klaper Vegan family doctor and author 1992
Paul Obis Founder and editor of Vegetarian Times 1994
Gandhi, MahatmaMahatma Gandhi Indian independence advocate and vegetarian 1995
Hershaft, AlexAlex Hershaft Co-founder and president of Farm Animal Rights Movement 1998
Lyman, HowardHoward Lyman Livestock farmer turned vegan, a vegan and animal rights activist 2002
Schwartz, Richard H.Richard H. Schwartz Professor of mathematics, president of Jewish Veg 2005
Campbell, T. ColinT. Colin Campbell Professor of nutritional biochemistry and advocate of a plant-based diet 2006
Davis, BrendaBrenda Davis Registered dietitian and author 2007
Stepaniak, JoanneJoanne Stepaniak Author of vegetarian and vegan cookbooks 2008
Esselstyn, CaldwellCaldwell Esselstyn Cardiologist, Olympic gold medalist, vegan 2010
Barnard, Neal D.Neal D. Barnard Founding president of Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine 2011
Diehl, HansHans Diehl Physician and plant-based nutrition author 2015
Schinner, MiyokoMiyoko Schinner Founder of vegan cheese producer Miyoko's Creamery 2016
Greger, MichaelMichael Greger Physician and plant-based nutrition author 2019
Williams, Kim A.Kim A. Williams Sr., MD Dr. Williams is a vegan cardiologist who promotes plant-based eating for better heart health. 2023

NAVS Vegan Summerfest

Since 1974, the NAVS has run an annual vegetarian summer conference - originally for 9–10 days encompassing two full weekends, on a college or university campus (often in Pennsylvania). In 199x the summer conference's name was changed to NAVS Vegetarian Summerfest (with all vegan meals). In 2019, the name was changed to NAVS Vegan Summerfest. During this now 5-day event, the inductee for the Vegan Hall of Fame is announced and celebrated. The most frequent Summerfest site is the University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown (UPJ) in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. In 1996, the World Vegetarian Congress was held simultaneously with the NAVS Vegetarian Summerfest, in Johnstown. Three international vegetarian conferences have been held simultaneously with the NAVS Vegan Summerfests.

See also

  • American Vegan Society
  • List of vegetarian organizations
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