Visit the link below to read our latest blog as well as other posts on sustainability by AVS Speakers Bureau member Lee Hall! americanvegan.org/sea-life-live-…

Today in 1784, the Methodist Church was chartered by vegetarian John Wesley. Methodism would soon become popular with African Americans such as Philly's Richard Allen, who founded the first African Methodist Episcopal church, "Mother Bethel," at 6th and Lombard Streets in 1794.

Today is the birthday of Conrad Beissel (1691), a Pietist who traveled to Philadelphia to join the Wissahickon hermits led by Kelpius. Finding that group disbanded years earlier, Beissel founded Ephrata in Lancaster County, a vegetarian cloister whose choir, would be vegan.

Today in 274, the religious leader Mani was martyred. His vegetarian religion continued to grow in popularity across Europe and into Central Asia, inspiring offshoots such as the Bogomills and Cathars (also vegetarian/vegan) and remained a major force for another 1000 years.

On World Wildlife Day, the AVC reminds you that your daily choices of what to eat and how to live can have a big impact on free-living creatures you don't happen to see—creatures of all kinds. Remember Horton's adage, "a person's a person, no matter how small."

March Forth and Do Something Day is celebrated each year on March 4. How about planting a community garden? The holiday encourages people to do something new that enriches their own lives or the lives of people in their community. Maybe throw a vegan potluck dinner party?

In March of 1968, Jay Dinshah arrived in New Zealand on his 'Round the World Tour of vegan advocacy. This pioneering vegan lecture tour was part of a global 10-month odyssey spanning a dozen countries.

Poetry/Open Mic Night at American Vegan Center has become a welcoming space for community in a multitude of artistic expressions. We welcome everyone to this event. Free vegan snacks will be served! americanvegan.org/all-public-eve…

Today is the birthday of Lorin Maazel (1930). After a long 20th-century career conducting ensembles such as the New York Philharmonic, the Cleveland Orchestra, and the Vienna State Opera, Maazel in his later years adopted a vegan diet, eventually dying in 2014.

There is still limited availability for the Tuesday 3/24 and Wednesday 3/25 Spring Gourmet Dinner hosted by Carême's, Academy of Culinary Arts! Visit the link below to buy your ticket now before the 3/16 deadline! americanvegan.org/caremes-dinner…

On this date in 1837, the American Physiological Society, formed by outspoken vegetarians Sylvester Graham and Dr. William Alcott, held its first meeting at Amory Hall in Boston.

A reminder that next weekend is the official start of our tour season, and it’s great to see folks already signing up for tours that weekend and the weekend after. Don’t miss out - get your own spot secured sooner than later and experience this amazing one-of-a-kind walking tour!

It's the birthday of Jane Leade (1624), a mystic who brought the ideas of Jakob Boeheme to Great Britain via her veg-friendly Philadelphian Society. A member was Thomas Tryon, whose book The Way to Health influenced both Benjamin Franklin and Benjamin Lay in their vegetarianism.

On National Registered Dietitian Nutritionist Day, we remember the R.D.'s who secured/authored the American Dietetic Association (now Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics) position on well-planned vegan eating: "healthful, nutritionally adequate, and may provide health benefits."

The Best Vegan Cheesesteak in Philly contest RETURNS for 2026! Final judging event, which will be extra-special this year, will occur on Monday, April 13 at 6 pm. Citywide voting to determine finalists runs March 30 - April 8. Meanwhile, start sampling!

On this day in 2015, members of a Facebook group called "Vegan Meringue - Hits and Misses" launched a discussion spurred by Marla Rose, to crowdsource a catchy name for bean water, which had been found suitable for whipping into foamy desserts. The name settled on was "Aquafaba."

It's National Johnny Appleseed Day! Although John Chapman did travel the country setting up nurseries for apple trees, there are still arguments over whether he was a vegetarian. What's for sure is that he was a disciple of Swedenborg, who was understood to be vegetarian.

The spring issue of the American Vegan Society's magazine that was published in March 2001 underwent a name change from its original moniker, Ahimsa (or, earlier, Ahinsa), to its current title, American Vegan magazine.

The Vegetarian Society of America, formed in 1886, had city chapters and was more vegan-friendly than its predecessor, the American Vegetarian Society. At the March 1897 meeting of the Philadelphia Vegetarian Society a paper was read by D. J. Harvey Lovell on "Milk."