John Adamson is the founder and owner of Neon Tiger, a cool, hip, concept-driven restaurant and bar in Charleston, SC. Neon Tiger is a glitch in the matrix. Set in 2048, when the oceans are dead, and most wild animals are extinct, Neon Tiger represents a beacon of hope, a call to action, and a price we should not want to pay for our taste preferences today. In this conversation John shares his story, career, transition to veganism and approach to activism. We talk in detail about the concept behind Neon Tiger and what it symbolizes, we discuss our experiences with veganism, and our values. Join the conversation! Follow John and Neon Tiger: Neon Tiger: @neon_tiger_ John: @chephotel Website: neontiger.com

Dr. Colin Zhu is a primary care physician who is Board-Certified in family practice and lifestyle medicine. Passionate about the intersection of medicine, food, and nutrition, Dr. Zhu trained as a chef and a health coach at the Natural Gourmet Institute for Health & Culinary Arts and the Institute for Integrative Nutrition following completion of his medical degree. Dr. Zhu is the founder of TheChefDoc website, an online wellness and lifestyle education platform, the author of "Thrive Medicine", the host of Thrive Bites podcast, the organizer of THR5 Formula Virtual Summit, and much more. In this conversation we talk about... surprise! - THRIVING! What it means and what it takes. We discuss our healthcare system, its strength and opportunities for improvement. Dr. Zhu shares his story - what inspired him to go into medicine, and how his unique career evolved into what he does today - helping people thrive. We talk about various types of medicine he practices, and why the intersection where he finds his niche today, makes perfect sense. Tune in to learn more, and hear Colin's personal tips on thriving and living a life of purpose, meaning and joy! Also, check out Colin's upcoming event - THR5 Formula Virtual Summit, and refer to episode notes for a 25% discount code for the listeners of this podcast (thank you Colin!). Meant for healthcare professionals, students, and individuals that are looking for additional resources to optimize their overall wellness, THR5 Formula has 52 experts bringing you over 50+ hours of inspirational, educational, and practical tools for you and your family.

Trish Ahjel Roberts is on a mission to share her revolutionary 12-step approach to mind-blowing happiness with the world. She is a self-actualization coach, yoga and meditation instructor, happiness expert and founder of HoneyButterflyz LLC and Black Vegan Life™. Trish was born and raised in Brooklyn, NY and holds an MBA from Long Island University. Trish is the author of three self-help books: the e-book, Mind-Blowing Happiness™ Guide to Self-Care; the self-help memoir, Thinking Outside the Chrysalis: A Black Woman's Guide to Spreading Her Wings; and the inspirational journal, 12 Steps to Mind-Blowing Happiness: A Journal of Insights, Quotes & Questions to Juice Up Your Journey. Trish has ten years of Buddhist study and twenty years of yoga experience. In this episode we talk about Trish's self-help memoir called "Thinking Outside the Chrysalis: A Black Woman's Guide to Spreading Her Wings". She shares her symbolic framework of transformation of a butterfly, and what inspired her journey. We talk about healing our past, transforming anger, finding joy in our work, alignment with our values, having fun, being of service, and, of course, veganism! To learn more about Trish's work, please visit her site: mindblowinghappiness.com

Adam Sud is the founder of Plant-Based for Positive Change that is dedicated to advancing the research of diet and mental health / addiction and is running the very first research study to investigate the effects of a nutrient dense food intervention for addiction recovery - Infinity Study, in partnership with Drs. Dean and Ayesha Sherzai. Adam is also a diabetes and food addiction coach for Mastering Diabetes. In this conversation Adam shares his story (short version - for full story check out episode #30 from February 2019), explains addiction, talks about recovery and shares details about his revolutionary research related to nutrition impact on early sobriety. Listen to the end for Adam's beautiful and heartfelt advise on how to feel alive! Please consider donating to Adam’s study https://www.gofundme.com/f/6ah8f-infinite-study Plant-Based for Positive Change https://www.plantbasedforpositivechange.org

Hanni Berger is a speaker and the CEO of JOYVIAL, an online network of professional health coaches who help you live your healthiest, most joyful and fulfilled life. She is known for combining science backed data, with her own real-world experience to help busy professionals reduce stress and find peace and joy in all areas of their life. In this conversation Hanni shares her own story of transformation and how she discovered a path towards JOY! Hanni shares her 3-prawn framework for cultivating more joy - monitoring the things we ingest, outer work and inner work. We talk about sugar addiction, stress management and simple but powerful tools for letting go of beliefs that no longer serve us. Tune in to learn more! Check out Hanni's website: https://www.joyvial.com

Laurie Marbas, MD, MBA is a double board certified family medicine and lifestyle medicine physician, who has been utilizing food as medicine since 2012. She is a co-founder of Healthy Human Revolution, whose mission is to provide resources that will empower individuals with the knowledge, tools, and mindset to successfully adopt and sustain a whole food, plant-based (WFPB) diet. She is also a co-founder and a practicing physician on Plant Based TeleHealth. In this conversation Dr. Marbas shares her story, how she discovered plant-based nutrition and how a patient and a divine intervention put her on this path. We talk about the lack of nutrition education in many healthcare professionals and what a patient can do to navigate the system, find a qualified specialist and advocate for themselves. Finally, we also dive in in the topic of "radical healing" - be it from an accident, a surgery or severe chronic disease - and how nutrition, rest and social connection can significantly expedite the process. Tune in to learn more!

Dr. Sujit Sharma is a Harvard-trained pediatric ER doctor in Atlanta, Georgia. He is the CEO at Chuice, an innovative food company, and a member of the board of directors of Georgia Organics. He is a researcher working on a manuscript about respiratory diseases. We talk about gut health - what it is, what can we do about it, what does the science say, what gaps still exist. We also go beyond that - what are the bigger lessons we can draw? What are the principles and made our evolution possible? Things like tolerance, collaboration, diversity and inclusion. Tune in to learn more! https://chuice.com https://www.instagram.com/lovechuice/ https://www.instagram.com/drsujitsharma/

TONI OKAMOTO is the founder of Plant-Based on a Budget, the popular website and meal plan that shows you how to save money by eating veggies. She’s also author of the Plant-Based on a Budget cookbook, The Super Easy Vegan Slow Cooker Cookbook, and the co-host of The Plant-Powered People Podcast. Toni's new book - The Friendly Vegan Cookbook - is coming out next month and is ready for pre-order today! It is filled with meals that will become your new favorites and go-to staples for when you have meat-eaters to impress. Because amazing food should be shared! In this conversation Toni shares her story of discovering plant based diet, becoming an activist and evolving her work into a successful business concept. Toni share her biggest tips for saving time and money on a plant-based diet. Tune in to learn more!

Abigail Oberla, MS, APRN, FNP-C, DipACLM is a Family Nurse Practitioner and a Certified Lifestyle Medicine Healthcare provider. She works at the MinuteClinic where she regularly sees patients coming with specific and urgent concerns. Abby has found a way to weave in lifestyle medicine in very short conversations she has with patients. So we ran through a few imitations on how to make plant-based nutrition and lifestyle medicine in general applicable to most popular conditions, such as diabetes, obesity, hypertension and heart disease. Abby also talks about making plant-based transition easy - where fo you start? How do you plan for success? Tune in to learn more!

Matt Tullman is a Cofounder of Complement, Managing Partner of No Meat Athlete and the Founder of 80 / 20 Plants. A successful entrepreneur, innovator, creative thinker who is “passionately curious” as Einstein puts it, athlete, dad - Matt is focused on creating the best quality vegan nutrition supplement that he can stand behind and is comfortable feeding to his family. In this conversation Matt shares his story and how the sickness of a loved one inspired him to look deeply into what it means to live well as a human, the pillars of health and happiness, and the power of plant-based nutrition. He describes how he started the nutrition supplement company - Complement, the motivation behind it and the guiding principles for the business. Tune in to learn more!

It may come as surprise to some, but Dr. Michael Greger, the best-selling author, speaker and the person behind NutritionFacts.org is also an expert in infectious disease. In fact, he spent almost half of his career studying and writing books about emerging infectious diseases. His most recent book - How to Survive a Pandemic: Overcoming COVID-19 and Preventing the Next Deadly Outbreak - cuts through the prevailing noise and nonsense and reveals not only what we can do to protect ourselves and our loved ones during a pandemic, but also digs deeper into the roots of the problem and tackles the fundamental question: How can we stop the emergence of pandemic viruses in the first place?

Zach Burns is a 3rd-year DO/MPH student at Nova Southeastern University in Florida, a plant-based nutrition advocate, an active member of America College of Lifestyle Medicine, who supports Dr. Michael Klaper on his Moving Medicine Forward initiative, an outspoken animal activist, a writer, poet and rapper... I can keep going! In this conversation we talk about ethical side of veganism, its application in healthcare and medicine, its relation to social justice and COVID-19. There is rap, science, heart and humor. Tune in to learn more!

Eric Leroy Adams is Brooklyn Borough President. A former policeman of 22 years, Eric fought for racial equality in addition to fighting against crime. From 2006 to 2013 he was a Democratic State Senator in the New York Senate and in November 2013, Adams was elected Brooklyn Borough President, the first African-American to hold the position. In November 2017 he was reelected. In this episode, Eric shares his remarkable story of being diagnosed with Type II diabetes after loosing sight and experiencing nerve damage, and then reversing it through plant-based nutrition despite the advice of his doctors. Eric talks about how that experience informs and motivates his work today. We discuss the current pandemic, the populations that have been effected the most, and why issues of lifestyle change, preexisting conditions and chronic disease are especially timely now. The second half of the episode (min 35:15) is a special treat - a quick conversation with my friend and former colleague, Zach Juno. Zach has used the shelter-in-place order to reflect and "restart" his life, as he puts it. He transitioned to a mostly plant-based diet, made other lifestyle changes and has seen incredible results, that not only surprised his doctor, but allowed him to get off the blood pressure medication! Most importantly, Zach has shifted his perspective and abandoned the belief that our genes determine our health. As Dr. Greger says, genetics may load the gun, but lifestyle pulls the trigger. Tune in and please let me know what you think!

In this very special episode I sit down with a dear colleague of mine, Dr. Sharon Bergquist, the leader of lifestyle medicine at Emory, a mentor and a friend. Dr. Sharon Bergquist is a Rollins Senior Distinguished Clinician, Master Clinician, and Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Division of General Medicine and Geriatrics at Emory University School of Medicine. Dr. Bergquist is the Medical Director of Emory's Executive Health program and leads the research program at the Paul W. Seavey Comprehensive Internal Medicine Clinic. She is also a founder and Medical Director Emory Lifestyle Medicine & Wellness. Dr. Bergquist is also a host of The Whole Health Cure podcast. In this conversation Dr. Bergquist shares her personal story and what inspired her to use lifestyle change, including plant-based nutrition as a tool to heal her patients. We talk about the effects of stress and how to shift your perspective and use it for getting stronger. We discuss plant-based nutrition and why not all doctors recognize its potential. Finally, we discuss some of the projects that we are working on at Emory and Dr. Bergquist shares her vision for programs that she thinks could make a true impact. Tune in to learn more! The Whole Health Cure podcast - https://thewholehealthcure.simplecast.com Emory Lifestyle Medicine & Wellness - https://www.emoryhealthcare.org/lifestyle-medicine-wellness/

Christopher "Soul" Eubanks  is a prolific and talented animal rights activist local to Atlanta, GA. Film-maker, music creator, photographer and organizer - Soul uses his talents to raise awareness about the issues he cares about, especially animal advocacy. He is a co-lead for Atlanta Anonymous for the Voiceless chapter and Atlanta Animal Save Movement chapter. Soul was also a key organizer for the inaguaral Atlanta Animal Rights March of 2019 that will forever remain in history, and will hopefully mark the pivoting point of true change towards a kinder world. In this conversation Soul talks about his personal journey - from hip-hop, to banking, to quitting everything and going back to school to focus on creative skills and then putting those talents to speak up for what he believes in - animal rights. We discuss different aspects of veganism, talk about various types of activism and how to sustain the "fire", and mention the beautiful shifts and recent events that give us hope for the future. Tune in to learn more!

Vince Rountree is passionate about helping people with diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol to reduce their dependency on medication or get them off meds completely. How can he do that? The latest scientific evidence strongly supports that the Standard American Diet is the cause of several chronic diseases including high blood pressure, high cholesterol and type 2 diabetes. Moreover those condition respond extremely well to plant-based nutrition Vince runs a business called Eat Plants and Thrive, which creates and markets programs that help people treat diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure and high cholesterol with plant-based nutrition. He is an Emory University trained Integrative Health Coach and works with clients’ one-on-one in groups and he works with corporations to improve the health of employees. Integrative Health Coaching empowers clients to make lasting behavior changes that are the foundation for a lifetime of health and well-being.

Ryan Bulzan is the Regional Field Organizer for The Humane League - the non-profit organization that exist to end the abuse of animals raised for food. Ryan works with individuals and groups across multiple states in the Southeast US, and inspires volunteers to take on leadership roles for THL’s campaign initiatives. Ryan motivates others, fosters long-term relationships, and trains activists in effective grassroots animal advocacy and corporate campaigning. He resides in Decatur, GA. This one is specially dear to my heart. Ryan was the first guests ever on my podcast. Ryan has also been a long-time partner in crime for the Team Humane yearly campaigns that I partake in. Team humane is an athletic devision of The Humane League with amateur and professional athletes setting personal challenges and working to accomplish those while doing so on a vegan diet and fundraising for Humane League. This is how I ran my first half marathon 2 years ago, and a full marathon a year ago. We get into more details on how it works and our personal experience, but what you need to know is that the Team Humane 2019 season is now open, and if you want to support, participate or set your goals and join in the campaign - we need your help. Let Ryan or me know! For my challenge this year I am taking fighting for the animals quite literary. So I joined the kick-boxing gym. My goal is to hit 31 classes before end of year. If I can get 31 people to make contributions to my campaign I pledge to the ice-bucket challenge :). 100% of money raised goes towards efforts to end animal abuse. Ryan has also joined the kick-boxing gym. I think you should hit him up and see how he is doing.:) We are planning bunch of events in the community - we will have sunrise hikes followed by vegan brunches, WERQ fundraiser, bake sales, etc. Hope to see you there! For more information, please visit: To volunteer: https://thehumaneleague.org/take-action Sign up for Impact Squad: https://thehumaneleague.org/fundraise Atlanta Impact Squad FB Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/629223770510472/

Have you wondered about the people behind Atlanta Veg Fest?? (Which, by the way, is coming up on SATURDAY NOVEMBER 9th!!! - http://atlantavegfest.com ) Meet Leigh Saluzzi!!! Leigh Saluzzi is an Executive Director & Director of Vendor Relations at Atlanta Veg Fest - Atlanta Veg Fest is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose mission is to support community and promote the benefits of a vegan and plant-based lifestyle founded in compassion for animals, people and the environment. Leigh has been vegan since 2001, and loves to show people how easy veganism can be. After operating a vegan business with her husband and exhibiting at festivals and conferences across the country, she decided to start Atlanta Veg Fest in 2012. Leigh also serves on the Board of Directors for the Atlanta-based non-profit Tommy’s Holiday Fund, and is in the beginning stages of launching a new endeavor called Normalize Vegan, which seeks to encourage the general public to consider veganism a viable lifestyle option. In this conversation Leigh shares her vegan journey, her creative social entrepreneurship endeavors along the way, and the founding and growing of Atlanta Veg Fest! Tune in to learn more! Links: http://atlantavegfest.com http://www.tommysholidayfund.org

Bobby Sud is a Film Director, Producer and Cinematographer. He is an Organizer and Board Member of LA Animal Save, LA Fur Save, and LA Health Save and Vigil Photographer. You may remember our previous conversation from episode 34, where Bobby shared his personal journey towards health that started in 2015, when he weighed almost 300 lbs and suffered from Type2 Diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and everything else that comes with it. After transitioning to a whole food plant based vegan diet, Bobby was able to reverse and cure his diabetes in 6 weeks and have lost close to 100lbs. However, it wasn’t until he went to the first LA Animal Save pig vigil and met Shaun Monson (director of “Earthlings”) and Amy Jean Davis (founder of LAAS) that he truly understood what it meant to be a vegan. Today, Bobby is deeply involved in the movement. Bobby has worked with Shaun Monson as his cinematographer and producing partner, he has been an organizer for the LA Save Movement and official Vigil Photographer. Bobby also produced and directed a vegan travel show called “The Road Less Eaten” with episodes in Israel, Ireland, and London. Bobby's current project and focus is being the director and cinematographer of the Million Dollar Vegan campaign, which we get into during our conversation. Million Dollar Vegan Campaign is a campaign seeking to raise awareness of some of the world’s most pressing issues, and to tackle them by engaging with world leaders, institutions and individuals, and inspiring positive dietary change. This year they are asking a politician (guess who!?) to go vegan for the month of January! In exchange, Million Dollar Campaign will donate a million dollars toward the charity of his choice. Intrigued? Tune in to learn more! And check out their website! There are tons of resources - suggestions for movies, books, videos of speeches, ways to get active locally, politically and globally, and suggested way to contribute your time and / or money. Links: https://www.milliondollarvegan.com Million Dollar Campaign IG: https://www.instagram.com/milliondollarvegan/ Bobby Sud IG: https://www.instagram.com/bobbysud/ Genesis Butler - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4ptaIDAIlY

Leah Garcés is a founder of Compassion in World Farming USA and, as of October 1, the first female President of Mercy for Animals (MFA) - an international nonprofit animal protection organization founded in 1999 by Milo Runkle. Mercy For Animals is dedicated to preventing cruelty to farmed animals and promoting compassionate food choices and policies. You may remember our last conversation with Leah from Episode 24, where we talked about her journey right after she joined MFA. This conversation is about her new book - GRILLED: Turning Adversaries into Allies to Change the Chicken Industry. GRILLED details Leah’s experiences working alongside farmers and food industry leaders—encouraging change through dialogue and discussion—to reduce animal suffering and shine a spotlight on the rapidly growing plant-based food sector. In this conversation we talked about what moved Leah to write the book, why she decided to focus on chicken and what she learned along the way. Tune in to learn more! For more information, please visit: https://mercyforanimals.org/grilled https://www.mercyforanimals.org Purchase the book here: https://www.amazon.com/Grilled-Turning-Adversaries-Chicken-Industry/dp/1472962583/ Follow Leah on IG: https://www.instagram.com/leahgarces