We're hosting our 8th annual Vegan Food Showcase on the West Bank of the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, and we need your help to make it happen!

Join us on September 28th for one of the most fun and effective actions we do to advocate for animals: give free vegan food samples and literature about factory farming to thousands of college students. You can help out for one hour or three, and enjoy the food and smiles as we hand out samples to the campus public.

The Twin Cities leads the nation in volunteering, according to a new survey by the federal government as reported by the Star Tribune.

The study by the Corporation for National and Community Service found that 37.1 percent of Twin Cities residents volunteered in 2010. This is higher than any other metropolitan area.

Thanks to all the volunteers at Compassionate Action for Animals for volunteering! It's your hard work that makes everything we do possible. From potlucks and dineouts to Veg Week and leafleting and much more! Your help in planning events, making food, calling your friends, or greeting people at the door makes a difference.

With your generous contribution of time, energy, and talent, we are able to advocate for animals and reduce their suffering and death. We care about the mistreatment of animals, and we know that our greatest tool in changing the way they are treated is our own voice.

Read the entire Star Tribune article.

The Compassionate Action for Animals' Board of Directors is pleased to announce that Unny Nambudiripad will be CAA's new Executive Director! Unny will work for CAA full time and begin in this role as of Monday, August 22. Danielle Smith, our current Director of Volunteer Programs, will be leaving as of Friday, August 5.

Danielle says of her departure, "I have absolutely loved my time with CAA and will cherish the connections and memories I have made. I owe CAA so much. Not only has the organization supported me in professional ways, I have also grown stronger as an animal activist."

She continues, "I hope to stay connected to the organization and look forward to the possibility of serving on the board of directors in the near future. I am also happy to know that Unny, who will be taking over volunteer coordination, is someone you are all familiar with. I believe that many great things are in store for CAA in the years to come."

Unny says, "I'm excited at the opportunity to take CAA to the next level. I've had a lot of fun working with dynamic leaders, hundreds of enthusiastic volunteers, and businesses, donors, and partner organizations to raise awareness about the plight of animals. Sometimes it is challenging to find the motivation and energy to be an effective advocate, but I'm confident that with your help we can make big changes for the animals we are here to protect."

Unny is a co-founder of Compassionate Action for Animals and has over 15 years of nonprofit experience. He has conducted investigations on factory farms, passed out leaflets, has written for local publications on animal issues, and planned social events. Additionally, Unny has led our fundraising efforts for the last five years, managed volunteers, served on the board of directors of several organizations, and coordinated strategic planning and budgeting. Because of his combination of experience and commitment to CAA's mission, we are excited to promote him into this position.

Please welcome Unny in his new role by:

• Volunteering – Fill out a volunteer form and get involved.
• Donating – You can donate online now.
• By attending CAA events, meeting new people, and learning more about the issues.

The Board would like to thank Danielle for her work over this past year. We wish her all the best in her future endeavors. We are excited to have Unny joining us full time and we look forward to what CAA will accomplish in the future.

In the land of cheese curds, brats and Tater Tot hotdish, there is a new sheriff in town. The Minnesota State Fair is including in its annual cooking competition a Vegan Main Dish category. So put down those deep fried Twinkies on a stick and run over and get a glimpse at history in the making. Or better yet, enter a dish to win!

Florence Brammer helped campaign for the category to be added to the competition this year. For the several hundred thousand fair-goers, Brammer is hoping that this will raise awareness to the concept of vegan entrées and to the plight of factory farm raised animals. She is personally offering a prize to the winner- a copy of "The Vegan Table" by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau.

The deadline for online registration is 4:30pm, August 9th. Registration is free! Go to state fair website to register. No late entries will be accepted, so skip, prance, or sashay your way down to the (virtual) registration booth.

When entering keep in mind that salads are not accepted since the goal is to provide a complete protein, just as non-vegan dishes do. The dishes will be judged based on four categories: Appearance, Ease of Preparation, Taste and Texture, with Taste being the most heavily weighted category and Ease of Preparation second.

Recipes should include 12 ingredients or fewer. This does not include cooking oil, garnish, salt, pepper and water.

Entries must be delivered to the fairgrounds on Sunday, August 21, in a disposable container.

To enter you must be 14 years or older, and a Minnesota resident. Professional chefs are not allowed. For complete rules download this PDF, then look for category #1111.

Please take this awesome opportunity to bring delicious vegan food to state fair-goers, as well as showing the fair administrators that there is a strong vegan community that will stand behind this new category!

Simple steps for requesting veg options at conferences and workshops

While finding veg food at events that aren't animal or diet conscious can take extra effort, we've found that a little bit of planning can make everything go smoothly. Unny Nambudiripad was attending a conference this spring, and wasn't sure what the food options would be. Two weeks before the conference, he sent this email to the coordinator of the conference:

"Hello,

I'm looking forward to the conference. I'm a vegan (I don't eat meat, fish, dairy, eggs, or other animal products) and I was wondering if you can accommodate my diet. If not, that's fine, I can bring my own lunch. Please let me know if you have questions. I had also indicated my dietary predilection on my registration.

Thanks!"

Notice that the email keeps a very positive voice and doesn't demand that they provide vegan food, and he even offers to bring his own food if needed. Bringing your own food where there is no veg option can show others that while you are not demanding or hard to deal with you still stand up for your own beliefs as to what you eat.

The conference coordinator sent Unny's request to the caterer, who replied in an extremely positive way by giving several options for a vegan meal including salad, soups and a sandwich, even a vegan dessert. The caterer went so far as to ask Unny what he would like on his sandwich. He replied and gave many options for vegan sandwich fillings and also made clear that he was a flexible, non-picky, vegan eater and made sure to thank her for the accommodations.

CAA volunteer Bita writes about why our cooking classes are so great!

CAA's first spring leafleting week ended last Friday. In just four days, leafleting two hours a day, we handed out over 2300 leaflets! As promised, the individual who handed out the most leaflets would receive a year's worth of Newman O's. The winner for last week is Dylan Mulenburg. Dylan handed out an astonishing 1900 leaflets.

Think you can trump that? Well, there are plenty of CAA leafleting opportunities ahead, such as Music for Mother Earth

On April 7, Compassionate Action for Animals celebrated another year of advocating for animals at our 7th Annual Banquet. The fundraiser raised support for our outreach, education, and community building on behalf of farmed animals.

Over sixty five guests attended this year’s event, which included a silent auction and reception, a gourmet four-course vegan meal, and a presentation about CAA’s work.

The fantastic all-vegan, four-course meal prepared once again by Ciree Linsenman included Granny Tomatillo & White Balsamic Napoleon Skewers Sculpture, a choice of Hot Pink Beet Borscht with Fresh Dill or Tomato Saffron Burgundy Bisque for soup, and a choice of Sweet and Sour Meetballs with Garlic Almond Green Beans or Southern Greens and Leeks Quiche with Cranberry Lemon Sauce for the entree.

Following the meal, Shannon Kimball talked about CAA’s Bridges of Respect program, as well as CAA’s food giveaways and other outreach work. Sofia Huerter spoke about her passion for volunteering with the organization.

We’d like to thank those businesses and individuals who donated to the event:

• Ariel Abell
• At Sara’s Table
• Betsy Born
• Boneshaker Books
• Paul Busch
• Laurel Clift
• Marly Cornell
• Evergreen Chinese Restaurant
• Ali Glad
• jobangles (Josie Hamlen)
• Rachel Keranen
• Shannon Kimball
• Laurel Street Flowers
• Justin Leaf
• Cali Mastny
• New French Bakery
• Savithry Nambudiripad
• Pangea Vegan Store
• Jared Rolsky
• Joan Rolsky
• Joel Schneider
• Seward Co-op
• Suzy Sorensen
• Chelsea Strate
• Mike Tavernier
• John Thompson
• Triple Rock Social Club
• Vegan Essentials
• Wedge Community Co-op
• Whole Foods Saint Paul

And last, but certainly not least, dozens of dedicated volunteers helped the event to progress smoothly by preparing food, setting up, serving guests, taking pictures, and cleaning. Thank you to everyone who helped to make this year’s banquet a huge success!

If you weren’t able to attend but would still like to support CAA, you can donate online.