The month of March is Women's History Month in many parts of the World. We're celebrating by sharing stories of inspiring vegan women from around the Globe!

Prakriti Varshney:

A 26-year-old climber from India, who reached the top of Mt Everest on May 12, 2022 to become the first vegan woman in the world to achieve this feat! Prakriti’s ascent was so unique because she was on an entirely plant-based diet. She also acquired 100 percent vegan expedition mittens (performance clothing frequently features animal-derived materials, such as merino or alpaca wool) and sought to leave minimal impact on the environment during her climb. With her ascent, she burst myths around the vegan lifestyle, and fueled women around the World to do the unthinkable! Aside from conquering mountains, she also volunteers with an animal rescue NGO and uses her platform to continue to spread messages of animal advocacy.

Lelanii Munter:

Professional racecar driver, vegan, ardent environmentalist, and acclaimed activist. Made her Daytona debut in 2010 and from there began using her platform for activism and awareness. In 2012 she had her car colours based on the documentary ‘The Cove’ (a documentary exposing dolphin slaughter) and in 2019 she raced with "Vegan Strong" messaging on her car. During and after her racing career, campaigning on issues such as renewable energy and veganism have been a priority. Some examples being when she was banned from SeaWorld after bringing 33 roses to pay homage to the late orca Tilikum—one rose for each year the whale was held in captivity or becoming the first carbon neutral racer by adopting an area of rainforest each time she raced!

Dr. Melanie Joy:

Dr. Melanie Joy, psychologist, author, theorist and educator, coined the term "carnism", meaning the invisible belief system, or ideology, that conditions people to eat certain animals. She founded Beyond Carnism and wrote the highly acclaimed, “Why We Love Dogs, Eat Pigs, and Wear Cows: An Introduction to Carnism”. Known for her pragmatic approach to activism in her first book “Strategic Action for Animals: A Handbook on Strategic Movement Building, Organizing, and Activism for Animal Liberation”, she sought to help vegans build strategy around activism and avoid pitfalls. Her recent contribution, “Beyond Beliefs: A Guide to Improving Relationships and Communication for Vegans, Vegetarians, and Meat Eaters”, aims to bridge communication barriers between vegans and non-vegans.

Rubaiya Ahmad:

Rubaiya Ahmad is a vegan animal rights activist, plant-based chef, Founder of The Bangu Vegan - Bangladesh’s first fully vegan eatery and catering service, and Founder of Obhoyaronno - Bangladesh's first animal welfare organization. Obhoyaronno successfully petitioned the high courts to update a 100-year-old Animal Cruelty Act in Bangladesh, and turned Dhaka into a no-cull city, while also setting up the country’s first – and to this day, only – spay-neuter facility, which has helped over 17,000 dogs to date. Rubaiya also works continuously to help local schools adopt Meatless Monday and to try and get giant grocery chains to install vegan sections. She plans to focus on legislative reforms in the future and continue vegan advocacy through food.