Since going vegan in 2008 Caitlin has veganised her life and at her website “The Vegan Word” where she shares her vegan story. From fashion to beauty to travel, the food she eats to the way she decorates her home, and advocacy to zero waste, she writes about every aspect of vegan life.
Meatless Movement recently had the opportunity to chat with her.
Please tell us more about yourself
Want to live your life in line with your vegan values?
@theveganword
My name is Caitlin and I run vegan lifestyle blog The Vegan Word (https://theveganword.com/), where I help you live your life in line with your values. I was born in the US and moved to London for university, where I lived for a decade. I currently live in beautiful Barcelona, Spain with my dog Benito.
But if you can maintain a healthy diet while also eating better for the planet, animals and people, why not?
@theveganword
I was brought up vegetarian, which wasn’t always the easiest in the Midwest US in the 90s! I remember as a kid going to many restaurants that didn’t even have vegetarian options on the menu, or asked us if we ate fish.
I always loved animals, and cared deeply about the environment. When I was in fourth grade, I did a report on pink dolphins living in the Amazon river and in the Hong Kong delta and started a crusade to protect them. I even wrote to the government of Hong Kong asking them to protect the pink dolphins and received a reply from a government minister.
I started my first website around this time, all about pink dolphins and how we could work to protect them.
When I learned about the dairy industry, I was devastated. I’d always thought being vegetarian meant living free of animal cruelty, and I was horrified to learn about the abuse in the egg and dairy industries. So I went vegan in 2008.
There weren’t a lot of vegan options where I was at that time (a small college town of under 10,000 people) but shortly thereafter I moved to London, where I was lucky to meet many long-term vegans who took me under their wing. Some had been vegan since the 80s and told me stories about making cheese from flour and water (they didn’t even have nutritional yeast back then!).
Life as a vegan in London at that time was great, and has only continued to improve. Nowadays it’s so easy, and pretty much most restaurants in London have a vegan option on the menu.
I moved to Barcelona a couple of years ago, and while the vegan scene here isn’t as advanced as London (yet!) it’s still really easy to be vegan here and getting better all the time. I run a vegan meetup group here and we have a lot of members. Plus, so many new vegan places are opening (last weekend it was an all-vegan doughnut shop!) and lots of restaurants are adding vegan options to their menu.
Want to travel, cook, dress and live vegan?
@theveganword
I love to travel, and so I was worried when I went vegan that it would be difficult to travel as a vegan. Thankfully, the opposite was actually true – I’ve enjoyed travelling more as a vegan! I have met so many amazing vegans during my travels, and it’s a great way to connect with people. I spend more time researching restaurants before a trip, but I eat so much better as a result – and often end up exploring more parts of a city than I would otherwise while I hunt down the veggie restaurants on my list.
My favourite experiences have been unexpected connections. One time a few years ago, I was staying in a hostel on the outskirts of Bucharest, Romania. The owner of the hostel told me breakfast was included and asked how I wanted my eggs prepared. When I answered I didn’t eat eggs, he asked if I’d prefer muesli and yoghurt. Slightly trepidatious, and anticipating a confused conversation with someone who didn’t know what vegan meant, I explained I didn’t want yoghurt either as I’m vegan. He immediately broke into a wide smile and said “Oh, why didn’t you say? I eat plant-based most of the time for my running training! I’ll just make you my breakfast!” So the next day we sat down at the table together and ate a delicious breakfast of wholemeal toast with tahini, nuts and seeds, while he regaled me with tales of barefoot running.
Personally, I think of veganism as a natural extension of a life philosophy I hold, of causing as little harm to others as possible.
@theveganword
I’m so glad I made the choice to go vegan all those years ago. For me, it’s an ongoing process of development. For me, being vegan is an ethical framework through which I make decisions in life, and I constantly refine as I learn more. They say we vote with our money, and so I consistently try my best to choose to spend my money on products that are better for the animals, the planet and workers. Whether that’s choosing to stop spending on fast fashion, aiming to go zero waste or repairing and upcycling items.
I’ve also changed the scope of my blog, which I first started to share vegan recipes, to focus on vegan fashion, travel and lifestyle. I think the areas of vegan life beyond the plate have a huge scope for growth. If you look at fashion for example, there have been some amazing innovations in recent years, like the invention of vegan leathers made from food waste products like pineapple, apple and mango. I remember as a five year old, finding out what leather was and staring at my shoes and crying. I didn’t want any more leather shoes, and so as a child I remember my dad taking me to department stores trying to work out which shoes weren’t leather by sniffing them and scratching them (shoe materials weren’t so well-labelled back then). I never in a million years imagined one day they’d be making leather out of pineapples, which is better for both animals and the planet!
If you’re interested in trying vegan food or cutting meat out of your diet, start by thinking of foods you already enjoy that are accidentally vegan. A lot of the time when we think about vegan food we think it must be something completely unfamiliar to us – but actually there are lots of vegan foods we probably already eat and enjoy, like hummus, falafel, veggie stir fry and pasta with tomato sauce.
Luckily, it’s getting easier and easier to be vegan every year!
@THEVEGANWORD
I remember after I went vegan, my great aunt, who was in her 80s at the time, struggled to understand what it meant and what on earth I ate. Then when I saw her at Christmas that year, she came up to me and said “You know, I was thinking about it, and I realised I love vegan food! So many things I eat are vegan and I didn’t even realise. I love minestrone soup, pasta with marinara sauce, and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches…”
Next, try some easy swaps (and it’s getting easier all the time since so many supermarkets stock vegan products these days). Think of some dishes you love that could be made vegan with one simple swap. For example, you could make a baked potato and top it with vegan margarine instead of butter, or you could make your spaghetti bolognese with meat-free mince.
The internet is a great resource for vegan recipes once you’re ready to move on to more complex vegan dishes. You can find a vegan version of pretty much everything online. Follow some vegan blogs or Instagrams for inspiration. Soon you’ll see it’s easy being vegan! (And you won’t miss any of your favourites.)
For me, veganism touches many aspects of my life.
@theveganword
The most important thing in my opinion is social connections. Before going vegan, I assumed the hardest thing about it would be finding a replacement for cheese. That part was easy! Time and time again I’ve been told by new vegans that the hardest thing for them was dealing with friends and family.
When I volunteered with a month-long vegan challenge in London as a vegan mentor, this is what I heard most often from people. That’s why I always recommend making vegan friends, whether that’s in your community (check for vegan meetups or groups) or online (try vegan groups on Facebook, follow other vegans on Instagram or TikTok etc). It’s so helpful to have support, get advice and have a place to ask questions. If possible, definitely try to connect with vegetarians and vegans or vegan-curious friends locally, because that way you can cook together, have potlucks or try out restaurants together.
Even if you don’t live in a vegan-friendly area, don’t fear
@THEVEGANWORD
Be sure to communicate that you’re vegan well in advance of any dinner parties or holiday meals. Tell the host in advance and offer to bring a vegan dish if appropriate. Be sure to bring extra to share because I find people are always curious about vegan food – and this can be a great opportunity to show how tasty vegan food is (you’d be surprised how effective delicious vegan food can be as vegan outreach/activism).
If you’re uncomfortable eating a holiday meal that features turkey as a centrepiece, make sure to talk that over with your host too. Could you sit at a different table or section of the table, away from the meat, or would they consider having a meat-free meal? You might be surprised – last year, 20% of Brits said they’d serve an all-vegan Christmas dinner for everyone if one of their guests was vegan! (Source: https://www.veganfoodandliving.com/news/brits-serve-vegan-christmas-dinner/)
And lastly, enjoy it. There are so many delicious vegan foods out there waiting for you to discover them.
theveganword
Caitlin
🌱 🌎🍴Helping you design your life in line with your vegan values
✈️ Vegan travel & food
🐶 Vegan dog
🏛 London / 🌴Barcelona
👇 Vegan lifestyle blog 👇
theveganword.com/sm-optin
all images courtesy of @theveganword