You are cordially invited to attend
United Poultry Concerns’ Twelfth Annual Conference
On the topic of
Sunday, April 6, 2014, Berkeley, California

Conference Hosts: United Poultry Concerns, Animal Place,
Berkeley Organization for Animal Advocacy

Conscious Eating Conference Schedule of Speakers
Sunday, April 6, 2014, Berkeley, California

Full Bios and Presentation Synopsis of 2014 Speakers

A Chicken or This Chicken: Rupturing Sense of the Absent Referent
Presented by Mary Britton Clouse, Chicken Run Rescue

Mary’s presentation focuses on the individual animal. The unthinkable numbers of animals killed for food can paralyze the uneducated public and the seasoned activist, but suffering is always experienced at the individual level. Mary will share stories about living with rescued chickens in the heart of Minneapolis spanning 14 years and over 900 birds. Her presentation will teach activists what they can do in their own communities to advocate for chickens. There will be enlightening photos that will change forever the perception that eggs are a harmless "gift" from the birds.

Mary Britton Clouse has served as President of Minnesota Animal Rights Coalition, founded the Minnesota Spay/Neuter Project, Legislative Efforts for Animal Protection and most recently Chicken Run Rescue and Justice for Animals Arts Guild. Since 2001, nearly 900 chickens as well as other domestic fowl, pigs, goats and sheep impounded by city shelters have been provided with with love, shelter, vet care, and carefully screened adoptive homes. Seeing first-hand experience and art as her most powerful tools for change, she has concentrated her activism and art on animals used in agriculture. Fate has placed chickens, the most exploited and abused of them, at her inner-city doorstep. www.chickenrunrescue.org

Food, Animals and Popular Culture: A Slideshow
Presented by Robert Grillo

Robert Grillo has worked as a branding consultant for 20 years and draws on this experience to expose how popular culture shapes our attitudes and relationships with food and animals in powerful and yet often intentionally elusive ways. In fact we rarely look critically at these influences. Over time these messages and narratives from popular culture become accepted as “facts.” Grillo will take us on a slideshow tour of some popular cultural icons and myths to show what messages they convey, how they’ve informed our choices and how we need to debunk them on our path to conscious eating.

Robert Grillo is the director of Free from Harm, a nonprofit animal rescue, education and advocacy organization. Grillo has a professional background as a creative consultant and integrates his 20 years of marketing and design experience as part of his animal advocacy strategy. Robert loves exploring the outdoors, hiking, biking, relaxing in cafés, and creative vegan cooking. www.freefromharm.org

The Humane Hoax
Presented by Marji Beach, Advocacy and Education Director, Animal Place

Marji’s hands-on experience at animal sanctuaries like Animal Place uniquely positions her to tell the stories of farmed animals saved from so-called “humane” farms. The nonhuman animals rescued at Animal Place have been pulled from large industrial operations, certified humane farms, organic and free-range facilities and small-scale family farms. It is through poignant stories of rescued cows, chickens, turkeys, and pigs we find it is not the differences in “humane” or “factory” farms that matters, but the startlingly similarities.

Marji Beach earned her Animal Science degree from UC Davis, and is using that knowledge to advocate on behalf of farmed animals. As Education Director at Animal Place, she has a decade of experience working with farmed animals. She developed Animal Place’s flagship rescue and adoption program Rescue Ranch, which saves animals from slaughter. She oversees the sanctuary’s advocacy, volunteer, social media, and internship efforts. Her photography has been featured in several books. www.animalplace.org

From Excuse-itarian to Vegan
Presented by best-selling author Colleen Patrick-Goudreau

Join Colleen for an inspiring and information-packed lecture that provides responses to everything from “I don’t have time to chop vegetables” and “I tried being vegetarian, but I just craved meat” to “I could give up everything, except cheese” and “Vegans don’t get enough protein”

Colleen Patrick-Goudreau is an award-winning author of five books, Colleen Patrick-Goudreau has guided people to becoming and staying vegan for over 12 years through sold-out cooking classes, inspiring lectures, engaging videos, and her immensely popular audio podcast, “Vegetarian Food for Thought.” She also contributes to National Public Radio and The Christian Science Monitor, and has appeared on The Food Network and PBS. www.colleenpatrickgoudreau.com

Free-Range and Backyard Chickens: Humane Alternatives to Factory Farming?
A visual presentation by Karen Davis, PhD, President of United Poultry Concerns

“Free-range” evokes a positive image of chickens and turkeys living outdoors with plenty of fresh air, sunshine, and open spaces to roam in. “Cage-free” and “organic” convey a similar impression of birds living as nature intended. What are the realities behind “free-range,” “cage-free” and “organic” labels? What are the pros and cons of backyard chicken-keeping? Through visual images and discussion, I will present the various alternatives to factory farming, including whether, and to what extent, they really are alternatives.

Karen Davis, PhD is the President and Founder of United Poultry Concerns, a nonprofit organization that addresses the treatment of domestic fowl in food production, science, education, entertainment, and human companionship situations. She is the author of several books includingPrisoned Chickens, Poisoned Eggs: An Inside Look at the Modern Poultry Industry and More Than a Meal: The Turkey in History, Myth, Ritual, and Reality. Award-winningly profiled in The Washington Post for her outstanding work for the birds, Karen maintains a sanctuary for chickens on the Eastern Shore of Virginia. www.upc-online.org

Going Beyond Meat
Presented by Ethan Brown, CEO of Beyond Meat

Ethan will discuss the evolutionary history of meat consumption, its place in our past and current culture, and provide perspectives on innovation and marketing along the transition path from animal to plant-based meats. He will then focus on broader trends around human health, climate change, natural resource conservation, and animal welfare. Finally, he will provide an overview of Beyond Meat's progress to reach its goal of perfectly replacing animal protein and reaching the greatest number of consumers. www.beyondmeat.com

Ethan Brown, CEO and co-founder of Beyond Meat, grew up with a deep appreciation for animals and the planet. Ethan’s passions shaped the direction of his adult life; with the intent of helping to create a better world, he embarked on a successful career in clean energy. Yet, Ethan felt a need to make a bigger impact. As a committed vegan he often wondered if the staggering amount of animal protein consumed could be reduced if a perfect, plant-based meat replication existed. Pursuit of this goal led to the creation of Beyond Meat, a company with noteworthy investors including Bill Gates and the founders of Twitter.

Karen Davis, PhD	Colleen Patrick-Goudreau	Ethan Brown
Robert Grillo	Mary Britton Clouse	Marji Beach