These Inspiring Vegan Men are Making the World a Better Place

In honor of International Men’s Day, we at HappyCow wanted to highlight some of the very inspiring vegan men out there who are doing big things for the animal rights movement! We are in awe of their dedication and commitment, which has helped bring veganism to the mainstream.

Meet them all below.

1. Seb Alex

Seb Alex is a Lebanon-born vegan activist who left the corporate world behind to educate children in schools all across Europe on veganism. Since 2019, he has given lectures at more than two thirds of universities in The Netherlands, and more than 40 universities and schools in Germany, Switzerland, Sweden, Denmark, Spain, Belgium, United Kingdom and Portugal. Altogether, he has reached more than 5,000 students between the ages of 13 and 30 with his lectures on animal rights, ethics, and sustainability. Alex has hosted workshops for more than 1,300 other animal rights advocates, has written a free eBook called When Animal Rights and Logic Meet, and launched the Middle East Vegan Society, a non-profit that focuses on growing veganism in the Middle East and North Africa.

2. John Lewis

John Lewis of Bad Ass Vegan is a former Division I college basketball player and a leader in the vegan fitness movement. He is passionate about the health benefits of a plant based vegan diet, and aims to spread that message with his nearly half a million followers through fun and inspiring social posts. As his latest venture, Lewis has teamed up with the maker of the award-winning “What the Health” documentary to direct his first feature length documentary, called “Hungry For Justice.” The film will “examine the intersections of food, disease, race, poverty, institutional racism and government corruption.” Lewis was inspired to adopt a vegan diet after his mother was diagnosed with colon cancer, and he learned of the dangers associated with certain animal products.

3. Ed Winters

Ed Winters, who goes by the alias “Earthling Ed,” is a well-known vegan activist whose viral speech, “You Will Never Look at Your Life in the Same Way Again,” has reached more than 35 million people and inspired countless people to go vegan. To this day, he has spoken at more than a third of universities in the United Kingdom, and at six Ivy League colleges, including serving as a guest lecturer at Harvard University. He is a published author, and his book, This is Vegan Propaganda (& Other Lies the Meat Industry Tells You, is a highly-respected bestseller. He is active on social media and YouTube, and continues to spread the vegan message, offering a free eBook called 30 Non-Vegan Excuses & How to Respond to Them that has been downloaded more than 100,000 times. Ed also has two restaurants in the United Kingdom, Unity Diner and The No Catch Co, which are introducing diners to delicious vegan cuisine.

4. Soul Eubanks

Christopher, known as Soul Eubanks, is an emerging leader in the vegan community. Eubanks founded the Culture Vegan channel, which focuses on creating videos and other media to encourage others to adopt a vegan lifestyle. He has a history of volunteering his time to animal-related causes, having worked with The Humane League and Full Circle Farm Sanctuary. Eubanks also co-founded the Atlanta Animal Save, which organizes monthly demonstrations and “Save Squares,” where volunteers advocate for animal rights to the public.

5. Kip Andersen

Kip Andersen is an American filmmaker who has created and/or produced several of the most notable vegan documentaries in the last decade, including Cowspiracy, What the Health, Seaspiracy, and the latest: Christspiracy. These films outline the devastating effects of animal agriculture on the planet’s lands and oceans, and the benefits of a plant based diet as opposed to one with animal products. In addition to his film work, Andersen also founded Animals United Movement (A.U.M.) Films and Media, a nonprofit that promotes awareness and quality for all life. Andersen was inspired to explore veganism after watching “An Inconvenient Truth,” a film which educates people on global warming.

6. Joaquin Phoenix

Well-known and highly-respected actor Joaquin Phoenix has made a name for himself as one of Hollywood’s biggest animal rights advocates. He has been vegan since the age of three, and does not wear any clothes made out of animal skin; he even requests any leather costumes he wears in his films to be made of synthetic materials. Phoenix has joined numerous demonstrations for animal rights advocacy, such as the one on Tower Bridge in London before the BAFTA Awards in 2020, and dedicated his Best Actor Academy Award speech in 2020 to raising awareness about the cruelty of animal agriculture. A mere two days after he gave this speech, he rescued a mother cow and her calf from a California slaughterhouse.

7. Torre Washington

A vegan bodybuilder who is proof that long-term vegans can still be shredded, Torre Washington is a fitness coach breaking all the stereotypes about vegan men. His free VITALITY guide introduces readers to the vegan fitness lifestyle with free exercises, recipes, and tips to build your body on a vegan lifestyle. And his paid NOURISH nutrition guide and PRIMER bodybuilding guide has helped men and women alike feel and look great. His work has been featured in major magazines like GQ and Vegan Health & Fitness. Washington has been vegan since 1998, and while he has a degree in mechanical engineering, his passion is for bodybuilding and helping others.

8. James Aspey

Australian vegan James Aspey was diagnosed with cancer, and given six weeks to live. Choosing not to give up, he fought for his life and survived after three years of chemotherapy. A chance meeting with someone on a cruise ship inspired him to look into vegetarianism and eventually veganism. His findings led him to adopt a vegan lifestyle, and he rose to fame after taking a vow of silence for 365 days to promote compassion for animals. Since his vow ended, he has been anything but silent when it comes to supporting animal rights. He has a YouTube channel to spread the vegan message, and also travels the world to share the vegan message and encourage others to adopt a vegan lifestyle.

We thank these wonderful men for their commitment to the vegan movement! Do you have any other vegan men you’d recommend for our list? Let us know in the comments below.

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November 17, 2022 (Last Updated: May 22, 2024) By Anna Streetman

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About Anna Streetman

Anna Streetman is a writer based in Atlanta, where she lives with her husband and toothless rescue cat, Layla. Her perfect day includes a vegan pizza, tea and her favorite book, and a long hike. Her spirit animal is a manatee, because they take things slow, eat their greens, make no enemies, and stay curious.