As well as all this, there'll be 90 stalls, vegan caterers from across the UK, live music throughout the day, a Grand Raffle, special offers on many stalls and an after party till midnight!!

Don't forget to arrive early to get your hands on one of 200 free goodie bags and see our special guest vegan actress Rokhsanah Ghawam-Shahidi - who plays 'Leyla Harding' in TV's Emmerdale - open the festival at 11am alongside the Mayor of Wolverhampton!

We hope to see you all on Saturday!

Best wishes,
MVC

PROGRAMME

Please Note: The times given are subject to change.

Cookery Demos & Yoga Workshop
Mezz Lounge (on 2nd floor, lift available)

11.30am - 12.10pm - Cookery Demo 1 - Simple Healthy Lunch Ideas
With Birgit Kehrer of Birmingham based ChangeKitchen CIC. Birgit is a veggie/vegan event caterer & healthy eating/living trainer. See her website www.changekitchen.co.uk


12.30pm - 1.20pm - Cookery Demo 2 - Pumpkins Galore: Celebrate the autumn harvest. Warming recipes for cold dark evenings, using pumpkins and seasonal squashes
With Liz Hughes. Originally from Wolverhampton, Liz was trained by the Cordon Vert School at the Vegetarian Society. She runs Our Lizzy Cookery which is small cookery school based in Malvern, Worcestershire. She is a keen vegan cook and teaches a variety of courses see www.ourlizzy.com
Lizzy will demonstrate how to make a warming Veggie Sausage and Pumpkin Casserole, a perfect Butternut Squash Risotto, and a simple Thai Green Curry with tofu and pumpkin.


1.40pm - 2.40pm - Cookery Demo 3 - Raw Vegan Magic!
With Marketa Rozsypalova, Editor of the Tree of Life Holistic Health Magazine & Raw Food Expert www.treeoflifemagazine.co.uk
To prepare raw vegan food is fun, simple & great for your well-being. Your body, mind and soul will love it! Learn how to bring the radiant energy, superhealth and delicious tastes of raw vegan food into your daily life.


2.50pm - 3.50pm - Cookery Demo 4 - Autumn's ripe with opportunities - Learn how to cook warming Indian Vegan meals
With Anita Sharma-James of The Spice Trade Indian Cookery School, based in Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, see www.thespicetrade.co.uk
Anita will demonstrate how to create fabulous healthy Indian vegan food using local ingredients:
Cauliflower kofta curry - Sublime cauliflower dumplings (koftas) cooked in a tomato, ginger, garlic and chillisauce -a nod to beleaguered cauliflower growers Tamarind tofu and pepper curry - A tangy, wonderfully aromatic and warming way to cook tofu using Anita's signature sauce.


4pm - 5pm - Yoga Workshop
With Yoga in Daily Life (Birmingham branch) www.yogaindailylife.org.uk
In our hectic modern world many people are taking 'time out' to practice yoga - a system of philosophy that originated in India 5,000 years ago. Everyone can practice yoga, regardless of age, sex or ability. Yoga offers us a holistic approach to body, mind and spirit, which can provide us with the 'tools' to cope with the challenges of daily life. Yoga can also complement medical science and therapy for specific conditions.



Talks & Workshops
Balcony Bar 1 (on 1st floor, lift available)

11.30am - Guerrilla Gardening
With Chris Tomlinson, founder of Guerrillas Of Love and Hastings & St Leonards Guerrilla Gardeners.
There is neglected or abandoned land all over the place. Pockets of resistance have broken out in some areas as guerrilla gardeners fight back to reclaim this precious resource and cultivate it! Following a 25 minute talk, Chris will lead a practical session outdoors, with a tree planting and a horticutural attack! For further info on guerrilla gardening see www.guerrillagardening.org


12 noon - 12.50pm - Vegan Nutrition
With Amanda Baker, PR & media officer for The Vegan Society
Veganism is not only great for animals and the planet - a well balanced vegan diet is the healthiest there is - for children as well as for adults. Vegans live longer and suffer less from diseases such as hypertension, obesity, coronary artery disease, certain kinds of cancer and diabetes. But as with all diets, nutritional balance is important. Whether you`re already vegan, an aspiring vegan or just vegan curious, this talk will tell you how to avoid the pitfalls and obtain an optimum healthy diet.


1pm - 1.50pm - Going Vegan
With Rob Jackson, education officer for The Vegan Society
Starting with a brief introduction to some of the most pressing vegan issues to remind you why you should go vegan. Then, there`ll be a look at some of the easy substitutes for things people usually miss when they go vegan, to help you ease into it. And finally, a question & answer session. This talk will support The Vegan Society`s Vegan Pledge, a new initiative aimed at encouraging people to try veganism for a week, 14 days or 30 days!


2pm - 2.50pm - Friends of the Earth
With to be confirmed, from Friends of the Earth
FoE believe we can 'Fix the Food Chain' without the need to go vegetarian or vegan. They say "The link between factory farms and rainforest destruction in South America can be broken - so our Sunday roast doesn't cost the Earth." But is it truly environmentally sustainable to eat less but better meat? Ahead of the second reading of the Sustainable Livestock Bill in Parliament on 12 November, this talk will examine the arguments.


3pm - 3.50pm - Question Time with Roxie
With vegan actress Rokhsanah Ghawam-Shahidi - who plays 'Leyla Harding' in TV's Emmerdale. Facilitated by Amanda Baker, PR & media officer for The Vegan Society
What's it like being a vegan actress? What do other Emmerdale cast members think about your lifestyle? You're watched by 7 million viewers each week, so do you get much fan mail & attention off set? What's your favourite food? Why did you go vegan? Ask Roxie whatever you like in this session!


4pm - 4.50pm - What can the Green Party do for animal rights?
With Stephen Boulding, who has been an environmental and animal welfare campaigner for more than 40 years, and a member of the Green Party since 1980.
Ahead of the 2010 General Election, the Uncaged project Protecting Animals in Democracy stated "The Greens are the only major national party to explicitly embrace the concept of animal rights." Now with their first Member of Parliament, Stephen will put forward reasons why he believes compassionate people should give serious consideration to joining or supporting the party.



Talks & Workshops
Balcony Bar 2 (on 1st floor, lift available)

11.30am - Speciesism- the Ideology of an Oppression
With James O'Flaherty & Laura Nunez, spokespeople for Animal Equality
A talk about speciesism, a form of discrimination based on the species we belong to, and about the institutions and practices that come with it(i.e. slaughterhouses and killing animals) and how it links in with other prejudices(racism and sexism etc). They will then talk about how this relates to their campaigning as an organisation.


12.10pm - 12.50pm - Compassion, Compassion, Compassion!
With Mark Gold, of Animal Aid
Mark Gold argues that health and environmental benefits are secondary to the vital message of non-violence and compassion at the heart of the vegan movement.


1pm - 1.50pm - Soft Tissue Work - The Secret of Optimum Performance & Health
With Pete Ryan, clinical nutritionist, certified trainer, manual therapist & founder of Vegan Bodybuilding
Pete talks about the application of self myofascial release techniques for improved exercise performance, increased health & mobility in everyday life. As well as the talk there will be practical exercises that will allow you to improve your 'muscle tissue quality' & ease tight muscles & trigger points that can adversely affect the body. Also Q&A about nutrition for bodybuilders, athletes etc.


2pm - 2.50pm - Sea Shepherd Conservation Society
With Rob Read, UK Coordinator for Sea Shepherd
The crews of Sea Shepherd's ships risk their lives in order to defend, conserve and protect the world's whales, seals and other marine life. Whilst Greenpeace ships sail the seas with freezers full of meat, Sea Shepherd is a vegan organisation. Don't miss this opportunity to meet one of the crew members and learn about his courageous and daring adventures!


3pm - 3.50pm - The Power of Living Foods
With Pat Reeves, nutritional therapist, world champion powerlifter and author of A Living Miracle
Learn how nutritional therapy & raw living foods can aid your health & may even save your life! By following a raw, living food diet, Pat Reeves has fought off her cancer & achieved what many of us could never dream of. Pat is a world champion powerlifter and holds many other records. She is also an accomplished marathon runner, personal trainer, fitness consultant & author. As a professional practitioner, she has helped many people using up-to-date scientific techniques. Best of all, Pat is vegan!!


4pm - 4.50pm - Simple to follow health & wellbeing ideas
With Andy Wakeman, a non-medical nutritionist and member of Birmingham Veggies & Vegans
Andy will offer tips on healthy eating, meditation, seed sprouting, yoga, detox, fasting, exercise, juice therapies & more!


Speed Meeting Session - 3pm in foyer
This will be a fun opportunity to meet likeminded people for networking, socialising or perhaps a little more...! Taking place in the foyer at 3pm, you'll have the chance to meet and chat to up to 25 people within the hour. To register for the speed meeting session, go to the MVC info stall in the foyer on the day. Over 18's only. Open to vegetarians and vegans.


Press-Up Competition - 4pm in foyer
The press-up competition is in association with Vegan Bodybuilding The event has both a male & female contest. The event is being sponsored by Fitness Superstore with great prizes from many other companies as well. Come along to take part, or just to watch a fantastic display of vegan power!


Kids Activities - all day in Wulfrun Bar (lower ground floor, lift available)
There will be various activities for children throughout the day, including:
•Cake decorating workshops
•Martial arts workshops
•Mask making workshop
•Paper craft


Midlands Vegan Campaigns
For the benefit of animals, people & the planet

MVC, PO Box 10202, Redditch, Worcs. B98 8YT
Tel: 01527 458395
Email:  info@veganmidlands.org.uk
Web:  http://www.veganmidlands.org.uk