On 18 April (Tuesday), the third international meeting was held as part of the Green Advocacy Academy, a pilot project co-funded by the European Union. A group of 50 people from Poland and Finland took part in a panel entitled „Bringing food system transition at the local level”. On the part of the expert speakers, the participants were:

• Anita Krajnc – Co-Founder of Toronto Pig Save and the Executive Director of the Animal Save Movement. Anita helps coordinate global campaigns such as the Plant Based Treaty. Anita received her Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Toronto, is a staunch follower of Leo Tolstoy, Mahatma Gandhi and Cesar Chavez. Anita has also been an assistant professor at Queen’s University (Ontario), where she has taught university courses on social movement strategies and tactics.
• Olli Puumalainen – Helsinki-based changemaker with expertise in peacebuilding and security. He played a key role in establishing „a vegetable day” in the Finnish army, bringing at least one compulsory plant-based diet day to the life of young army servants. 
• Joana Oliveira – Vice-President and Campaign Manager of the Portuguese Vegetarian Association (AVP). She has been in the coordination and development teams of many projects and campaigns such as: “Green Protein”, a policy-oriented project that aims to promote a shift towards a more sustainable food system in Portugal; “Canteens’ Vegetarian Option”, an analysis on the reality of the behaviors and perceptions of Portuguese citizens concerning plant-based menus in public canteens in Portugal, and their level of availability.

Green Advocacy Academy is a project co-funded by the European Union under Erasmus+. The project is aimed at people aged 14-24 from Poland and Finland. The project consists of 2 national workshops, 5 international workshops and a study trip to Brussels, where participants will meet decision-makers and people representing NGOs.

Photo: Unsplash