A vegan future?

Can you imagine a vegan future? Or do you think animal consumption is here to stay – that meat is nice, normal, necessary and natural?

Jared Piazza tells us these four Ns of meat justification are difficult to overcome. Matthew Cole and Kate Stewart show how the media circulate these justifications, allowing us to rationalise animal exploitation.

For those who do shun meat, there are social implications, Charlotte De Backer tells us, and Alina Salmen and Kristof Dhont show that these differ according to gender. Matthew Ruby and Tani Khara remind us that veganism is not new, and despite stereotypes, 'anyone can be vegan'.

Plotting a path to a vegan future will help towards climate goals, and Richard Carmichael has recommendations for low carbon food policy.

Here you can find the full versions of all pieces in the vegan special – see the links below. What else can you imagine for our future, and what is psychology's role? Let us know.

Dr Annie Brookman-Byrne
Deputy Editor @psychmag

The vegan resistance
Kristof Dhont and Joachim Stoeber on ideological pushback against the rise of veganism

The distance between us
Matthew Cole and Kate Stewart on how society 'helps' us to rationalise the exploitation of other animals, giving us a 'licence to harm'

The four Ns of meat justification
Jared Piazza on psychological barriers to becoming and staying vegan

Let's meat!
Charlotte De Backer with a history of meat consumption, and how a simple choice to eat or not eat meat can complicate our social lives

'Vegan': Recent word, ancient ideas
Matthew Ruby and Tani Khara on the power and status of plant-based diets in different cultural contexts

On 'meatheads' and 'soy boys'
Alina Salmen and Kristof Dhont on the gendered nature of meat consumption and veganism

The shift to sustainable diets
Richard Carmichael works on behaviour change, public engagement and policy for Net Zero. He tells us how food policy can help us reach climate goals

Steakholders
An extract from 'Why We Love and Exploit Animals: Bridging Insights from Academia and Advocacy' edited by Kirstof Dhont and Gordon Hodson (Routledge). The chapter was written by Tobias Leenaert

Image: Ana Rosa Louis