About us
The Middle East Vegan Society is an organization with a primary focus on mitigating and eradicating the suffering experienced by animals, alongside lessening our environmental impact through everyday choices, by promoting awareness about animal rights and advocating for plant-based eating.
Our mission is twofold: to expedite and meticulously document the transformative growth of veganism on a global scale, with a specific emphasis on the often overlooked MENA region (Middle East & North Africa). We achieve this mission by actively engaging in projects, campaigns, and creating compelling social media content.
We firmly believe that the animal rights and vegan community can significantly enhance their impact by extending their efforts to all corners of the world. Our dedication is to facilitate and contribute to this global outreach, striving for a world where the principles of veganism and animal rights are universally embraced.
Factory farming is booming in the Middle East & North Africa
Factory farming is thriving in the Middle East & North Africa (MENA) region, especially in chicken production. Despite the global increase in animal product consumption, there's a notable lack of awareness about this issue in the MENA region. Many countries here are shifting towards the standard Western diet, neglecting the already healthy Mediterranean diet, rich in plant-based foods. Raising awareness about the benefits of the Mediterranean diet can combat the growth of factory farming in the MENA region while promoting health and sustainability.
Veganism does not get the attention it deserves
Veganism is on the rise in the Middle East, even amidst increasing animal product consumption. However, this growth often gets overlooked by mainstream and 'vegan media' channels, which tend to focus on their local areas. Our mission is to highlight the burgeoning Middle Eastern and North African vegan movement, giving it the exposure and recognition it rightly deserves.
More relatable and accessible guides & information are needed
The MENA region has a population of 578 million, rapidly expanding and influential. Neglecting this region's habits could significantly harm animals and the environment. Targeting and engaging these areas can bring about a positive impact on both.
Among the 578 million, 422 million speak Arabic, a top five spoken language globally. Content in Arabic reaches over 25 countries in MENA.
Millions of migrants from MENA have settled in the US, UK, Australia, and EU. Language and cultural barriers hinder vegan organizations from reaching these "ethnic minorities." We strive to bridge this gap by creating accessible and relatable veganism and animal rights content for them.
Furthermore, we create guides and content in Swahili, a language spoken in over 14 countries.
Support and collaboration is a must for our movement’s success
We are happy to contribute to the global vegan and animal rights movement, diligently striving to shed light on the distressing realities of animal agriculture and its impact on animals, the environment, and human health. Our conviction lies in the strength of unity and support within our movement. The Middle East Vegan Society actively engages in collaboration with numerous organizations worldwide, collectively working towards achieving campaign objectives and beyond. We firmly believe that true success as a movement is rooted in our ability to function cohesively and support one another.
TEAM
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Seb Alex
CAMPAIGN MANAGEMENT & LECTURES
Vegan since 2014, Seb, born and raised in Lebanon, has a MA in Sustainable Architecture and has worked in the UNHCR (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) followed by a corporate job in architecture. Today, he dedicates all his time to animal rights advocacy and is a lecturer, author and podcast host.
Active in the grassroots animal rights movement since 2015, Seb has given more than 50 lectures in European universities and schools about animal rights and sustainability (between 2018 and 2022) and has published a free ebook about logical fallacies and animal rights available in 20 languages.
In 2020 and 2021, Seb collaborated with Lebanese Vegans in opening the world’s first animal rights and Vegan support centre that remains functional to this day in the heart of Beirut, Lebanon.
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Roland Azar
BLOG WRITING & WEBSITE MANAGEMENT
Vegan since 2015, Roland is based in Lebanon, and he is specialized in Digital advertising management, Web development, SEO and IT.
He runs Choose Compassion, an active and influencing online awareness platform on animal rights.
Roland is active in Lebanese Vegans NGO and street activism.
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Fawzia Jaffan
RESEARCHER ON VEGANISM AND ISLAM
Vegan since 2020, Fawzia is a photographer by profession, she also is a certified yoga instructor, a singer and an animal rights activist.She is the manager and a researcher for the Vegan Islam initiative of the Middle East Vegan Society.
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MINAËLLE GREEN
SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGEMENT
Vegan since 2020, Minaëlle has an academic background in biology and conservation.
After going vegan, she joined a local animal rights group and became passionate about vegan outreach. She has been working in digital communications for the animal rights and environmental movements for the past year.
As part of her activism and to spread her love of cooking, she runs a blog where she shares plant-based recipes. She hopes to one day run workshops in schools and businesses to introduce people to a vegan lifestyle.
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Jessica Ghanimé
OPERATIONS MANAGER
Vegan since 2016, Jessica, born and raised in Lebanon, has worked with the French United Nations as a graphic designer, and organizations such as BETA (Beirut for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) and Greenpeace MENA. She dedicates her time in rescuing animals off the streets and helping them find new loving forever homes.
After going vegan, Jessica founded her own small business, Viola Fae Organics, which is an organic shop completely dedicated to cruelty free and eco friendly products. She hopes this approach will help inspire people to understand that a sustainable livelihood is very much attainable, without harming any living being.
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Carly Dubery
CORPORATE OUTREACH SPECIALIST
Carly Dubery, a UK-born entrepreneur who has called Dubai home for the past 11 years, transitioned from a construction background to found "Not Just For Vegans" in 2020.
With a mission to promote veganism as a lifestyle for all, Carly supports conscious consumers and cultivates vegan choices through her platform, including the NJFV market—the UAE's first vegan market. By nurturing partnerships with like-minded businesses and venues, she expands the reach of vegan offerings, encouraging individuals to explore the diverse world of vegan food and products.
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Gülbike Mirzaoğlu
LECTURES & RESEARCHER
Gülbike is born and raised in Türkiye. She holds a Ph.D. in economics.
Apart from her job as a digital business consultant, she worked with Vegan Hacktivists as a lead researcher. During her time there, she focused on technology and data usage within the animal protection movement, aiming to address organizational challenges and propose practical solutions to enhance the movement's overall effectiveness. Furthermore, she collaborates with Mercy for Animals as a researcher.
Gülbike joined the Middle East Vegan Society (MEVS) as a researcher and lecturer. She continues to work on the cause of animal rights and promote the adoption of veganism in the region.
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Doğa Giray
TRANSLATION & COMMUNITY ORGANIZING
Vegan since 2017, born and raised in Turkey, Doğa has an academic background in English and Greek philology.
After going vegan, she volunteered with local animal rights groups, focusing on street activism and vegan outreach. She started doing vegan activism with grassroots organisation Animal Save Movement, co-founding Istanbul Animal Save in 2018. As the country liaison for Turkey, she has been dedicating her full time to animal rights advocacy since then; along with other forms of activism, she bears witness to exploited animals and takes part in animal rescue and sanctuary support.
Doğa has been writing songs and drawing as part of her activism as she is a believer of the power of art and how it can move & change society’s understanding of culture and tradition.
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Laith Malek Reem
DIRECTOR OF TRANSLATION PROJECTS
Laith is an animal rights and a human rights activist, raising awareness on these important issues since 2014 . Currently he acts as director of translation projects, helping other organizations reach out to Arab, Muslim and other communities in and from the MENA region.
Values
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Middle East Vegan Society believes in using education and open communication to raise awareness about animal rights, sustainability and health, offering support to anyone who needs to learn more about veganism and adapt a plant exclusive diet. We believe in nonviolent, peaceful, respectful and positive communication.
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One of Middle East Vegan Society’s missions is to showcase the diversity that exists in the vegan and animal rights movement. We believe that diversity and inclusion is a strength and this is reflected in our core team. As an extension of our ethical values on animal rights, we also oppose any other type of discrimination towards other humans such as racism, sexism, classism, ageism, etc. As an organisation that concentrates on the plight of other animals, it is important to note that the same moral argument that is made in defence of other animals applies to cases of discrimination and harm towards other humans. No human or animal is the same, but the differences are not morally relevant differences and therefore no one should be treated unfairly based on such differences. All humans and other animals deserve to be respected and live free from harm, suffering and discrimination.
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At Middle East Vegan Society, we believe in the importance of reflecting on our activism, past campaigns and projects in order to grow, become better advocates , learn and fix any mistakes we might have made. We do not believe in spending our resources blindly without ever checking how efficient and impactful our work is and strive to find the best ways to make the most out of our time and efforts.
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We believe in working with and supporting the work of other organisations, by providing our resources and talents to help them in campaigns that help reduce the suffering of farmed animals.