I went vegan for ethical reasons and plant-based for my health. Having grown up with dogs, I eventually got dogs myself. It was the amazing bond I formed with my pooches as an adult that opened up my empathetic eyes to the complex and beautiful spectrum of emotions that animals possess, and ultimately, provided me with the conduit to vegetarianism in 2014. After watching Earthlings, and resonating so profoundly with the message of activists like Gary Yourofsky, James Aspey and Earthling Ed, I went vegan in 2016. During this period, I had transitioned fairly seamlessly from an omnivorous junk food diet, to highly processed, vegan junk so I was a poor candidate to discuss, let alone showcase the health benefits of whole food, plant-based veganism. Documentaries like What the Health and Forks over Knives along with compelling literature such as The China Study and How Not to Die were pivotal influences in my decision to give up junk food, take control of my health and become a “poster boy” for plant-based eating.