SLC VegFest 2025 Speakers
Avishai El
Preventing Illness With The Vegan Diet
Time: 12:40 PM
Location: Library Plaza Amphitheater
Avishai El is a 2x international best-selling author and internationally known psychic medium. A committed vegan for over 12 years, she has spent the past decade helping people heal everything from mood disorders and weight loss struggles to chronic illness as an award-winning holistic health coach. Through her books, readings, and coaching, Avishai empowers others to reclaim their health, elevate their energy, and step fully into their purpose.
Amy Motta
Puppy Mills 101 and Effective Advocacy Strategies
Time: 1:50 PM
Location: Library Plaza Amphitheater
After volunteering for other animal welfare groups on the animal rescue side of the pet overpopulation problem for years, Amy wanted to join her education in political science with her love of animals and work on the advocacy side. Amy chose to focus on the puppy mill issue when a puppy mill near where they lived in New Hampshire with over 60 great danes was shut down. Amy had found her passion. She had started volunteering with Bailing Out Benji in 2021 and is currently the State Team Leader for Utah. Her talk will give a brief overview of the puppy mill problem, tell you about the ordinances passed and store shut downs this team has been able to accomplish in Utah and the strategies Amy has employed to make change.
Kenzie Bushman
The Power of Defaults: Transforming Food Systems Without Restricting Choice
Time: 3:00 PM
Location: Library Plaza Ampitheater
Kenzie Bushman is the Education Manager at Better Food Foundation, where she leads the DefaultVeg Internship Program, which works with students to transform campus food systems through behavioral science and plant-based defaults. With over a decade of nonprofit experience, Kenzie has trained hundreds of student advocates across the globe to create institutional change.
Her work has directly contributed to significant food policy changes at institutions including Cornell University, New York University, UCLA, and the University of Virginia. Most notably, Better Food Foundation developed the strategy that led to New York City's groundbreaking implementation of plant-based defaults across 11 public hospitals, impacting over 600,000 meals annually, a powerful example of the institutional change approach.
Robert Cheeke
Building your Body on a Plant Based Diet
Time: 4:10 PM
Location: Library Plaza Amphitheater
Robert grew up on a farm in Corvallis, Oregon where he adopted a vegan lifestyle in 1995 at age 15, weighing just 120 pounds. Today he is the author of the books, Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness, Shred It!, Plant-Based Muscle, the New York Times bestseller, The Plant-Based Athlete, and his latest, The Impactful Vegan, released in 2024. He is often referred to as the “Godfather of Vegan Bodybuilding,” growing the industry from infancy in 2002, to where it is today. As a natural bodybuilding champion, Robert is considered one of VegNews magazine's Most Influential Vegan Athletes. He tours around the world sharing his story of transformation from a skinny farm kid to champion vegan bodybuilder. Robert is the founder of Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness and VeganBodybuilding.com. He is a regular contributor to Forks Over Knives, The Center for Nutrition Studies, Plant Powered Athlete, Vegan Strong, and No Meat Athlete, is a former multi-sport athlete, and has followed a plant-based diet for more than 29 years. Robert lives in Colorado with his wife, Karen, and rescued Chihuahua, Ellie. For more about Robert, visit www.veganbodybuilding.
Lauren Lockey
Compassion in Action: Saving Animals, Healing the Planet
Time: 5:20 PM
Location: Library Plaza Amphitheater
Lauren Lockey is a passionate speaker, yoga teacher, and the co-founder of Sage Mountain Sanctuary, where compassion meets action. Through powerful storytelling and heart-opening visuals, Lauren brings audiences on a journey — from the harrowing realities of animal agriculture to the hope and healing found in rescue and plant-based living. Her talks inspire kind choices for the animals, the planet, and our own well-being, blending her background in wellness with her mission to create a more compassionate world. Whether she’s sharing the story of a mother pig who arrived pregnant or highlighting the hidden water cost of our food choices, Lauren’s message is clear: change is possible — and it starts with each of us.
Come listen to inspiring stories about Sage Mountain's rescued residents, why sanctuaries are important, tips for leading a plant-based lifestyle, and how protecting the most vulnerable creates a better world for all!
Activism Panel
Panel Discussion: Fighting for Animal Rights via Grassroots Activism
Time: 6:30 PM
Location: Library Plaza Amphitheater
This panel of local animal rights activists brings together unique experiences and perspectives. Together, they will engage in a discussion on how they not only adhere to the vegan lifestyle but also actively participate in the public and political struggle for animal rights. The discussion topics will encompass various forms of activism, grassroots campaigns, protests, community building, recent successes in the animal rights movement, raising public awareness about animal abuse, and the challenges faced by activists in their pursuit of a more compassionate future for animals. The panel will also provide ample opportunities for audience members to ask questions of the panelists.
Utah Animal Rights Coalition (UARC) believes that a wide array of lifestyles, beliefs, and opinions ought to be present at a community festival. The views and opinions expressed by the vendors & speakers at SLC VegFest do not necessarily reflect the opinions of UARC or SLC VegFest, and the presence of a vendor or speaker at SLC VegFest should not be construed as an endorsement of every idea, tactic, or position held by that vendor or speaker.