2005 Bulletin No. 1

This is the first update for World Vegan Day 2005 and after already having a couple of meetings we are gearing up to making it even bigger and better then last years very successful effort, let's just hope the gods will bless us with perfect weather again!

Committee for 2005

The committee people are more or less the same as last year. Meghan has now stepped down as Event Manager in order to concentrate her efforts on publicizing the event in all media outlets so that everyone will know about this great day, something that unfortunately time did not permit last year as her plate was already overflowing, she is also organizing the great new T-shirts the volunteers will be sporting with No Sweat, one of our stall holders from last year.

Mark is now the new Event Manager and he is doing a sterling job of that already chairing the meetings and securing the venue (more about that important info later). He has been on the committee of each World Vegan Day so has excellent knowledge and experience of the whole scope of this event.

Leah who helped Mark last year sourcing sponsors has now taken over his previous post as Sponsorship coordinator and is already hard at working approaching potential sponsors, with this mammoth task being organized earlier on in the year it should reduce the last minute stress which left many on last years committee without much needed sleep the night before the big event.

Michelle who assisted last year has now joined the committee as the Raffle coordinator and she is also helping Leah with sponsorship as well as helping Mark source and approach major sponsors.

Pete is back again this year and is doubling up as the Treasurer and Webmaster of the website.

Dermot who did a fabulous job last year organizing the whole bbq area and managed to stay calm while the massive queue kept growing is a glutton for punishment and is back again to tackle the demanding role of Catering Co-ordinator on the day.

Peter Carr who was a volunteer last year is now with us as our (get a load of this title) Organic/Raw Food/Health/Ethics Informer and if you don't already know what shellac is I recommend you have a discussion about it with this great man, he will also be coordinating the distribution of our flyers. So we will be putting out a call to all of you closer to the time when we may need many hands to poster the region.

Jeff is a complete newbie to WVD and will be designing the WVD flyer and posters as our Design coordinator - welcome Jeff.

Lastly, I too was a volunteer at WVD 2004 and have now taken over the Volunteer coordinator's role from Allie who is flat out with life in general so we have swapped roles and luckily for us she will be helping out as a volunteer on the day.

The two who are missing from the committee from last year are Andrew who is spending the next few years in that vegan haven - London, and Mikal who would prefer to attend as an event goer this year.

Venue

Ok, so now that you have a bit of a grasping of who's who and who does what in the engine room, I'll move on to the bigger picture of what we're working on and planning for this year's World Vegan Day.

Firstly, due to Melbourne's unpredictable weather pattern and especially due to the end of October being an unsettling time for weather in general (remember the first WVD was freezing and raining, last years was warm and sunny) we want to cover ourselves for both eventualities so have decided on venues that have both indoor and outdoor access and facilities. This pretty much limits us to football grounds but since we are keen to keep it as close to WVD's birth ground as possible we are negotiating and at this stage it is looking very probable that we will be holding it in and around the pit buildings and oval of the Grand Prix track at Albert Park Lake. Due to our unblemished record of the previous WVD's we are fortunate to be in the good books of Parks Victoria, the custodians of the grounds. So that is pretty exciting and pertinent news for all to know. Once we receive confirmation that our application for this venue is approved some of the committee will inspect the area so we can start planning the layout etc. sooner rather than later.

Public liability insurance is horrendously expensive but unfortunately necessary to hold the event. This eats away at most if not all the sponsorship money and increases each year especially as our number of attendees gets bigger. Soulmama have been the major sponsor the last two years and will be approached again, but due to rising costs we will also have to approach other sponsors to supplement this.

Media

We now have access to an important media guide which lists every contact in that expansive industry so Meghan can now attempt to get the word out to every corner. She will also be targeting the free health and new age mags such as Nova and Living Now, as well as writing an article for Vegan Voice and New Vegetarian. We are also hoping to get some professional photos of the food from our major sponsorship restaurants to complement her articles and entice people to come along. Meghan is also going to write up a fact sheet for all the companies and organizations holding stalls detailing what is and what is not vegan so there is no mistake of them selling anything unsuitable on the day. Meghan is also looking into WVD being acknowledged as a 'Waste wise Event'.

Stalls

Leah has been busier than a busy bee already approaching 50 companies and organizations for donations for the raffle prizes and also to gauge their interest in holding a stall, she will keep working through her long list over the next few weeks. So far she has received positive responses from those she's approached. She is also seeing if potential sponsors would be able to advertise WVD on their websites, another great way of promoting the event. A new incentive this year is to encourage new businesses by charging a cheaper 'Emerging Businesses' rate to aid them in getting off the ground. Peter is trying to find veganic growers to participate on the day, if anyone knows of any please contact us to let us know.

Volunteers

As for myself, apart from scribing this bulletin I have starting compiling a list of volunteers from those who I saw worked hard last year and showed dedication and initiative and new people who I have met through the dinners this year at Vegans Unite who show promise and enthusiasm. The volunteers are the front line for what the public see so it's important that they have the right attitude and customer service savvy. Of course I'd love it if the volunteers can help out the whole day with a lunch break in between, but if not there will be two four hour shifts available. Volunteering is fun though and the day goes unbelievably quickly, so you really have to seize each moment.

The volunteers will receive a free WVD T-shirt for their efforts and this year we are getting new ones printed but are hoping to reuse these ones in the coming years to offset their expense, so hopefully the volunteers will love doing it so much they keep coming back and with their T-shirts. We are going for black as this suits everyone and shouldn't show up the tomato sauce stains from the veggie burgers as much! We are looking at adding a slogan on the front, so Meghan's catch phrase of 'Say it Loud, Vegan and Proud', may finally be realized. We are also trying to get small size t-shirts that are actually small this time around.

Entertainment will be another big part of the day and luckily we have a few muso's amongst the VNV and Vegans Unite attendees, and we have picked up another veg one at a university talk VNV did when he was providing the musical interlude during the break. Also due to the large number of children last year as it is a family day we are looking at having a dedicated children's area with activities to amuse them throughout the day, any clowns out there? maybe we can have Regan McVegan!

How you can help

That's about it for now, just remember to mark Sunday 30th October in your diaries, calendars, ipod's etc. and start telling everyone you know about it too

Belinda on behalf of the WVD 2005 Committee