Take me back home, al!To permit interactive outreach for new and aspiring vegetarians. This method does not require large facilities, expensive equipment, or famous lecturers. The goal is to allow new and aspiring vegetarians close contact with experienced vegetarians for information exchange. Further, it permits the new and aspiring vegetarians the opportunity to express their own motivations and concerns about vegetarianism.
This discussion group approach is based on how two different organizations functioned, plus the natural urge for people to "testify".
First, the Beyond War Foundation, an organization whose purpose was to help people see that war was obsolete and to seek peaceful solutions to potential conflicts, spread much of their thought via small group discussion. In these discussions, two or three people from Beyond War hosted a small discussion over a period of two evenings in someone's living room. Discussion focused on obvious topics and allowed for the attendees to exchange ideas. This was an interactive setting.
(On thing to note here, was the dramatic demonstration of "firepower" using BBs and a metal wastebasket. One BB represented the firepower expended by all warring parties in World War II. That BB was dropped into the waste basket, making a single, solitary "ping". Then, the BBs representing the firepower of the 1980's nuclear arsenal roared into the can. This was demonstrated with attendees eyes shut, so as to create a greater effect. Perhaps something similar could be done with BBs representing the impact of animal farming 100 years ago compared to modern factory farming.)
Second, the traditions of Twelve Step Programs, such a Alcoholics Anonymous, Co- Dependents Anonymous, and other such organizations, have used small, as well as large, group settings for their own purposes. Of importance here, was "noncritical sharing" of members, so that their feelings could be expressed without fear of immediate retribution or judgement. Plus, members of these groups were from all walks of life, and viewed as equal despite age, race, sex, sexual preference, religion, etc.. While this may not completely apply to the Vegetarian Small Discussion Group, these Twelve Step groups may also serve as a model to follow.
Third, and stemming naturally from the previous paragraph, is the urge for people to "testify"--to express why they are or wish to become vegetarian, what their motivations and feelings were. By sharing their feelings with others, there is an opportunity to bond with other vegetarians and foster a sense of community. Plus, some individuals may be in life-situations where they may find it difficult to express their feelings to others or may want to express their frustrations in dealing with others.
The "setting" includes more than just physical location. Setting also includes the experienced, "expert" vegetarians, referred to as facilitators, a limited number of attendees (no more than 8-10), as well as availability of literature.
The physical setting or location can be anyone's living room, as this may save on organizational expenses and may be conducive to a friendly discussion. However, small conference rooms, such as those found in libraries, as well as spare classrooms may be used. During good weather, an outdoor location offering few distractions may be quite useful.
Facilitators should be vegetarians who have a good, broad based knowledge of vegetarian issues and resources as well as having good "people skills". "Tabling" experience would be of enormous benefit here, as this would give a facilitator a good background for issues common to new and aspiring vegetarians. A variety of "specialties" among the facilitators would be especially helpful, as one or another may be knowledgeable in one area while not so knowledgeable in another, such as having great knowledge of health issues and yet not knowing how to cook!
Further, facilitators should never outnumber the attendees, as this may be intimidating and may provoke a feeling of being questioned or interrogated by the facilitators. I suggest having two or three facilitators and no more than eight to ten attendees.
A final word about the physical setting...the group should be seated in a circle of sorts, with the facilitators scattered, to create as "equal" group feeling as possible.
And...while not necessary, refreshments might be nice. Something to drink would be useful. As a professor of Vietnamese language once said, in reference to Vietnamese culture, tea was often served because it acted as a "social lubricant".
Ideally, some free educational literature should be available, as this gives people a "reminder" of the session, as well as providing information for handy reference at a later time. The literature should include local resources of interest to vegetarians, including information on restaurants, healthfood stores, organizations supporting their interests, etc.. "How to" information, such as the "Vegetarianism: Answers to the Most Commonly Asked Questions", is a low cost resource with useful information for the new and aspiring vegetarian, plus some sample recipes. Other information can be had for "free" from the internet on certain web pages, so long as it is distributed with permission of the organization providing the material. Literature used may vary with locality, the "culture" of the area, the "profile" of the attendees, as well as the availability of the literature itself.
The entire session is basically free flowing, with facilitators ensuring that no one topic dominates the session, therefore permitting participation for people of varied interests. Opportunities should be given for all attendees to pursue their interests in discussion.
At the start of the session, a facilitator should offer a brief introduction outlining the purpose and groundrules of the discussion. Perhaps it could be something like this: "Welcome to our Vegetarian Small Discussion Group. Our purpose tonight is to share some of our feelings and motivations about vegetarianism and to share information to make the process of becoming vegetarian a comfortable one. We ask you to treat each others as equals, regardless of where you are in terms of your diet or in your motivation to become vegetarian. While we don't all become vegetarian for the same reasons, many problems encountered by new vegetarians may be shared by others, regardless of motivation. You may point out what you may perceive as a "flaw" in what someone is saying, but realize that all of us can have "flaws" with anything we say, so act accordingly--and respectfully! If a debate or argument seems to be brewing, the facilitators will ask that we move the discussion along or to change the topic of discussion."
A facilitator may start by introducing him/herself, covering, briefly, why s/he is vegetarian, what s/he has gained from it, why s/he is facilitating this group discussion, etc.. It is helpful to note that it may be advantageous to have facilitators who had different motivations to allow attendees to express their personal reasons to be interested in vegetarianism.
Each person may introduce him/herself in whatever manner they wish, just make sure that they do not take too long to introduce themselves, but allow them enough time to express themselves, too (this is a judgement call).
Start the discussion by either focusing on something that one or more attendees brought up that may be of interest (as indicated in their introductions), a topic of current interest (this may be a local matter, such as a new healthfood store opening, or something of a larger scale, such as the latest finding on Mad Cow Disease), or, if neither of these are feasible, start with topics of common concern: "will I get enough protein?", "I want to be vegetarian, but I still enjoy a hamburger?", "isn't being vegetarian expensive?", etc.. Depending on intensity of interest, no discussion on a topic should last more than 10-15 minutes. However, what started out as one discussion may easily flow into another. If that is the case, that is fine, so long as topics can be reasonably explored and explained.
With enough literature available, it is possible to refer to it as well as distribute it during discussion. As people browse through the literature, it is possible to spur more discussion. Always encourage attendees to talk, perhaps asking what others think about a subject--it is a good idea to provide "prompts" for people to participate.
In the end, after one and a half or two hours, start to wrap up the session. One good way would be to review what was covered during the session. Another thing to consider is for facilitators to provide contact information to attendees for further information and encouragement. (However, this is up to individual facilitators and quite dependent on their feelings of privacy.) This is somewhat akin to "sponsorship" in a twelve-step program, but without the intensity and obligations involved in such "sponsorship".