Greetings—currently from Austin, Texas drowning in college homework, projects, and my adult jobs. Oh, how I dearly wish for the semester to come to an end quickly… Although, a few weeks ago I embarked on a weekend adventure to Denver, Colorado to accompany The Vegetarian Resource Group to a multitude of events.

Hi there! I’m Nadely Requena (na-de-lee reh-keh-nuh) and over a year ago, I was a virtual intern for The Vegetarian Resource Group. During my internship, I was a recipe tester by day and a feature writer and cookbook reviewer by night! I interviewed individuals all over the United States, Mexico, Brazil, and most importantly, I developed strong connections with people I hope to have in my life for a while.

Now, imagine my astonished face when VRG suggested I travel to Colorado in the middle of my busy semester! It was an immediate yes—no question about it.

Fast forward past the months of waiting and trip planning, and I arrived in Colorado safe and sound taking in everything as it was my first time visiting the mountainous state. My first to-do in every city I visit is to try public transportation and Colorado did not disappoint with their numerous bus, rail, and subway lines. Rate: 6/10.

The first place to join VRG was at their outdoor table booth at the Luvin Arms Animal Sanctuary where the Luvin Arms 2nd Annual Fall Fest was taking place. The sunny and not too chilly weather made for a gorgeous day in the outskirts of Denver. In this festival, attendees could partake in giveaways and raffles, visit the 30+ vendors, and receive a sanctuary tour to interact with the goats, chickens, and cows.

Immediately, I was astonished by not just the variety of vendors, but in the ethnicities and countries that were represented within the booths. As someone who is a person of color, I’m automatically drawn to things that showcase and give voice to minorities.

My favorite non-food vendor was Yamz: World of Color by Bryan Montes who focuses on Latino community rooted design and illustration. As someone who loves colorful art, stickers, and enamel pins, I was in awe when I passed by their booth to find art made for and by people of color.

The food vendors were also very diverse as well. Some of my favorites included Dos Santos Pasteis (plant-based Brazilian street food), the Vegan Van (one place to obtain breakfast-dinner vegan food from different cuisines), and Cholo Ass Vegan (adding a vegan spin to classic homemade Mexican food). What I loved the most is that each had their own distinct flavor and branding!

Food & Nutrition Conference & Expo 2023 (FNCE) 

The next two days I was an attendee of the 2023 Food & Nutrition Conference & Expo (FNCE) at the Colorado Convention Center. The yearly event taking place at different locations across the United States is sponsored by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. According to the FNCE website, it’s the world’s largest meeting of food and nutrition experts as there are more than 10,000 registered dietitians, nutrition science policy makers, health-care providers, and industry leaders present all there to address key issues affecting the health of all Americans.

I can tell you there in fact were people from all over the world I spoke to while tabling with VRG and in my various walks around the expo hall. From the hundreds of booths to engage with, the showcasing of new products and services, gathering of nutrition and educational materials, and of course, the free food and beverage samples, there wasn’t a shortage of things to explore.

Some of my favorite booths included the Hispanic Foodways LLC (which helps dietitians coach Hispanic clients effectively), Beyond Meat (for providing delicious samples of their ground beef and future steak), and the California Strawberry Commission (for their succulent red strawberry samples and simply because it’s my favorite fruit).

Fun fact: you’re not supposed to wash your strawberries unless you’re going to eat them immediately or else that will break them down faster—wise words from the California Strawberry Commission!

My favorite experience, by far, was viewing the nutrition research posters and speaking directly with those who facilitated the studies.

Vegetarian Resource Group: Networking Dinner 

One of the last events I attended was VRG’s networking dinner at the Rio Grande Mexican Restaurant. There were lots of memorable moments throughout this trip, but something about being surrounded by a diverse group of like-minded vegan and vegetarian people is really comforting. It was also quite funny to speak to people who worked with VRG before I was even alive.

In the end, it showed me how grand of a network and audience VRG has captured. As someone part of the future leading generation, I hope we lead the way to a more sustainable, equal, and inclusive world!

This trip was tremendously wholesome to meet and speak in-depth with people I previously only interacted with through Zoom or email. I am currently in my 3rd year at the University of Texas at Austin double majoring in Journalism and Latin American Studies. I will forever take this experience into the future field of reporting I go into!

Thank you to The Vegetarian Resource Group and our donors for sponsoring my first-time outreach trip!

Sincerely, Nadely Requena

To support The Vegetarian Resource Group outreach:

Join at https://www.vrg.org/member/2013sv.php

Donate at www.vrg.org/donate

More internship information can be found at https://www.vrg.org/student/index.php