Our Mission
We aim to build and maintain a supportive community of vegan(-minded) students, to bring veganism to the attention of students as an effective means of helping animals and the planet, and to create a facilitating environment with the purpose of making veganism easier, more enjoyable and affordable. Furthermore, we aim to make a valuable contribution to the student culture in general, and specifically to the student culture of Eindhoven. We plan to achieve these goals through providing education, building a community and creating facilitative environments.
Providing Education
We aim to educate and inform students about veganism, the bio-industry, and the impact of veganism on health and the environment. This is achieved by organizing lectures, workshops, screenings, and providing information. By doing so, students are enabled to gain valuable information and critically assess the impact of the bio-industry. Additionally, we stimulate students to share their knowledge on these topics with others.
Building A Community
A platform is facilitated such that vegan students and students interested in veganism can meet up, exchange experiences, and support each other. A supportive community is achieved by organizing social activities and events such as potlucks, drinks and pub quizzes.
Creating Facilitative Environments
By collaborating with educational institutes, restaurants, and stores in our cities, we aim to create facilitating environments where it is easy, affordable, and enjoyable for students to choose plant-based.
Our Values
Animal Ethics
We recognize that there are several reasons to follow the vegan lifestyle. VSA Eindhoven is open to those that are plant-based for health reasons or sustainability reasons for example but believe that veganism is first and foremost about the animals. Raising awareness about the exploitation and fighting for the liberation of all animals. VSA Eindhoven supports (legal) forms of activism for this purpose.
Sustainability
Part of veganism and avoiding animal exploitation is ensuring the survival of natural habitats and the protection of biodiversity. By encouraging a vegan lifestyle, including a plant-based diet, VSA Eindhoven promotes reductions in greenhouse gas emission, water- and land use, and biodiversity impact. Next to this, the association wants to stimulate itself and its members in other ways to reduce emission, deforestation, land- and water use, plastic use, waste, biodiversity impact, and other environmental impacts.
Inclusivity
VSA Eindhoven wants to avoid all exploitation and cruelty towards animals, which includes humans. As such we reject any form of discrimination in the strongest possible terms and are committed to avoiding reinforcing the oppression of marginalized groups. We are open and welcoming to members of any biological sex, gender identity, sexual identity, age, race, ethnicity, religion, political affiliation, cultural heritage, regional origin, physical and mental abilities, and disabilities. We are actively anti-racist and strive to create an inclusive and safeĀ space for our members where everyone is held accountable.
Independence
VSA Eindhoven is an independent association, not affiliated with any vegan organisations, activist groups, student associations et cetera. This is especially the case for political parties: we are a politically neutral network in the sense that we are not bound to, and do not promote any specific political parties or a specific part of the political spectrum. We collaborate with other organisations on a regular basis, but we do so while retaining our independence. VSA Eindhoven will talk and promote its core values, such as animal ethics, sustainability, and inclusivity, which might be seen as political. VSA Eindhoven may also inform members during election times about which candidates are vegan, as long as it supplies this information about all parties
Legality
We neither partake in nor promote illegal activities. We recognize that legality does not equal morality and that civil disobedience has played a historic role in various emancipation movements. However, this is emphatically not the role we wish to play in the emancipation of animals. We are mindful that associating with organisations or groups that are known for organising disruptive illegal actions (for example blocking traffic, vandalising property, or disrupting other citizens’ everyday activities) may negatively affect the reputation of all VSAs. Therefore, we ensure that collaborations (e.g. organising an event together or promoting an event of theirs) with these types of organisations are neither close, nor casual, neither thoughtless, nor rash, and certainly not frequent.
Non-violence
We understand violence to mean both violence and aggression of physical, emotional, and verbal nature. We do not use violence to achieve our goals, do not promote violence, and do not condone violent behaviour under any circumstance. We explicitly reject transgressive behaviors such as bullying and sexual harassment.
Ā Reliable Sources
To uphold the credibility of the vegan movement as well as the organisation VSA Eindhoven highly values the use of reliable sources. The organisation is cautious when making health claims and will not share information that is not fact-checked or is presenting opinions as facts.
Responsible Alcohol and Drug Use
When used in moderation alcohol and other legal drugs can be part of normal recreation and relaxation. As long as the products are vegan, VSA Eindhoven has no ethical objection to this. VSA Eindhoven respects its membersā right to consume alcohol and other legal drugs as well as their right not to do so. However, student associations in the Netherlands have a long history of enabling or even encouraging overconsumption of alcohol and other drugs with negative consequences for the users. VSA Eindhoven explicitly distances itself from such behaviour.
Official
Vegan Student Association Eindhoven is registered at the Kamer van Koophandel (Dutch Chamber of Commerce) under KvK registration number 85137154.
Our bank account details are:
IBAN: NL91 TRIO 0320 4343 11
Name: VSA Eindhoven
BIC/SWIFT: TRIONL2U
The rules that govern our association are recorded in our statutes and our bylaws.