Community Spotlight

100 Episodes: Our Vegan Origin Story

Sean A. Russell marks 100 straight days of the Vegans Explore Podcast, launched November 1, 2025, by sharing his own vegan origin story for the first time on the show.

Vegans Explore Podcast

Episode 100 · Feb 8, 2026 · 14 min

Open on the show page Every episode

Two False Starts Before It Stuck

Russell first went vegan in 2008, by his own account largely to be able to say he was vegan, and slid back into old habits within a year, including during a 2009 trip to LA where he couldn't find the transitional foods he was used to. He tried again in 2013, this time building the community he couldn't find rather than waiting for one, which became SoFlo Vegans, a name that nearly launched as "Vegan Cartel" before the domain fell through, and later grew into Vegans Explore.

Finding a Big Enough Why

Russell's takeaway from both attempts: going vegan for the animals, an ethical why bigger than personal convenience, tends to stick longer than going vegan for reasons that fade once comfort creeps back in. That same principle is what he credits for sustaining a daily podcast for 100 straight days without a missed day.

Podcast has run daily without a missed day since November 1, 2025
SoFlo Vegans almost launched under the name "Vegan Cartel" before the domain fell through
Five stakeholder groups guiding the next 100 episodes: Pre-Vegans, seasoned vegans, businesses, nonprofits, and content creators

Russell invites listeners to leave a voice message at vegansexplore.com/podcast or /contact to be featured in a future episode.