My Experience Speaking at the Rooted Vegan Festival by Kordia Events

Being invited to speak at the Rooted Vegan Festival, organised by Kordia Events, was an exciting milestone in my journey as a Vegan chef and plant-based nutrition enthusiast. The festival brought together people passionate about plant-based living, next level vegan food and animal advocacy, creating an inviting space to share knowledge and inspire change. I want to share my experience of being a speaker. Usually, I’m in the kitchen at events, in the background sweating and working hard, but at Rooted Vegan Festival, I was invited to step into the speaker role. And my goodness was it deeply enriching. Being asked by Olivia and Henry (the founders of Kordia Events and Rooted Festival) to share my passion for balanced vegan eating was an honour, and truly one of the true highlights of my year so far!

Rooted Festival Sunset

Preparing for the Talk

When Olivia first invited me to speak at Rooted Vegan Festival, I was incredibly excited... and if I'm honest, a little nervous too.

I've spent years teaching cooking classes, running workshops and standing in front of groups of people with a knife in one hand and a saucepan in the other. Talking about food has always come naturally to me when I'm cooking it. But this was different. This was my first proper speaking engagement alongside a live chef demonstration. Rather than simply showing people how to cook, I was being invited to share why I cook the way I do.

That felt like a real privilege.

Over the years, my food philosophy has become much bigger than recipes. Whole-food, plant-based cooking has never been about restriction for me. It's about creating food that feels abundant, deeply nourishing and genuinely exciting. I love helping people move away from counting calories, or tracing their macro nutrients/ obsessing over that tired question of 'am I getting enough protein?', and instead start looking at food as something colourful, seasonal, balanced, joyful and most of all tasty.

With that in mind, I knew I didn't want to stand on a stage for an hour talking at people.

If there's one thing I've learnt from years of teaching, it's that people remember what they experience far more than what they simply hear. So naturally, I designed my talks to be as interactive as possible.

I wanted people tasting, smelling, questioning, laughing and joining in. I wanted the audience to leave not just with pages of notes, but with a completely different way of thinking about the food they eat every day. I wanted them to feel empowered and inspired.

For me, the best education isn't a lecture. It's a conversation. And from the moment the first talk began, that's exactly what it became.

A sunny hot day at Rooted Vegan Festival

The Festival Atmosphere

Arriving at the festival, I was immediately struck by the sense of community. The air was filled with the aroma of spices, fresh herbs, and sizzling plant-based dishes. Attendees ranged from longtime vegans to curious newcomers. The festival layout encouraged mingling, with interactive craft workshops, cooking demos, and advocacy talks happening side by side.

One highlight was the variety of vegan foods that celebrated global flavours and vegan chefs at the top of their creative game. Let me take a moment to put a spotlight on some of the standout food vendors....I feel I almost need to do a whole dedicated post to the amazing vegan food I ate at Rooted this weekend.... but for the benefit of this festival overview here are my standout vendors. Amrutha Restaurant’s pakoras, with that mind-blowing peanut satay, were next-level. Chiki Monky introduced me to a Lebanese 4 week fermented and marinated bulgur wheat Keshek El Fouqara—utterly mind-blowing. And the Hogless Roast's gluten-free, soya vegan burger was a revelation! Being in North Devon where the vegan food offerings are spars to say the least, these flavours were a rare treat.

Vegan Bao Buns

What I Spoke About (And What I Learnt)

Over the weekend, I gave two talks, both centred around something I'm incredibly passionate about: using seasonal, locally sourced whole foods as the cornerstone of a healthy, balanced vegan diet.

My first talk explored how to build a balanced plant-based meal through the lens of Ayurveda and the six tastes. Rather than focusing on calories, protein targets or the latest nutrition trend, we explored how every meal can become naturally balanced by including the six tastes: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, pungent and astringent.

What surprised many people was just how simple the concept is. We tasted ingredients together, explored where each taste appears in nature and each season, and discovered how building meals around flavour can naturally encourage diversity, improve satisfaction and support gut health. It was wonderful watching people realise that eating well doesn't have to be complicated.

My second talk focused on women's hormonal health and how we can begin working with our menstrual cycle rather than against it. We explored our four inner seasons and how our nutritional needs naturally shift throughout the month, looking at how vegan whole-foods can gently support each phase.

Both talks were designed to be interactive. From tasting each of the six flavours to rolling up our sleeves and making nourishing date balls together, I wanted everyone to experience the concepts rather than simply listen to them. As people chose the herbs, spices and ingredients they felt naturally drawn towards, it became a lovely reminder that our bodies often tell us what they need when we slow down enough to listen.

The biggest thing I learnt from the weekend was just how ready people are for these conversations.

For years, I'd worried that talking about Ayurveda alongside modern nutrition might feel too niche. Instead, people were fascinated. They asked thoughtful questions, photographed my favourite Ayurvedic reference books and, after I introduced everyone to my wonderful mum, an Ayurvedic practitioner at Kriya Ayurveda, many joined her mailing list, excited to continue learning about this incredible life science.

It reminded me that people aren't just looking for another meal plan. They're looking for a way of eating that feels sustainable, enjoyable and deeply connected to their own bodies.

Walking away from both talks, I realised that teaching isn't about having all the answers. It's about creating a space where people feel inspired to ask better questions. And for me, that was the greatest privilege of the whole weekend.

Reflecting on the Impact

One part of the weekend that really surprised me was the animal advocacy.

If I'm completely honest, it's something I've often shied away from. My way of encouraging people towards a plant-based lifestyle has almost always been through food. I believe incredible meals can change perceptions, open minds and start conversations in a way that feels welcoming rather than confrontational.

But Rooted reminded me that there's room for both.

The festival took place at a beautiful animal sanctuary, where rescued animals quietly wandered the fields around us. Just being in that environment felt grounding, and it was a gentle reminder of why so many of us started this journey in the first place.

One of the biggest highlights for me was a wonderfully unexpected talk about pigeons. I honestly wasn't sure what to expect, but it turned out to be one of the funniest, most moving and genuinely inspiring workshops of the entire weekend. I laughed far more than I anticipated, learnt a huge amount, and left with a completely different appreciation for a bird I'd never really given much thought to before. Even my non-vegan friends came away saying it was one of their favourite sessions. Thank you Little Green Pigeon for one of the best talks I have ever attended.  

I left Rooted feeling more inspired than I have in a long time.

Of course, creating beautiful food will always be at the heart of Vegan-Wise. But this weekend showed me that sharing knowledge, telling stories and creating conversations is becoming just as important to me. Stepping onto a stage felt surprisingly natural, and I came home with a real sense that speaking, alongside cooking, is a direction I'd love Vegan-Wise to continue growing into.

If this weekend was anything to go by, I hope it's the first of many.