Last night was the EMAs (pronounced “emmas”, in case you didn’t know), the annual awards gala thrown by the Environmental Media Association in celebration and recognition of those working in film and TV production who are supporting and promoting the green cause both behind the scenes and on camera. Sir Richard Branson and Jason Mraz were both honored last night along with 2012 producers Centropolis Entertainment and National Geographic’s Explorers in Residence Derreck and Beverly Joubert.

Presenters for the evening included Harrison Ford, Calista Flockhart, Kathryn Morris, Ginnifer Goodwin, Olivia Wilde, Alanis Morrisette, Ed Begley Jr., Blythe Danner, Amy Smart, Simon Baker, Dana Delaney, Emily Vancamp as well as Dianna Agron and Kevin McHale from ‘Glee’. Razzi heroes Louie and Vicki Psihoyos also made it back from the controversial screening of their film The Cove in Japan for the event.

Amy Smart and Simon Baker presenting.

It was a pretty lavish shindig with vendors and screens lining New York Street on the Paramount Studios backlot. Tables were lit with faux votive candles, no paper plates in sight as well as eco-luxury gifts and a variety of gourmet and organic foods available all across the outdoor event.

Toyota and Lexus hosted the eco-luxury lounges.

The very excellent Melinda McGraw, from Mad Men and Hank, was on hand and we chatted a bit about how much there is to learn from pioneers like Ed Begley Jr. as well as what she’s been noticing changing on sets in the last ten years. McGraw pointed out that while many scripts are emailed these days it’s still hard to conserve paper with so many changing scripts drafts. Her pet peeve on set? The air conditioning on sound stages. “It does not need to be that cold,” she said. She also noted that she was decked out in all vintage for the evening.

I also caught up with the very talented actress and EMA board member Frances Fisher to talk about on-set habits. She said that because of the largess and temporary nature of film sets it’s hard to know what the better options are for something like craft services flatware. “What’s the impact of disposable plates versus the water used in washing all of these dishes?” It feels like there’s still a lot of assessment to be done on set.

Bill Nye The Science Guy and Ed Begley Jr. both agree that getting out of our cars is the single biggest thing that we can do to help the environment. Nye, back at the EMAs after a few years away, also said that he rides his bike everywhere much to the amusement of his friends. He also has a powerful solar set up at his house which allows him to sell electricity back into the grid.

Derreck and Beverly Joubert, National Geographic’s current Explorers in Residence (definitley in the running for ‘best job ever’) also launched the Big Cat Initiative last night which aims to protect the world’s big cats, starting on their home continent, Africa, but also spanning the world, bringing together governments and NGOs to save these rapidly vanishing creatures.

Along with honorees Branson and Mraz, winners for the evening included Better Off Ted, Brothers & Sisters, The Cove, Food Inc., Disneynature EARTH, The Lazy Environmentalist and Biz Kid$.

Highlights of the evening included a sneak peek at the upcoming 2012, Alanis working her way through Jason Mraz’s extensive list of eco-accomplishments and Cedric the Entertainer’s attempt to get the crowd to relax. I can also say that I hope that Blythe Danner and Sir Richard’s broken limbs heal quickly. What troopers!

Check out this exclusive clip of Jason Mraz performing “I’m Yours”.

Actress extraordinaire and one of Ecorazzi’s Top 5 Vegan Celebrities of 2009, Ginnifer Goodwin, is teaming up with Farm Sanctuary to launch their annual Adopt-A-Turkey Project — a national program designed to end the misery of commercially-raised turkeys by educating the public and offering a compassionate alternative for Thanksgiving.

Each year more than 45 million turkey’s are slaughtered for Thanksgiving alone — a number we think is totally ridiculous!  About the campaign, Ginnifer said:

“After spending time with the rescued turkeys at Farm Sanctuary’s shelter and seeing how similar they are to my furry companion animals at home, I knew I needed to do everything in my power to protect these friendly and curious birds from the daily pain and suffering they endure on factory farms. With so many delicious, cruelty-free Thanksgiving dishes available, there is no reason why any living being should be treated like an unfeeling commodity. I encourage everyone to start a new, compassionate Thanksgiving tradition this year and Adopt-A-Turkey, rather than eat one.”

You can bet your bottom dollar that here at the Razz our Thanksgiving table will be turkey-free. What about you? Will you be going turkey-free this holiday season? Chime in and let us know!

Make sure to visit AdoptATurkey.org to find out how you can participate in Farm Sanctuary’s annual campaign.

As many Ecorazzi readers know, besides animal production being hell for Planet Earth, it’s also not too grand for the animals. That’s why a slew of well-known stars donated their John Hancock to help reduce the cruelty.

Stars like Kim Basinger, Alicia Silverstone, Bill Maher, Bob Barker, Emily Deschanel, Fred Willard, Ginnifer Goodwin, James Cromwell, Kristen Bell, Mariel Hemingway and Valerie Harper all asked Governor Schwarzenegger to sign a bill that would end the cruel practice of amputating dairy cows’ tails.

The letter was written by our friends at Farm Sanctuary and sent to the Governor just two days ago.

Although both chambers of California legislature passed the bill to end tail docking in the dairy industry, it won’t become a law unless the governor sigs it.

Farm Sanctuary’s president and co-founder Gene Baur said: “With last November’s landslide passage of Prop 2, banning the three cruelest farm animal confinement systems in the state, Californians made it clear they will no longer tolerate cruel and unnecessary practices on factory farms. By putting an end to tail docking, Governor Schwarzenegger has the opportunity to continue this wave of compassion and send a humane message to the rest of the country.”

We agree and hope that the Governator makes the right choice!

One major highlight of the trip was getting a chance to sit down with vegan superstar Ginnifer Goodwin.

As many of you might remember, just a few months back we gave Ginnifer a spot on our Top 5 Vegan Celebrities of 2009 list…and man does she deserve it. Brimming with passion and full of lively energy, Ginnifer is truly a warrior for the cause.

Check out the interview below and see why we’re proud to call her one of our favs!

Ecorazzi: I know that you’re a new vegan. I’d love to hear about what inspired you to choose this lifestyle.

Ginnifer Goodwin: Well the seed was planted in 2007 when my beloved, healthy dog Scout was tragically killed by my vet. This was, of course, deemed an accident even though I had plenty of proof that malpractice had occurred. So I hired the most esteemed lawyer specializing in animal rights that I could find. We really just hoped that by making the veterinarian take responsibility we could establish some sort of standards so that nothing like this ever happened again.

But it’s funny, that experience really wasn’t what caused me to make the connection. It was something much smaller.

A year later I was pouring milk in my coffee and all of a sudden I actually took in what it was I was drinking and I was truly disgusted. Then I started to think about all the things I ate, wore and used in my life that I had NEVER educated myself about.

I always had this romantic idea that animals were raised like how they were on my grandmother’s farm growing up. Basically I was just really, really uneducated and very naive about how animals are treated in our society. So I decided it was time that I should learn about what I was contributing to. If I didn’t need those foods to be healthy than I didn’t see why I should be taking lives away.

I started studying nutrition and found out that we really don’t need animal products to be healthy and that it’s extremely easy to find alternatives. In talking with friends and family I’ve noticed that what most people believe about nutrition comes from some kind of social conditioning and not from actually having read the research.

And while I was reading about healthy foods, I learned about factory farming and just knew right then that there would never be a day when I would support any of those industries again.

E: You mentioned talking to your friends and family about veganism, which oddly enough was the topic of my next question. How have people reacted to your new lifestyle?

GG: I’ve gotten mixed responses. First let me say that two of my four parents have actually gone vegan, which I think is shocking and out of character for traditional southern parents. But they saw the impact it had on my life and it just sort of happened.

For the most part I only talk about veganism when I’m invited to because I believe that it’s such a strong personal choice. I feel like it’s more effective to introduce people to this lifestyle when they can set the pace about what they want to learn. So I wait until people ask me questions. I do find that there are people who, when I say I’m vegan, automatically assume that I think I’m superior or more compassionate than they are. And I find an immediate judgment from them. With those people I’ve noticed that just by saying I’m vegan can lead to a knee-jerk justification on their part. Sometimes I’ve had a reaction like, “ Oh you don’t eat animal products? You know that broccoli screams, right?”

For the most part the biggest thing people say is, “ Oh my God! That would be so hard! How do you do it?” That reaction is really what propelled me into trying to learn more about activism and how to become a better activist. Because I feel like it’s sort of the biggest myth about this lifestyle. I’ve only found the opposite. It really is truly one of the easiest things I’ve ever done, especially in 2009 when we have so many options out there. I guess I found that eliminating all the cruelty in my life was not only easy, but also very practical and reasonable.

There are a lot of myths that this lifestyle is a struggle, but it’s actually very cool and I think we just need a few people out there going, “Yeah, this is really cool and it’s really easy.” That’s what motivated me into action.

E: I know you’ve mentioned before about your love of Riblets. Is there another vegan product out there that you can’t get enough of?

GG: Have you tried the Daiya cheese?

E: Umm…it’s AMAZING!

GG: I’m obsessed! I got some recently and ate it on everything. Like I’m probably eating dangerous quantities of it. You should probably never eat one thing to this extend! Oh, and I have to say that I’m also very excited about Gardein.

[Editor note: They served Gardein at the TAFA Conference and it was, for lack of a better word, incredible!]

E: Now I always end with the same question for all the famous vegetarians I interview. If you had the chance to meet one person who you’ve found specifically instrumental in the vegetarian community – dead or alive, past or present – who would it be and why?

GG: I have to say that the person who’s inspired me the most is the person who’s responsible for me aligning myself so closely with the Humane Society. I could listen to and read all day the words of Wayne Pacelle. Anyone who listens to Wayne, no matter where they stand on the issues, has no choice but to respect the reasonable and practical ways he wants to change the world. They’re very attainable. He’s always clear and his tactics are never punishing. I really respect that he’s not trying to use the Humane Society as a way to make the whole world live like him. He is just trying to make the world better for animals. And I find the way he goes about it to be just very classy and respectful.

A big thank you to Ginnifer Goodwin for taking time out of her busy schedule to sit down and chat with us! To learn more about the work that continues to inspire Ginnifer, visit HSUS.org! And don’t forget to tune into Big Love every week on HBO.

Are you having a good weekend? Cause we sure are!

The Ecorazzi/VEGdaily team is having a damn blast getting our learn on at the HSUS’s Taking Action for Animals Conference here in Arlington, VA.

What does a little old conference have to do with celebrity awesomeness? Uh…EVERYTHING!

Well-known vegan stars like Ginnifer Goodwin, Nellie McKay, Carol Leifer and others are all on site to help make this event extra super special. You gotta love those vegan celebs!

Not able to make the event but still want to get all the juicy deets? We’ve got you covered!

Just visit our sister site VEGdaily.com throughout the day to get the latest and greatest conference scoop. Of course you can also follow us on Twitter (@vegdaily) if you want up to the minute news!

Stay tuned for our exclusive interview with Ginnifer Goodwin coming this week!

How many times have you sat around the house thinking, ” Gosh – I ‘d like to do more, but I really just don’t know how to take it to the next level?” Well good news — I’m about to open your peepers!

From July 24-27th, the best of the best will be heading to Arlington, VA to attend the Taking Action for Animals Conference –  the largest national conference for the animal protection movement.

According to their site, you’ll have the chance to “join advocates from around the globe to brush up on the basics, learn about the latest cutting-edge campaigns, and attend dynamic workshops that will help you improve your work for animals.”

And of course no badass event would be complete without a little celebrity action. Well-known folks in attendance include: Carol Leifer, Ginnifer Goodwin, Rep John Conyers, Rep Jim Moran and a special performance by Nellie McKay. We’ve featured Nellie before and give her the ultimate two thumbs up. We’ve never chilled with Ginnifer, but we’re excited to finally meet her (especially after titling her one our Top 5 Vegans of 2009)!

I’ll be there representing both Ecorazzi and VEGdaily as I blog live, update our twitter like crazy and make some cool ass videos! So what are you waiting for? Visit TakingActionForAnimals.org and come play!

I’m not gonna lie — vegan celebrities are probably on my mind a bit more than the average person. It just sort of comes with the job. 

I often find myself turning to friends in movies and whispering, “Pssst…notice in that scene how (insert vegan celebrity) didn’t really eat that sandwich. Yeah, it’s totally cause he’s VEG.”  Or I’ll see a well-known vegan artist on the cover of a magazine and manically skim the article for any words that start with the letter “v.” The first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem.   

Yesterday while walking home from a swanky event, I found myself trying to come up with the Top 5 Vegan Celebrities of 2009. Within a few minutes I made my picks and had already asked my Facebook friends (ps. why aren’t we Facebook friends?) to weigh in. And so, for your reading enjoyment, here are Ecorazzi’s Top 5 Vegan Celebrities of 2009!

Counting down…

5. Ginnifer Goodwin

There’s nothing I love more than a fresh-faced vegan who’s new to the scene and excited about the cause. Never afraid to share her thoughts on the issue, Ginnifer is constantly bringing up her herbivore ways.  While on Late Night with Conan O’Brian, Goodwin proudly declared,  “It’s amazing! I’m like on a vegan high! I don’t need drugs. There’s a party in my body. Every thing’s working appropriately.”  For her outspokenness, wisdom and PR skills, I proudly salute Ginnifer and offer her spot number five on our countdown. 

4. John Salley

John Salley proves that you don’t need animal protein to be a serious athlete. The famous NBA star has no problem throwing the word “vegan” around and recently took to the cameras to share  his thoughts with PETA . For his plant-based power, I knight Sir John Salley number four on our list of vegan celebs. 

3. Alicia Silverstone

Ah yes, the venerable veteran vegan!  Alicia Silverstone is well-known for inspiring the masses with  her compassionate views and being a steadfast warrior for the cause. Look for her new book — The Kind Diet – coming out this fall. Veganism never looked so good and for that we bow our heads and offer Alicia spot number three. 

2.  Emily Deschanel

Emily Deschanel is one of those glamorous vegans that prove the power of plant-based foods. A vegan of over 16 years and a supporter of many great animal organizations, Emily is a rock in the movement and angel for the animals. For all of these reasons, we give her a high-five and spot number two.

1. Ellen DeGeneres

If I could, I’d write a book called Why Ellen DeGeneres Is Cooler Than PB&J.  You see, Ellen has perhaps the most attractive trait any celebrity could posses: the ability to speak-up for the causes she believes in without turning people off. As a fresh-off-the-boat vegan, Ellen has embraced the lifestyle with pride and gusto and helped promote some of the greatest leaders in the movement.  To thank her for all your compassion and coolness, we offer Ellen the biggest slice of vegan cake we can find and the title of our NUMBER ONE Vegan Celebrity of 2009. 

Well there you have it — our effing list of awesomeness. Of course, there are plenty of other vegan celebrities out there who we think are super rad and we sincerely thank them for their activist skills. 

Who are your Top 5 Vegan Celebrities of 2009? Chime in and let us know!!

– Actress Ginnifer Goodwin talking about her new vegan lifestyle in an interview with W Magazine.