Mercy for Animals

When Nathan Runkle arrived at school one spring day in 1999, he found several of his classmates distraught. Mr. Jenkins, the agriculture teacher, had brought in a bucket of tiny piglets for a dissection lesson — only one was still alive. A fellow 10th grader had picked up the piglet by the hind legs and repeatedly slammed its head into the ground until it bled from the mouth. Runkle helped rush the baby pig to a trusted teacher, who took it to be euthanized.

The experience changed 15-year-old Runkle, inspiring him to start Mercy for Animals, a nonprofit fighting to protect farmed animals around the world. Nearly two decades later, MFA has worked to reduce their suffering through corporate lobbying and legislation, and Runkle continues to speak out against animal cruelty from factory farms to classrooms and courtrooms. His goals are twofold: to convince fast-food giants that animals are more important than their bottom line and to encourage the world to stop eating meat.

Source: Ozy.com "The Animal Rights Advocate Reenvisioning the Future of Food"