Felix Hnat (born 15 July 1982) is an Austrian animal rights activist and chairman of the Vegan Society Austria (Vegane Gesellschaft Österreich, VGÖ). He is also vice president of the European Vegetarian Union.
Life
Hnat studied economics at the Vienna University of Economics, graduating in 2006 with a thesis on "Agricultural subsidies in Austria under an animal-rights perspective." He had to discontinue his doctorate in economic sociology due to his involvement in the animal rights activist trial.
Animal rights and vegan advocacy
Hnat's first involvement in the animal rights movement began as an activist with the Association against Animal Factories (Verein gegen Tierfabriken, VGT) in Austria. His protests against the fur trade, particularly contacting fashion houses such as Kleiderbauer, led to his involvement in the animal rights activist trial.
Hnat was the second defendant alongside Martin Balluch in the controversial 2010–2011 animal rights activist trial at Wiener Neustadt, where he was eventually acquitted of all charges. After the first non-final decision of acquittal, he worked for a year in Berlin as a project manager for the environmental protection project GV-nachhaltig, advising commercial kitchens.
Since 2005, Hnat has served as chairman of the Vegan Society Austria, where he is also responsible for public relations. In this capacity, he is involved in organizing various events, including the Veganmania summer festival in Vienna, the Veggie Planet and Vegan Planet exhibitions, and the Vienna Vegan Ball. He has held lectures at the International Management Forum in Lindau, the colloquium on bakery of the Austrian Association of the Baking Industry, the conference of the Austrian catering industry, and an event at the European Parliament that included a screening of the documentary Cowspiracy: The Sustainability Secret.
