Barbados-based Lalu Hanuman has been on a plant-based diet for some 55 years and a vegan for 34 years, for animal rights reasons. He is a founder and trustee of the Caribbean Vegetarian-Vegan Charity. He has been involved in environmental initiatives for many years, both in the Caribbean and in England, including being the chairperson of the Guyanese campaign group Campaign Against Toxic Waste Importation Into Guyana. He successfully lobbied the Guyanese Government to adopt a REDD scheme to preserve rainforests, was a local Government election candidate in London for the Green Party, and initiated the annual “Canal Bridge Green Fayre” in London. He also served as secretary for the UK based “Karibbean Independent Trust for Ecology” (KITE); and is a former Director and current trustee of the Barbados Marine Trust. He is a lawyer by profession, and currently resides and works in Barbados.
Lalu holds a BA in Law from the University of Westminster and is a member of the Inner Temple in London. He has a postgraduate diploma in Social Anthropology from the University of London, a postgraduate diploma in Development Studies from the University of East Anglia, and a master’s degree in Peace and Reconciliation from the University of Coventry. He was granted the civic award of the Freedom of the London Borough of Southwark for his voluntary work in London and was the chairperson of the Barbados Bar Association’s Human Rights Committee.
Lalu has published three books: Curbing Gangsterocracy: International Law and Development, Reality Check, and a children’s book, My Brother Was a Crow. He is currently bringing a constitutional motion on behalf of an imprisoned vegan client who has been denied a vegan diet while on remand in Barbados.