Raoul Wallenberg Vegan International (Vegan International) is a 501c3 Not-For-Profit Charity, a Non- Governmental Organization (NGO), and a cyber school bus dedicated to educating Governments, other Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), and individuals worldwide about the benefits of the vegan lifestyle. These benefits include optimal health and nutrition, sustainable use of resources, enlightened agriculture, poverty reduction, a reduced carbon footprint, compassion, peace and justice for the planet and all its inhabitants. This is accomplished through the website and quarterly Newsletters. Raoul Wallenberg was the Swedish Diplomat who saved 100,000 innocent lives during World War II on behalf of the American War Refugee Board. Raoul Wallenberg Vegan International seeks to continue his legacy of compassion – to individuals, sentient beings, and the planet.
Vegan International has applied for Non Governmental Organization (NGO) Consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), and will partner with the following U N Agencies: United Nations System Standing Committee on Nutrition, Economic and Social Council, (UNSCN), World Health Organization, (WHO), Food and Agriculture, (FAO), and promote the Sustainable Development Goals. In addition, Vegan International will promote a United Nations Convention Against Speciesism which would be similar to the Conventions Against Genocide and Torture, but would apply to all individuals on planet Earth.
Sharon Wallenberg, Founder and President, has been a vegan for 20 years. She is the author of “The Search For Raoul Wallenberg – The Truth”, a book about the World War II hero who saved 100,000 innocent lives, and promoting his legacy of compassion. Ms. Wallenberg has had a career in holistic health, spent 20 years at the U N as Rep and Main Rep for several NGOs including Servas International, United States Servas, Mater Care International, and Ribbon International, was an individual member of the International Catholic Organizations at the UN, and is a member of several national, and international organizations.
Shanti Golden, Secretary, has been a vegan for 20 years, and is a school teacher who has taught both in New York and Florida public schools. Her specialty is teaching special needs students, and has been a close friend of Ms. Wallenberg for more than 40 years.
Gene Baur is co‑founder and president of Farm Sanctuary, and has been hailed as “the conscience of the food movement” by TIME magazine. He was a pioneer in undercover investigations and instrumental in passing the first U.S. laws to ban inhumane factory farming practices. His books include Living the Farm Sanctuary Life: The Ultimate Guide to Eating Mindfully, Living Longer, and Feeling Better Every Day; Farm Sanctuary: Changing Hearts and Minds About Animals and Food. He has a master’s degree in agricultural economics from Cornell University, and is a faculty member at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
Michael Klaper, M.D. focuses on health-promoting food and lifestyle choices to help people stay out of hospitals and off operating tables. He has authored numerous articles on plant-based nutrition, and a book on using plant-based medicine to arrest and reverse disease. He has served as nutrition advisor to NASA’s programs for space colonists on the Moon and Mars, and on the Nutrition Task Force of the American Medical Students Association.
Lawrence H. Kushi, Sc. D. is an internationally-know nutrition and cancer epidemiologist. For more than 25 years, he has led, and been involved in, studies across the cancer continuum, from early life exposures to cancer outcomes. He has served on Advisory committees for the National Institutes of Health, the American Institute for Cancer Research, the World Cancer Research Fund and other organizations. He chaired the American Cancer Society’s 2012 committee on nutrition and physical activity guidelines for cancer prevention. He leads the cancer research network, funded by the National Cancer Institute to catalyze research in integrated health care settings.
Robert Grillo is the founder of “Free From Harm” which advocates for animals exploited by animal agriculture. As a marketing communications professional for over 20 years, Grillo worked on large food industry accounts where he acquired a behind-the-scenes perspective on food branding and marketing, the lack of transparency in the big agriculture and the food industry. His books expose the many ways people have been conditioned into a culture where mass animal consumption is the norm.
William Faith co-founded Arts Terra, a sustainable homestead project in Palmdale, CA, where he taught several permaculture courses and workshops before moving to Chicago and co-founding the Chicagoland and Permaculture Guild. He is board president of the Great Rivers and Lakes Permaculture Institute, and launched Genius Loci Permaculture, a full-service Design, Build and education firm. He has co-facilitated the yearly vegan Permaculture Design Course at Wild Earth Farm & Sanctuary, the first and only vegan PDC to be offered in the United States.
Mona Seymour is an Associate Professor of Urban Studies and the Director of the Environmental Studies Program at Loyola Marymount University, and Veganic Farming expert. Her research broadly focuses on veganism and the food movement. She is currently working on a project on farming methods that avoid chemical and farmed animal inputs, and is a part of Seed the Commons’ Working Group on Veganic Farming, which aims to support and spread veganic agriculture in the US. Her past research has explored urban sustainability planning and green infrastructure, with particular attention to alleyway revitalization and greenspace planning.
Robert Cheeke is a vegan athlete and bodybuilding champion. He is the best-selling author of the books Vegan Bodybuilding & Fitness – The Complete Guide to Building Your Body on a Plant-Based Diet, and Shred It! – Your Step-by-Step Guide to Burning Fat and Building Muscle on a Whole-Food, Plant-Based Diet. Robert is considered one of VegNews magazine’s most influential vegan athletes. He tours all over the world giving talks about his story of transformation from a skinny farm kid to a champion vegan bodybuilder.
The following Vegan Authorities will participate by contributing articles to the Website and Quarterly Newsletters, giving technical support, and being available to answer any questions or concerns expressed to Vegan International:
T. Colin Campbell, Ph.D. has been dedicated to the science of human health for more than 60 years. His primary focus is on the association between diet and disease, particularly cancer. Although largely known for the “China Study”—one of the most comprehensive studies of health and nutrition ever conducted, and recognized by The New York Times as the “Grand Prix of epidemiology”—Dr. Campbell’s profound impact also includes extensive involvement in education, public policy, and laboratory research
Neal Barnard, M.D. is the founder of Physicians Committee For Responsible Medicine (PCRM), a nationwide group of physicians and lay supporters that promotes preventative medicine, and addresses controversies in modern medicine. As an adjunct associate professor of medicine at The George Washington University, and a researcher funded by the National Institutes of Health, he has led key research studies to improve the health of people with diabetes, obesity, lipid disorders, and other serious health problems. He is the editor-in-chief of the Nutrition Guide for Clinicians and the author of more than 15 books on nutrition and health for lay readers. His research has been cited by the American Diabetes Association and the American Dietetic Association in official policy statements on healthful diets.
Nassim Nobari is the co-founder of Seed the Commons and main organizer of the People’s Harvest Forum. As a social justice and food activist, she has worked with radical community programs in Switzerland and the US and volunteered with local organizations in a dozen countries. With Seed the Commons, she strives to continue to help build a food system that works for farmers, workers and eaters, while promoting animal liberation instead of agricultural models based on animal exploitation.
Ron Weiss, M.D. is a botanist, board certified internist and Assistant Professor of Clinical Medicine at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. He is the founder of Ethos Health, a farm-based healthcare system that connects human health to the natural world, and fosters the fundamental connections that exist between all living things.
Julieanna Hever is a Registered Dietitian in private practice based in Los Angeles. Julieanna authored the Permanente Journal’s A Physician’s Guide to Plant-Based Diets, The Vegiterranean Diet and the best-selling book, The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Plant-Based Nutrition, and is the nutrition columnist for VegNews magazine. She is the co-author of The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Gluten-Free Vegan Cooking and a recipe contributor to both New York Times bestselling Forks Over Knives books.
Ira J. Raab is the Legal Council for Vegan International regarding international Conventions and Treaties . He is a Retired Justice of the New York State Supreme Court, was President of the Board of Judges of the Nassau County District Court. He has won numerous legal, education, community, and civic association awards for contributions to the practice of law and the community. He is a lifelong devotee of Raoul Wallenberg.
Dr Nandita Shah, India, is a registered Medical Doctor and the author of the book “Reversing Diabetes in 21 Days”. She is the Founder, Director, and a trustee of SHARAN, founded with the vision of helping people connect to animals and nature in order to heal themselves and the planet. Dr. Shah first became vegan because of ethical issues when she learned the truth about dairy: the suffering that a cow undergoes due to repeated impregnations and loss of her offspring so that our milk bottles can be filled. She did an internship at Farm Sanctuary in New York to learn more about farm animals and their relation to us. SHARAN collaborated with PCRM to organize some talks and seminars for Dr. Neal Barnard for doctors, hospitals and lay people all over India.
Anita Krajnc Ph.D.,Canada, is the founder of Toronto Pig Save. Her inspiration was based on a quote by Leon Tolstoy, “When you see suffering, do not turn away, draw closer”. Distressed by the suffering of pigs being transported to slaughter, she decided to bear witness and offer comfort. These individuals had suffered tremendously and had not experienced a word of comfort during all of their short lives. They were facing a horrific death. Together with others, Anita offered water to individuals on slaughter trucks. For this act of kindness, she was jailed as a criminal. Worldwide outrage precipitated her release. Anita’s Save Movement is the world’s largest and fastest growing grass roots movement. The Toronto Pig Save has grown into a world-wide Save Movement including: Animal Save: 622 groups, 66 countries; Climate Save: 70 groups, 29 countries; Health Save: 15 groups, 10 countries.
Krishna Murari Gautam is Founder and Chairperson of Aging Nepal, a United Nations ECOSOC NGO, and has created a ‘No Kill Zone’ in Kathmandu. Mr. Gautam has a Masters in Economics from the University of New England, Australia, a B.Sc. in Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology, from Punjab Agricultural University, India, over 30 years’ experience in the field of water management, irrigation, and socio-economic aspects of rural development projects in India, Nepal, and China, including projects funded by USAID, the Agriculture Project Service Center, Nepal as a Senior Economist; and Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science, Nepal. According to Mr. Gautam, ‘There are many bodies – human, animal, insect – but one life
Victor Fodeke, Ph.D., Nigeria, is the Group Managing Director of Tellco Europe Nigeria, a sustainable energy project. He is the former Technical Advisor on Climate Change for the African Union Commission, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Victor was appointed as the Director General of the African Clean Energy Summit and African Climate Solutions Centre. He was Technical Advisor for the African Union Commission, and he is a Fulbright Exchange Fellow. His areas of specialization are Environmental Security, Climate Change, Water Quality, and Marine Environmental Protection, among others. Victor is compassionate to all, and especially sensitive to the plight of the voiceless. His Social Media presence is called ‘Voicelessones’.
269, Israel is an Israeli inspiration. Today thousands of Israelis, both men and women, young and old, are tattooing ‘269’ on their arms in solidarity with the concentration camp like circumstances many non-human species are forced to endure. There is a direct connection between the brutality shown to concentration camp victims, and the brutality shown to today’s non-human species. 269 is a white Israeli bull who, as a calf was destined to be slaughtered. He was rescued or stolen, by saviors or terrorists, depending on your viewpoint. 269 is the first member of the Vegan International Worldwide Advisory Board from a species other than human. He is recognized for his ability to inspire thousands to action in recognizing and speaking out against injustice, for anyone, anywhere, of any species. Vegan International does not discriminate on the basis of species, and recognizes outstanding achievement regardless of how it occurs.
