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Dr. Wayne Kublalsingh

For over ten years, Dr. Wayne Kublalsingh has worn many hats, university professor, writer and activist and has worked tirelessly to promote authentic economic development. In 2002 he organized the University of the West Indies Symposium on land use options for 77,000 acres of land and infrastructure on the West Coast of Trinidad, which was about to be abandoned due to the closure of Caroni (1975) Limited and the historic sugar industry. From 2006 to 2008 he worked with communities at Chatham and the South West Peninsula to prevent the state from allowing the ALCOA aluminium smelter at Chatham; similarly with La Brea and South West Peninsula from 2006 to 2010 to prevent the state from proceeding with the Alutrint aluminum smelter.

From 2009 to 2011 he worked with residents of Pranz Gardens and environs to prevent the building of Essar Steel a steel manufacturing complex that was proposed to be built in the proximity of commuities in Claxton Bay. He also worked with residents of Claxton Bay and the fishermen of the Claxton Bay fishing port to stop the building an industrial port on the Claxton Bay Mangrove System. He worked with residents of Savonetta Village and environs to prevent the state from building CARISAL, a caustic soda company, to be built on lands outside of the Point Lisas Industrial Estate.

From 2011 to the present, he has been working with residents of Debe to Mon Desir to prevent the state from building a highway in the Debe to Mon Desir area. To this end, he chose to act by embarking on a hunger strike for 21 days in 2012, from November 15th to December 5th. This strike resulted in an independent review of the Debe to Mon Desir Highway. He is currently sitting in a vigil outside the Prime Minister’s office in an attempt to encourage the state to abide by the independent review. He works for the protection of viable economic, social and ecological spaces and for the practice of authentic economic development.

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