Jaya went vegan 12 years back and has not looked back since. She spend 3 years researching on all things vegan and then ran a cafe of her own for 4 years. She traveled all across India and Asia training, hosting and participating in vegan events. She eventually joined the Animal rights space where she again got into training and teaching people how to cook delicious and nutritious plant-based meals.

As a chef with PBT, Jayalaxmi has spent years training cooks in spaces ranging from schools, cafeterias to remote monasteries. Along the way, she’s shown that whether you are feeding young students or a room full of monks, shifting toward plant-based eating comes down to a few core principles. Here is Jayalaxmi’s playbook for transforming kitchens, changing minds, and saving animals.

Aliya Wedelich for Veganstan News

Be Ready to Adapt and Do Whatever It Takes

When you want to use plant-based ingredients, suppliers don’t always have what you need. In some schools and monasteries, Jayalaxmi and her team could buy tofu locally. In more remote areas, they had to adapt. Instead of giving up, she taught the nuns and staff how to make tofu from scratch. Seeing their faces light up when they realized how simple it was made the extra work completely worth it.

Being creative with ingredients helps, too. A few years ago, while making slime for kids, Jayalaxmi noticed how stretchy psyllium husk is. She tried adding it to plant-based cheeses and discovered it gives them a great melt and stretch—perfect for pizzas and lasagnas.

Teach by Doing and Keep Things Organized

Jayalaxmi believes teaching isn’t just showing people what to do; it’s getting them to cook from day one.

Be a Guide, Not the Boss

She encourages trainers to step back and guide rather than control the kitchen. When cooks handle ingredients themselves, they come up with great ideas—like using leftover broccoli stems in fresh salads.

Use Surprise Tests

At one culinary school, Jayalaxmi gave students a surprise test right after their lesson, asking them to make a full vegan meal on the spot. Within two hours, they proved to themselves they could do it.

Provide Structured Meal Plans

While restaurants use set menus, big kitchens like schools need clear meal plans. A simple schedule takes away the guesswork for kitchen staff and makes their daily work much easier.

Avoid Food Waste and Focus on Vegetables

Big kitchens often cook too much food out of habit. By planning more carefully, Jayalaxmi showed school cafeterias that cooking a bit less meant clean plates and almost no wasted food.

She also encourages using every part of the vegetable:

Don’t throw away greens

Don’t throw away beet tops—use them in soups, stews, and salads.

Make vegetables the star

Turn humble vegetables into the star of the dish, like making “steaks” out of cauliflower, beets, or yams.

Sneak them in creatively

In Bhutan, her team added extra veggies to rice and lentils, and even served a sweet and spicy vegetable snack (chhatpati) during tea time.

Use Familiar Flavors and Keep Things Fun

Food is connected to memories, culture, and comfort. People often worry that going plant-based means losing the foods they love.

Veganize Traditional Staples

Cooking familiar meals lets people enjoy traditional tastes without using animal products. At one camp, Jayalaxmi served vegan butter without telling anyone at first, and people were shocked it wasn’t regular dairy.

Spark Curiosity

She once served a mango cheesecake made with a cream layer from potatoes and cashews. Surprising people with simple ingredients helps open their minds to new ways of cooking.

Make it Fun for Kids

Cutting veggies small, offering tasty dips, or shaping simple rice and lentils into little animal figures instantly makes meals more exciting for children.

Learn from Mistakes and Keep the Energy Positive

Not every project works out right away. Jayalaxmi once worked with a company in India where the founder wanted all employees to eat vegan meals. The change happened too fast, and the project stopped.

However, she points out that setbacks are never a total waste. You can always pause a project and try again later with a slower approach. Plus, from that single project, her team made two great long-term partners who still work with them today.

Most importantly, Jayalaxmi keeps the process enjoyable. Whether she is helping monks make their first vegan feast or showing kids how to play with their food, keeping things light and simple makes helping animals a rewarding experience for everyone.

Aliya Wedelich

As the Regional Liaison for Asia at PBT, Naman coordinates campaigns across India, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, and the Philippines. His work ranges from big policy moves—like a national training program with Bhutan’s government that reached 160 school kitchen staff across all 20 districts—to city-level endorsements in Nepal and legislative work in the Philippines.

Shifting large food systems can feel overwhelming, but Naman breaks it down into a clear, doable roadmap.

Build Relationships, Not Just Contact Lists

Naman is certain that real networking isn’t about collecting stacks of business cards—it’s about building genuine relationships that open doors down the line.

First, he points out that every good conversation starts with a bit of homework. Before reaching out, take time to figure out who key decision-makers are and what their department currently cares about. Second, listen before you pitch. Instead of diving straight into your ask, find out what they actually need so you can match your ideas to their goals.

On top of that, Naman loves using referrals: one good introduction should always lead to another. Asking supportive contacts to introduce you to their colleagues or other departments expands your network naturally. Finally, show up at local conferences and events to stay visible, and always send a quick follow-up within 24 to 48 hours so you stay on their radar while the conversation is still fresh.

Align with What Decision-Makers Already Care About

Naman stresses that advocacy works best when you stop asking institutions to completely change course and instead show them how plant-based options help them hit their existing goals.

Politicians and municipal leaders are already focused on their climate action plans, public health goals, and budget constraints. Framing plant-based meals as a simple solution to their current problems makes your proposal an easy yes. Implementation should also be as low-stress as possible. Big organizations panic if you ask for an overnight overhaul, so Naman suggests small, gradual steps—like swapping out one ingredient at a time or starting with “Meatless Mondays.”

Finding internal champions inside government offices can speed things up dramatically. In Bhutan, for example, connecting with a supportive officer in the Prime Minister’s Office helped navigate official approvals smoothly. Keeping these contacts updated on your progress ensures they feel included and proud of the results.

Drive City-Level Campaigns

City governments are amazing entry points for real policy change, as long as you approach them strategically, says Naman.

He recommends connecting across multiple municipal teams — like public health, education, and climate divisions—rather than relying on just one office. City leaders also love visible campaigns that involve local businesses.

At the end of the day, policy decisions come down to numbers. Sharing clear, measurable outcomes — like footfall, cost savings, or the percentage of vegan dishes added — builds trust fast. Once a city endorses your campaign, ask local leaders for introductions to sister cities to turn one local win into a regional chain reaction.

Share Your Work on Social Media

Naman reminds us: never underestimate the power of posting your progress online. Even small local wins are worth celebrating publicly.

When Naman’s team shared updates from their work in Bhutan and highlighted a plant-based milestone at a major temple in Mumbai, thousands of people reshared it. Social media brings your work to people who couldn’t be there in person, inspires advocates in other regions to take action, and opens doors to new partnerships you might not have expected.

At its core, Naman’s approach shows that institutional advocacy doesn’t have to be complicated. It’s really about meeting people where they are, offering practical help, and turning single connections into lasting impact for animals.