Humane Research Counsel 2014 Accomplishments
An Animal Rights Article from All-Creatures.org

FROM

Humane Research Council (HRC)
December 2014

A donation to the Humane Research Council is a donation to the entire animal protection movement. Here are some ways that HRC is using research and data to help save animals:

A Matter of Conscience

In 1987, high school student Jenifer Graham became the first student to make a legal challenge to dissection. After being threatened with a lower grade for her refusal to dissect a frog, Jenifer took the case to court and eventually settled. The outcome was an important legal precedent that has led to student choice policies in many U.S. states.

HRC recently worked with the National Anti-Vivisection Society to accurately measure both teachers’ and students’ attitudes toward dissection, alternatives, and student choice. The result? A much better understanding of how to encourage dissection alternatives in education and a forthcoming article in the American Biology Teacher journal that will change the debate.

Bearing Witness, Effectively

Since 2010, Toronto Pig Save (TPS) has exposed the suffering of farm animals during transport and slaughter. By “bearing witness” to the plight of pigs and other animals raised for food, the organization creates an opportunity to educate and persuade the public. The “save movement” has grown into an international success, with dozens of groups spanning multiple continents.

For eight months, HRC has been working with TPS, which is receiving free support through our Grassroots Research Fund. We’re helping them understand how people transition from interested observer to active participant in the demonstrations, with the hopes of building on the group’s successes and creating a sustained movement to bear witness for farmed animals.

In 2014, HRC also had the privilege of helping the following groups:

  • Advocates of vegan and vegetarian diets are already adapting their programs based on our groundbreaking data on former vegetarians and vegans.
  • We helped United Spay Alliance get important feedback from state leaders to refine their mission and advance their life-saving spay/neuter work.
  • We assisted Tigers in America with a new survey to understand knowledge of and support for ending the captive breeding of tigers in the U.S.
  • We’re working with Humane Carolina (for free!) to help them find the most effective messages, venues, and tactics to promote ethical eating.
  • We helped the National Council for Animal Protection understand how awareness of animal issues and opinions of advocates have changed over time.
  • We are helping The Ghosts in Our Machine’s creators understand how the film influences the viewing audience and gauge its impact for animals.
  • We worked with America for Animals (for free!) to get feedback on a new mobile app that seeks to make humane investing easier than ever.
  • We helped Australia’s Voiceless carry out a large, representative survey to measure and track Australians’ attitudes and behavior toward animals.
  • We’re helping Maddie’s Fund make sheltering data available for local companion animal groups to evaluate and benchmark their efforts.
  • We worked with the Christian Vegetarian Association to survey non-members and choose the most effective title for their new outreach booklet.

Thanks to your support, in 2014 HRC also helped thousands of individual animal advocates with resources like HumaneSpot.org and through our independent studies like the Animal Tracker.

With your help, we can build a stronger, more effective animal protection movement. Your tax-deductible donations enable HRC to offer much-needed professional research and guidance to animal advocates as they work to create a more compassionate world.

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