Advocacy Strategies

The British public exhibits faith in certain aspects of the regulatory system for animal experimentation (i.e., the duty of inspectors to report misconduct). However, there is suspicion about other aspects of the, including conducting experiments without a license. The public is generally more accepting of animal experimentation if it serves human rather than environmental purposes, and the conditions of that support have not changed significantly since 2006.

In this panel discussion from the recent evaluation conference sponsored by Stanford Social Innovations Review and FSG Social Impact Advisors, Kriss Deiglmeier moderates a lively discussion on ways that funders and grantees can work together in order to effectively measure and improve the impact of their programs. Panelists include representatives from REDF and the Gates Foundation along with two nonprofit organizations.

This report provides an assessment of the overall influence of the Journey to Planet Earth: State of the Ocean's Animals program on a sample of TV viewers as well as the scope and impact of outreach programs conducted by museums and science centers. Specific responses regarding program content are included in the report.

Consumers are largely isolated from the moral implications of their choices by numerous mechanisms that allow them to dissociate their use of animals from the suffering of animals. The literature review portion of this thesis examines the psychological and cultural constructs that present unique challenges to animal rights as a social movement. From that contextual backdrop, this thesis then evaluates consumer response to three major campaigns conducted by HSUS and PETA between 1980 and the present. The campaigns are vegetarianism and factory farming, the anti-fur movement, and the campaign against cosmetics testing on animals. While consumer response has been mixed, there are other outcomes from those campaigns that signal broader cultural changes. [Excepted from report]

"Weathercocks and Signposts" critically reassesses current approaches to motivating environmentally-friendly behaviour change. Current behaviour-change strategies are increasingly built upon analogy with product marketing campaigns. They often take as given the "sovereignty" of consumer choice, and the perceived need to preserve current lifestyles intact. This report constructs a case for a radically different approach. It presents evidence that any adequate strategy for tackling environmental challenges will demand engagement with the values that underlie the decisions we make – and, indeed, with our sense of who we are. [Excerpted from report]

The interpretation of statistics may be misleading if not analyzed using comprehensive and standardized data. This article from the Coalition to Abolish Sport Hunting examines a handful of specific claims made in the fishing, hunting, and wildlife arenas.