Toward a Culture of Belonging and Inclusion in Animal Welfare

Would your leadership like to start or expand your DEI initiatives? Having trouble getting buy in from your staff, board, or community? Learn how Marin Humane partnered with a consultant to align their DEI programming with their strategic plan and priorities. Marin Humane found by connecting the dots, they began thinking more creatively about addressing critical needs in their community.

The presenters will share examples of projects and programming implemented during a nine-month capacity-building engagement. You will walk away with a menu of projects and programs plus sample project charters, including a job description review with revision and plans for board diversification.

Session Objectives:

• Understand the key factors that drive organizational effectiveness through DEI goals and objectives
• Develop DEI plans that integrate with organizational strategies and priorities
• Deploy viable short, mid, and long-term DEI projects and programming to address improvements to talent acquisition, engagement, and retention; organizational morale; mission-driven programming; and board development

WEBSITE LINK:  https://learning.theaawa.org/p/1-17-24

Over the last decade, animal welfare organizations in the US have shifted their focus towards addressing the root causes of animal problems, realizing the importance of addressing the human aspect of the issue. Program models have moved away from shelter-based services to more preventive, community-based solutions. The Animal Rescue League of Boston recognized this shift and updated its mission and vision to include bringing veterinary and wellness services directly to those who need it most, ensuring that animals are safe and healthy in communities rather than shelters.

This case study explores the journey of the Animal Rescue League of Boston’s Wellness Waggin’ program, from its conception to implementation, including steps like determining a target area, building community relationships, securing funding, and launching a pilot program. The Wellness Waggin’ is now a successful mobile veterinary unit that has completed over 14,000 wellness care appointments since 2018.

Attendees will leave the webinar with:

• A basic framework for implementing a new community-based program, including an alternative grass-roots approach to engaging with community that is achievable for organizations of all sizes.
• Ideas for learning what each community needs
• Ways to determine a target community for a new community-based program or for creating new community partnerships

WEBSITE LINK:  https://learning.theaawa.org/p/4-24-24

In 2023, animal shelters and rescues in the United States faced a third consecutive year of high intake with adoption rates unable to keep pace. The resulting crisis is mounting, with organizations across the country over capacity and under stress. Join us to analyze key data insights, challenges, and successes from 2023, then peek into what Shelter Animals Count (SAC) has planned for 2024.

SAC experts Samantha Hill, Director of Data and Technology, and Emily Tolliver, Director of Communications, will offer an exclusive opportunity to stay ahead in the constantly evolving landscape of animal welfare.

WEBSITE LINK:  https://learning.theaawa.org/p/2-28-24

The nationwide shortage of veterinarians disproportionately affects the work of animal welfare and animal care & control agencies.

Recognizing that we need to understand how the access to care crisis impacts our profession, The Association and The Program for Pet Health Equity at the University of Tennessee recently fielded a national survey to gain insights. Hundreds of organizations participated in the study which was comprised of questions related to personnel, budgets, and medical programs.

We need to understand the breadth and depth of these challenges so we can work toward solutions.  During this webinar, the study’s principal investigator and The Association’s CEO will share our findings.

WEBSITE LINK:  https://learning.theaawa.org/p/4-10-24

It is commonplace among those who provide foster care for animals to have a recurring conversation with those who do not. Upon hearing that one is an animal foster parent a frequent response is, “Oh, I could never do that. I would not be able to give the animal up.” But this is precisely what those caring for animal fosters are called to do. The ability of animal shelters and rescues to provide critical care through foster homes depends on volunteers who willingly and temporarily take animals into their homes and lives. Studies of foster volunteers has indicated that they find taking care of animals with medical, and particularly behavioral, issue to be stressful. And, volunteers that do not feel that their shelter is providing them sufficient emotional support are more likely to think about quitting. Given these two realities it becomes important for shelter staff to understand the emotional aspects of providing foster care and to identify ways to better support volunteers so that they are satisfied and more likely to continue to provide this service.

The presentation addresses these issues with the following learning objectives:

• What is the nature of attachment (human-animal bond) between volunteers and their foster animals?
• What emotions do volunteers experience when their fosters leave their care?
• What coping and resilience strategies appear to reduce the stress of providing foster care?
• How can animal shelters help foster volunteers cope with the stress inherent to fostering?

This webinar has been pre-approved for 1.0 Certified Animal Welfare Administrator continuing education credits by The Association for Animal Welfare Advancement and by the National Animal Care & Control Association. It has also been submitted for approval for 1 hour of continuing education credit in jurisdictions which recognize the Registry of Approved Continuing Education (RACE) approval.

If you have questions you’d like our presenter to answer, submit your questions or comments on this discussion thread: https://forum.maddiesfund.org/discussion/webcast-on-january-11-2024-maddies-insights-foster-care-and-the-human-animal-bond

About the Presenter
Dr. Laura Reese is a professor in the School of Planning, Design, and Construction at Michigan State University.  Her research focuses on issues of animal welfare policy and shelter management.  She wrote the book, Strategies for Successful Animal Shelters, and has published numerous articles on local animal ordinances, dog bite risks, animal cruelty, compassion fatigue, animal foster programs, and animal shelter volunteer satisfaction.  She is the president of Professional Animal Welfare Services which provides consulting services to animal shelters and rescues and founded The Un-Shelter a foster-based rescue in Michigan.  Dr. Reese also volunteers in and provides foster care for local animal shelters in the Charleston, SC area.

WEBSITE LINK:  http://maddies.fund/MIwebcasts

Housing is a necessity that impacts all families in the United States, and believe it or not – it also profoundly affects animal shelters. Join us for a webinar on the state of housing and the history of housing justice advocacy efforts in the U.S. (and why animal welfare advocates should care). Lauren Loney, Staff Attorney & Policy Specialist for HASS, will share highlights from the HASS shelter intake reasons database, which details more than 20,000 housing-related intakes across the country. Joining Lauren is Megan Collop (MSW, LCSW), Manager of Client Support Services for Colorado Legal Services, and Christina Rosales, Housing and Land Justice Director for PowerSwitch Action. Megan is a licensed clinical social worker with a master’s in social work and an Animal Assisted Social Work certificate. Christina holds a master’s in social work and has dedicated her career to advocating for equitable housing. These impressive panelists will discuss why our approach to the pets and housing crisis must go beyond pet inclusivity, be intersectional, and align with broader tenants’ rights and housing justice movements; they will also provide resources for how to do it. Vincent Medley, Maddie’s® Director of Human Animal Support Services, will moderate.

Register below and join us live on Thursday, January 11 at 5 p.m. CT. After the live event, a recording will be distributed to all registrants within 3 business days.

WEBSITE LINK:  https://zoom.us/webinar/register/2616740581796/WN_-AIP-PlOQt-geuDOGubKoA