Easy Ways to Volunteer Effectively for Animals
This is a post I wrote for the Animal Charity Evaluators blog. It’s been suggested to me that it may be of interest to EA audiences, so I’m cross-posting it here for you to see!
“How can I help animals effectively as a volunteer?”
This is one of our most frequently asked questions. As with our advice to donors, we recommend that volunteers focus on where they can make the biggest difference. Luckily, two of our recommended Top Charities, Mercy For Animals (MFA) and The Humane League (THL), offer an easy way for anyone to make a difference for animals in just a few minutes each day. Through MFA’s Hen Heroes and THL’s Fast Action Network, volunteers can sign up to receive daily emails with tasks that can be completed in under five minutes. These tasks complement their corporate campaigns and often involve tweeting, emailing, calling, or posting on Facebook.
Taylor Ford, Corporate Campaigns Manager at THL says, “The Fast Action Network is one of the main driving forces behind our corporate policy successes, and enables the community to stay abreast of the bigger picture on our campaigns and witness firsthand how their actions contribute to our shared success for animals.”
According to Sara Laycock, Campaigns Manager at MFA, Hen Heroes will soon be participating in international campaigns to reduce animal suffering around the globe: “Our numbers are growing in Brazil, Mexico, India, and Hong Kong, where we plan to increase our work on cage-free egg policies.”
These programs allow virtually anyone with an email address to participate in daily actions for effective animal advocacy. “They allow volunteers who may be tight on time or unable to attend in-person events to advocate for animals practically anywhere,” explained Laycock.
We invite you to sign up for both programs and support the work of these highly effective charities improving the lives of millions of animals worldwide.
Sign up for Hen Heroes
Sign up for Fast Action Network
Do you have suggestions for people that want to volunteer their time in person?
Hi David, here’s a relevant quote from our latest interview with Paul Shapiro on effective volunteering:
“JB: Could you talk about how you feel grassroots efforts such as leafleting and pay-per-view contribute to the success of the movement?
PS: I’m respectful of it and I’ve done a lot of it myself. I think that can be a good use of volunteers’ time, but generally speaking it’s less efficient than policy and institutional reforms are. I would recommend to animal groups they try to think about ways they can engage their volunteers to be part of broader campaigns, whether that’s a campaign to get a major company to remove eggs from certain products or get them to offer plant-based options, or to be a part of a ballot initiative. I think this motivates people in a way other things don’t, because there’s a tangible end; you can actually win, as opposed to something that feels Sisyphean, as though there’s never an end in sight. That’s why so many people get involved in ballot measures. They form these amazing communities. It’s sad because they’re often not sustained once there’s no overarching campaign left. But while it happens, it’s truly amazing to see. I think groups ought to try to provide that for their volunteers. Or even encourage volunteers to try something like getting a local school to go adopt a Meatless Monday policy.”
Thanks for your question. We do have a Volunteer Advice page on our website that gives some ideas as well as links to in-person opportunities. We also will be publishing an interview on Thursday that touches on the topic.
I signed up for both!
Me too!