Vision
A world in which animal sentience is respected, and the welfare of animals protected.
Mission
WAN’s mission is to improve the status and welfare of animals worldwide by offering information, expertise and new opportunities to connect, collaborate, and campaign for change.
Guiding Values
- Recognition that animals are sentient beings.
- Compassion, justice and respect for all animals.
- The need for cooperation, collaboration and unity in the animal protection movement, including collective advocacy.
- The need for broader partnerships to advance animal welfare, including with policy influencers and implementers.
Ways of Working
All our activities are guided by our four ways of working:
- Research, analyze and strategize
- Share information and expertise, including best practice
- Stimulate cooperation, collaboration and coalition building
- Avoid duplication and competition
Goals and Objectives
Pillar 1: Information, Expertise and Best Practice Resources
Goal:
To develop information, tools and best practice resources for the animal protection community and other animal protection stakeholders; ensuring that these meet major needs, are accurate, easy to access, and well-maintained.
Objectives:
- Enhance, update and maintain the WAN Directory, developing this to incorporate communication channels and geographically-focused knowledge portals.
- Develop, update and maintain WAN’s website resources (adding any issues where the animal protection community and other stakeholders seek further guidance).
- Continue to research, update and share best practice on various animal protection issues and approaches.
- Continue to develop/share new and creative strategies and methods for improving the capacity and professionalism of the animal protection community.
- Continue to develop and spread WAN’s courses on Strategic Advocacy and Animal Welfare, and other courses where a need is identified.
Pillar 2: Animal Protection Communication, Collaboration and Coalitions/Alliances
Goal:
To enhance, promote and develop collaboration and communication among animal protection organizations in order to avoid duplication and competition and to focus collaborative work on specific animal protection issues and international policy.
Objectives:
- Continue to support the development and running of major strategic animal protection coalitions/alliances.
- Continue to play a strategic and active role in coalition/alliances with which WAN is already connected, and review and consider new ways of collaborating with animal protection organizations and other stakeholders.
- Continue to stimulate the development of strategic animal protection coalitions/ alliances, where there is a proven need and good opportunities to strengthen and develop animal advocacy (including regional animal protection groupings and meetings).
- Strengthen communications with WAN affiliates and recruit additional effective organizations to become affiliates of WAN.
- Develop communication forums covering priority/target issues, facilitating the animal protection community to share advice, information, experiences and best practice which will in turn stimulate progress and strategic, collaborative action on various animal protection issues.
- Continue to hone and improve WAN’s existing communications and social media interactions (newsletters, blogs and social media platforms) with the animal protection community; increasing outreach, quality and utility of communications.
- Support and facilitate the development of national and global campaign and awareness events.
Pillar 3: Animal Welfare Policy
Goal:
To develop strategic animal protection advocacy and implementation support to improve the status of global animal welfare and the animal protection operating environment.
Objectives:
- Continue to develop WAN advocacy in support of the development and implementation of OIE international animal welfare standards; and the development and implementation of Regional Animal Welfare Strategies and the Global Animal Welfare Strategy.
- Continue to monitor and pursue opportunities to further advocacy and implementation partnerships in favor of mainstreaming animal welfare in development, especially with the European Union, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN, World Health Organization, World Bank and international, regional and national development organizations.
- Continue to develop WAN’s International Policy Forum to enhance policy representation and outreach.
- Continue to develop WAN advocacy using our consultative status with the UN (ECOSOC) (including support for the Universal Declaration of Animal Welfare (UDAW) and UN recognition for 4th October as World Animal Day, and continued advocacy on the inclusion of animal welfare and wildlife protection in the implementation of the SDGs and through any other available avenues).
- Continue to develop and support advocacy for the introduction of modern, comprehensive animal welfare laws, using and promoting the Model Animal Welfare Act.
- Continue to develop and support advocacy for the inclusion of animal welfare and wildlife clauses in constitutions.
- Influence and advocate other international animal protection organizations, where necessary to gain traction for crucial WAN advocacy.