By SDCN Staff
Rancho Santa Fe, CA–Helen Woodward Animal Center took another step forward in advocating for animal welfare worldwide.
On December 13, the center addressed non-governmental organizations in consultative status with the Economic and Social Council for the first time during a meeting in the United Nations headquarters in New York.
Helen Woodward Animal Center CEO Mike Arms, accompanied by Vice President of Development Renee Resko and Social Media and Technology Manager Jacqueline Kelleher, presented the center’s views and goals to the Economic and Social Council members.
Arms addressed the council for the first time since the center was officially appointed special consultative status in August this year.
“Thank you, Honorable Chairperson, for giving us the floor. Since 1972, Helen Woodward Animal Center, based in the United States, has been committed to the philosophy of people helping animals and animals helping people,” Arms’ said. “The admittance of our organization to the Economic and Social Council is an indication of the importance of advocating for the humane treatment of animals and discovering ways to benefit the community through educational and therapeutic programs for people while involving animals.”
Now with an audience of world leaders, the center has a unique and rare opportunity to use this prestigious platform to impart wisdom to policymakers, parliamentarians, academics, foundations, and businesses, and in doing so, inspire a more compassionate world.
“It is imperative that our children learn at a young age how to interact humanely with animals so that we can all continue to enjoy a diverse biosphere,” Helen Woodward Animal Center stated on its website.
The center’s work stretches far beyond its campus in Rancho Santa Fe. Having hosted The Business of Saving Lives conferences internationally, including in Australia and Estonia, and with another coming up in Scotland in 2023, it has always been important to the center, and to Woodward herself, to empower others through education. This unique form of outreach has been central in helping animal welfare organizations grow and become more efficient in an effort to save more lives. Building this network also allowed the center to become close to organizations providing relief to shelters in crisis amid the war in Ukraine, with the center collecting more than $350,000 in donations to support their rescue efforts. The center has been acting as a protector of the planet and its animals.
Helen Woodward Animal Center’s passionate belief that animals help people and people help animals through trust, love, and respect creates a legacy of caring. Working with the Economic and Social Council and other groups, the center says it can inspire their youth and teach them to become more ‘humane today can lead to a more humane world tomorrow.’
