HRC Happenings- May 2011

May has been very exciting and very busy at the Humane Research Council! Our major accomplishment of the past month was publishing the results of our annual Animal Tracker survey and updating the accompanying visualization tool. The Animal Tracker is a survey of over 1,000 U.S. adults addressing issues of importance to animal advocates. This year’s survey included questions regarding levels of support for various activist behaviors, such as protesting and signing ballot initiatives, and how often individuals engage in animal friendly behaviors such as buying products labeled cruelty free or eating meat substitutes. These questions were asked in 2008 as well; it is easy to view and compare the results of each year using our visualization tool.

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As soon as the Animal Tracker was out the door, we were busy working to finish the analysis of our new Humane Trends study (formally known as the “Key Indicators” study). This study measures the state of animal protection in the United States. We have compiled 25 separate data sources to measure how well the treatment of animals is measuring up to the standards that the animal protection movement demands. Highlights and major findings of the report will available to registered HumaneSpot.org users within the next couple of months. This is an exciting report that consolidates a lot of information in a concise manner. We will let you know when it is available.

I have also been excitedly checking the HRC inbox, as we just over a month away from the application deadline for the Grassroots Research Fund. This dedicated fund allows us to provide free research services to 2-3 grassroots organizations in the upcoming year. Now that the Animal Tracker survey is published and the initial Humane Trends Study is nearing completion, I am looking forward to our next big project. Maybe it will be for your organization! If you haven’t done so already, take a look at the application criteria and consider applying.

Our blog was also quite popular this month. In April HRC’s Director, Anthony Bellotti began a two-part blog series that he finished this month. In part 1, “Meet the New FBR Ads—Same as the Old FBR Ads,” Anthony discusses the new pro-vivisection advertisements posted by the Foundation for Biomedical Research. He discusses what they are attempting to do and argues that, while they raise awareness of the issue of animal testing, they will not sway public opinion as they lack a necessary grassroots component to their campaign. In the final post, “Paid Media, Word of Mouth, and Social Movements,” Anthony follows up with a discussion of the distinctions between traditional advertising and the word of mouth advertising generated by social movement campaigns.

Finally, I want to highlight a couple of items that our users found most interesting. The most-read blog post of the past month was “7 Ways to Improve Your Print Materials,” by HRC’s Executive Director, Che Green. Some of his advice includes choosing a single clear message, including a strong graphic(s), and personalizing the message with a story or stories of individual animals. This detailed article is worth the read if you are ever given the task of creating literature for your animal advocacy group. And, lastly, we are not just about the research; our most “liked” Facebook item over the past month was a picture of Miss Remy, one of the cats in the HRC family, staying warm by napping on the computer while her human worked away at one of the many reports or projects that HRC is working on this month.