There are some very cool animal-related volunteer opportunities, mainly with a legal bent, worth talking about.
First, there’s Four Feet Forward, the all-volunteer animal advocacy organization that offers pro-bono media and legal services for grassroots activists. We’ve told you about FFF before, and we’ve also featured a podcast interview with one of its founders, Carter Dillard. The services this organization offers are unique and necessary to anyone interested in really stepping up the impact of their animal rights activism. Here is what they are currently seeking:
The Board of FFF and our supporters seek out professionals in the areas of law and communication who would like to offer their services to groups working on animal issues which they also believe in. We maintain a database of these professionals and match them with organizations who seek the help of FFF. Typically matches are made based on region, set of expertise and desired outcome by the animal organization. Once a match is made both the client and the consultant can access FFF to report on satisfaction with the project as well as to ask for any additional resources that might be needed.
Sounds like a great way to get involved with changing the world, while attaching yourself to a cutting-edge organization that is truly making waves. Email Andrea if you’re interested, at aloguidice[at]gmail[dot]com.
Also in the legal world, the Humane Research Council, which — as we told you — recently offered a pro-bono research grant for AR groups, is seeking a legal volunteer to work on developing a database documenting sexual assaults against animals. Here is more about what they are seeking:
HRC is currently doing pro bono work for Chandler Edwards, trying to help them develop a database of all known cases of sexual assault against animals. Ideally we would like to compile this information and then analyze it to find trends in offender behavior, outcomes, or characteristics. Currently all we have as a source is newspaper articles, but would like to also search legal cases involving animal sexual assault, pornography, bestiality and zoophilia. This will require two things we do not have—access to databases such as Lexis and Westlaw, and expertise in searching for legal cases. Therefore we are hoping to find a law student to help us on this project. We would be happy to have someone work with us in depth on it, but since this would be completely volunteer-based, simply having help conducting the search using keywords to identify relevant case names will also be a valuable asset.
If you are interested, email Carol at cglasser[at]humaneresearch[dot]org.
A few other opportunities for those interested in animal law include working with the coveted Meyer Glitzenstein & Crystal, the public interest law firm that specializes in animal rights issues. They are currently seeking a Fall 2012 Law Clerk, and from everything I’ve heard about this law firm, this would be an opportunity of a lifetime for anyone interested in devoting their life to animal law.
There’s also Equal Justice Alliance, which conducts “legal and fact research on civil liberties/rights issues as they relate to protecting the constitutional rights of individuals advocating for animals, including the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act and its state analogues.” For those of you interested in the human rights aspects of animal law, Equal Justice Alliance currently has several part-time and full-time telecommuting internship positions available for law students.
Lastly (for now) on the subject of animal law, if this is an area that calls to you — regardless of whether or not you’re a law student — consider enrolling in the summer program in animal law at Lewis & Clark’s Center for Animal Law Studies. If you’re interested in learning more about the animal law program at Lewis & Clark (and you should be), don’t miss the podcast episode we dedicated to exploring it, Episode 93.