Center for a Humane Economy Announces New Roles, Positions

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Changes to Further Mission to Better the Treatment of Animals in Business

I'm elated at the opportunity to expand our footprint in the corporate space and to effectuate change for the voiceless we all care so deeply about.”

— Marty Irby, sr. vice-president of public policy and communications

WASHINGTON, DC, USA, February 11, 2022 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Today, the Center for a Humane Economy announced new positions at the national organization. The organization welcomes Marty Irby as senior vice president of public policy and communications; Jennifer McCausland as senior vice president of corporate policy; Karen Duarte as director of philanthropy; Natasha Dolezal as deputy director of campaigns; Milton Mills, M.D., as medical director; and Joseph Grove as director of public relations.

The Center for a Humane Economy (“the Center”) focuses on influencing the workings of business to forge a humane economic order. The Center works with corporations to

alert them to their responsibilities in a culture where consumers, investors, and other key stakeholders are being asked to shed cruelty and to embrace innovation in their supply chains, R&D programs, and other operations.

Mr. Irby, executive director of Animal Wellness Action, assumes the role senior vice president of public policy and communications at the Center, complementing his role as executive director of Animal Wellness Action. Mr. Irby was named in 2021, for the third year in a row, as one of The Hill’s Top Lobbyists in Washington, D.C. He was also recognized in 2020 by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II for his work to protect horses, and his written works on animal protection have been published by USA Today, NBC News, The Hill, The Daily Caller, and dozens of other major outlets across the U.S.

“I'm elated at the opportunity to expand our footprint in the corporate space and to effectuate change for the voiceless we all care so deeply about,” said Irby.

Ms. McCausland will lead the strategic planning and implementation of the Center’s core corporate policy initiatives. She brings to this position a career in both the public sector and private enterprise, most recently with a technology focus. Collaborating with the Thai-based Elephant Nature Park, McCausland and the Center have been effective in saving formerly employed elephants in Thailand jeopardized by the pandemic’s shutdown of tourism. She is working on a conversion of former elephant riding camps into sanctuary habitats for the retired animals. McCausland was instrumental in shaping a new policy announced by Washington Governor Jay Inslee to drive new non-lethal management approaches toward wolves in the Northwest.

“I’ve been a lifelong advocate for the universal recognition of the rights of animals to live free of human exploitation, and this new position focusing on corporate conduct is a perfect match,” noted McCausland.

Ms. Duarte will guide the organization’s philanthropic efforts and is responsible for the oversight, planning, and implementation of a comprehensive fundraising program. She comes to the Center with over 34 years of fundraising experience serving in leadership positions at various animal welfare and health and human service organizations.

Ms. Dolezal will manage the Center’s advocacy efforts overseeing multiple campaigns affecting animals in both the U.S. and abroad, including Saving Wolves, Kangaroos Are Not Shoes, and Cage-Free Future. An animal law attorney with over fifteen years of experience advocating for animals as a prosecutor, legislative staffer, lobbyist and animal law educator, she brings an expansive set of skills to the organization and a wide network of partners to help build the Center’s coalitions and support. In her prior role, she directed both the world’s first advanced animal law degree program and the international animal law program at Lewis & Clark Law School.

Dr. Milton Mills joins as medical director of the Center. A long-time practitioner of urgent medical care at hospitals in the Washington, D.C. area, Dr. Mills earned his medical degree at Stanford University School of Medicine, and completed an Internal Medicine residency at Georgetown University Hospital. He has published several research journal articles dealing with racial bias in federal nutrition policy and lectures and writes on the intersection of diet, health, and national food policy.

Mr. Grove joins the Center after having spent the last two years serving as the host and producer of the Animal Wellness Podcast, the monthly show produced by the Center’s sister organization Animal Wellness Action, and will work to streamline the organization’s public relations, media, and marketing efforts and outbound content.

"It’s exciting to help this organization increase its voice on these critical issues,” said Grove. “Now more than ever, people are ready to learn and act on animal welfare, and we have powerful things to say on the topic.”

Animal Wellness Action (AWA) is a Washington, D.C.-based 501(c)(4) organization with a mission of helping animals by promoting legal standards forbidding cruelty. We champion causes that alleviate the suffering of companion animals, farm animals, and wildlife. We advocate for policies to stop dogfighting and cockfighting and other forms of malicious cruelty and to confront factory farming and other systemic forms of animal exploitation. To prevent cruelty, we promote enacting good public policies, and we work to enforce those policies. To enact good laws, we must elect good lawmakers, and that’s why we remind voters which candidates care about our issues and which ones don’t. We believe helping animals helps us all.

The Animal Wellness Foundation (AWF) is a Los Angeles-based private charitable organization with a mission of helping animals by making veterinary care available to everyone with a pet, regardless of economic ability. We organize rescue efforts and medical services for dogs and cats in need and help homeless pets find a loving caregiver. We are advocates for getting veterinarians to the front lines of the animal welfare movement; promoting responsible pet ownership; and vaccinating animals against infectious diseases such as distemper. We also support policies that prevent animal cruelty and that alleviate suffering. We believe helping animals helps us all.

The Center for a Humane Economy (CHE) is a non-profit organization that focuses on influencing the conduct of corporations to forge a humane economic order. The first organization of its kind in the animal protection movement, the Center encourages businesses to honor their social responsibilities in a culture where consumers, investors, and other key stakeholders abhor cruelty and the degradation of the environment and embrace innovation as a means of eliminating both.