Open Sanctuary Project
The Open Sanctuary Project is a freely accessible, always growing digital guide for any resources or information you need in order to responsibly create and successfully manage an animal sanctuary or to provide the best possible care to animals in order to help them live long, healthy, happy lives free of exploitation.
All of their resources are researched and responsibly crafted with the intention of promoting compassionate care standards and practices for animals in need of help and sanctuary, while identifying and discouraging practices that are exploitative or harmful to the individual.
Global Federation Animal Sanctuaries
Every day, the world over, wild and domestic animals are abandoned, displaced, or injured by humans and natural causes. The sole purpose of The Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries (GFAS) is to ensure that these animals receive the highest standards of care during rescue, rehabilitation, and the rest of their life.
GFAS is the only globally recognized organization for certifying that a facility meets the GFAS Standards of Excellence and recognizes those as a true “sanctuary.” As such, facilities around the world, large and small, come to GFAS for guidance and support in achieving and maintaining GFAS-accredited status.
American Sanctuary Association
American Sanctuary Association (ASA) is an accrediting organization that requires accredited animal sanctuaries to comply with a variety of high quality animal care standards and housing requirements. Besides a detailed application process, in which we review organizational qualifications such as financial stability, fundraising procedures, board oversight, permits and licenses, organizational bylaws, educational materials and veterinary references, we also visit all animal sanctuaries to assure that their facilities and animal care merit our endorsement. In addition, ASA accredited sanctuaries are not allowed to breed, sell, or trade animals or use them for commercial purposes.
Microsanctuary Resource Center
The Microsanctuary Resource Center (MRC) started in late 2014 with the goal of inspiring vegans to rescue farmed animals with their existing resources. The result was an effort to create a new model for sanctuary, as well as to build a community of activist-caregivers within the larger sanctuary and vegan movements.
Originally launched as “The Microsanctuary Movement,” the organization began with a set of Core Principles, a grant program, species care guides and discussion groups like Vegans with Chickens, and other resources. Even more important was the sense of identity and community that was fostered in activists around the world.
Now, as MRC, their goal is to continue providing support and information for microsanctuaries to help provide safe homes to rescued animals who typically aren’t considered “companions” – not just farmed animals, but other species like rodents, fishes, and even insects who are exploited in various ways but rarely treated like members of the family, in the context of anti-oppression and liberation activism.
Their goals are to continue promoting high, companion-level care standards for all non-humans; to break down the speciesist divide between “companions” and “others”; to empower activists of all backgrounds to participate in animal rescue; and to help achieve collective liberation for all beings.