Press Releases

Washington, DC —The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) welcomes bills – introduced today by Representatives Raúl M. Grijalva (D-AZ), Don Beyer (D-VA), and Debbie Dingell (D-MI), and Senator Tom Udall (D-NM) – to repeal the devastating...

Washington, DC —The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) commends Senators Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Johnny Isakson (R-GA) for introducing Tuesday the Scientific Assistance for Very Endangered (SAVE) Right Whales Act (S.2453) to help protect this highly...

Washington, DC —The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) welcomes the introduction today of the Animal Welfare Enforcement Improvement Act (H.R. 4211), which would protect animals from unscrupulous dealers and exhibitors and close existing loopholes in the...

Geneva, Switzerland —In a monumental move today, delegates at the 18th meeting of the CITES Conference of the Parties delivered a crucial victory for African elephants by voting in plenary to end the barbaric practice...

Geneva, Switzerland —Wildlife law enforcement champions from 10 countries were recognized today with the Clark R. Bavin Wildlife Law Enforcement Award at the 18th meeting of the Conference of the Parties (CoP) to the Convention...

London, England —As governments from around the world prepare to meet in Geneva this week, the fate of the critically endangered vaquita hangs in the balance. A new report, prepared for the 18th meeting of...

Washington, DC —Today, the Trump administration released final regulations to gut critical Endangered Species Act (ESA) protections, just months after a U.N. report warned of “unprecedented” and “accelerating” global mass extinctions caused by human activity....

Washington, DC —The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) and Cruelty Free International congratulate Illinois for joining California, Nevada, and more than 30 countries worldwide in banning the sale of animal-tested cosmetics. SB 241, sponsored by Senator...

Washington, DC —Earlier this week, the Trump administration reauthorized use of sodium cyanide in wildlife-killing devices called M-44s. These “cyanide bombs” received approval from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency despite inhumanely and indiscriminately killing thousands...

Washington, DC —As Shark Week kicks off July 28, restaurants across the nation are contributing to the rapid decline in shark species by serving up soup made from shark fins, despite bans in 12 states...

Washington, DC —In an important victory for Tennessee Walking Horses, the U.S. House of Representatives today passed the U.S. Senator Joseph D. Tydings Memorial Prevent All Soring Tactics (PAST) Act (H.R. 693) by a vote...

Washington, DC —The recent release of “ Long Gone Wild ,” a riveting documentary revealing the brutal truth about the ongoing trade in wild-caught orcas, highlights the intensifying controversy over confining cetaceans to barren concrete...

Washington, DC — Nearly 2 million Americans, joined by the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) and a broad coalition of animal welfare and environmental organizations , have registered their opposition to a U.S. Fish and Wildlife...

Washington, DC —The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) applauds the introduction today of the Traveling Exotic Animal and Public Safety Protection Act (TEAPSPA) in the U.S. Senate. Sponsored by Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ), this bill would...

Washington, DC —Conservation and animal protection organizations rallied outside the Mexican Embassy today to call on the Mexican government to take drastic action to save the few remaining vaquita porpoises left on the planet. According...

Washington, DC —The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) and the Humane Education Network (HEN) announced the winners of the 2019 A Voice for Animals contest. The annual contest offers monetary awards to high school students age...

Baku, Azerbaijan —The UNESCO World Heritage Committee today approved an “in danger” designation for an area of Mexico that is the last-remaining home of the critically endangered vaquita porpoise and a fish called the totoaba....

Washington, DC —The Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) is relieved to hear that no whales will be killed by Icelandic whalers this summer. In a June television news interview , Ólafur Ólafsson, a whaling vessel captain,...

Washington, DC –Japan faces international criticism and risks legal challenges as it launches a government-subsidized commercial whaling program to kill 383 whales this year with no international oversight. On June 30, Japan withdrew from the...

Osaka, Japan —Celebrities and animal conservation and welfare NGOs from across the globe are calling for an “international whaling intervention” to be staged at the G20 summit in Osaka as summit host Japan prepares to...