Mission
We advocate for animals through photojournalism. Our global investigations and stories expose our complex relationships with animals, create ethical and cultural shifts in society, and empower human capacity for compassion and change.
Explore our 2024-2025 Strategic Plan to learn more about our plans to achieve this mission.
We expose. The animals we eat, wear, use for entertainment, research, tradition, and work are often hidden from view, both physically and metaphorically. Unwaveringly, we use our cameras not just to look at animals but to see them and to explore how all our lives intersect with the pressing issues of our time. Our ground-breaking animal photojournalism supports the efforts of advocacy communities globally, and facilitates changes in attitudes and behaviours more broadly. We understand that seeing is a crucial part of the diverse efforts necessary to erode and eventually end the abuse of animals.
We educate. In a split second an image can show what a thousand words can’t. Alongside our images of animals, we include interviews, research, data, and stories to educate us about their sentience and our behaviours. Our work educates through campaigns, films and books, and through humane education and public presentations.
The data that backs our stories and image captions provides validity and truth to all of our work. When you share our stories or use our visuals, you will be equipped with the information needed to spark conversation, awe, and change.
We empower. Our stock platform is a free global resource for anyone helping animals. We empower campaigners, writers, researchers, students, and activists with the visual tools they need to increase and engage their audiences.While much of our work shows our fraught relationships with other animals, we also document and celebrate innovation and acts of compassion. Via our many stories of change and progress, we aim to fuel inspiration and change.
History
We Animals was born from Jo-Anne McArthur’s desire to accurately document how we use animals. In Ecuador in 1998, she witnessed a monkey chained to a windowsill trained to pick the pockets of tourists; while everyone seemed to find this entertaining, McArthur instead wanted to take a photograph that could convey the degradation of both this monkey and the people in this moment of exploitation.
This planted the seed for a new kind of reporting coined by McArthur in 2020: animal photojournalism.
In 2019, We Animals was founded as a nonprofit organization dedicated to this emerging genre of photojournalism that represents not only wild or charismatic animals, but farmed, experimented upon and otherwise exploited animals. We Animals has grown from one woman and her camera to more than 120 international photojournalists covering animal industries in more than 80 countries. We have conducted hundreds of assignments, launched and run a stock platform and fellowship program, published three books, and help NGOs and media tell animal stories.
Areas of Focus
Food Systems
Compassion and Change
Aquatic Life
Environment and Health
Values
Excellence
To ensure the high standard of our work.
Collaboration
To work with other animal advocates, organizations and media to tell the stories of animals.
Leadership
To lead the genre of animal photojournalism into the mainstream so that animal stories are clear, persuasive and moving.
Integrity
To represent animal stories with veracity and truthfulness; to acknowledge and embrace our animal advocacy while remaining journalistic.
Generosity
To make our stock platform available for free for those working to make change on behalf of animals; to offer funding and expertise to animal photojournalists.
Learn more via We Animals’ Living Our Values document, which describes how these values are reflected in the way we conduct ourselves as a team and as an organization.