About ZOE

At a time when more and more people are aware of the challenges facing our planet, the mission of Zoe is to transform the way we relate to our fellow animals, to nature and to each other.

Background

Zoe is a project of Michael Mountain, past president and co-founder of Best Friends Animal Society.

As the flagship of the no-kill movement, Best Friends led the way nationwide as the number of animals being killed in shelters dropped from 15 million each year in the early 1990s to less than 5 million 15 years later. Today, Best Friends continues its work for homeless pets.

Meanwhile, however, our planet is in crisis, and millions of other kinds of animals are losing their lives and their homes. Their future is very uncertain. So, too, is our own.

And, just as it was for homeless pets 20 years ago, there’s a prevailing sense that there is little that can be done.

But we’ve seen, over and over , what can be done when people come together to meet a challenge. And millions of people around the world imagine a time where they can come together to do good for our fellow animals and the planet.

Just as, 20 years ago, the humane movement needed a fundamentally new approach to its relationship to homeless pets, so a transformation is needed in our relationship to the animals and nature — one that applies that same “no-kill” philosophy on a global level.

The Team

Michael Mountain – Editor-in-Chief. Michael was one of the founders of Best Friends Animal Society, the largest sanctuary for companion animals and the flagship of the no-kill movement. As President of Best Friends and editor of Best Friends magazine, Michael was the face of Best Friends, building a committed, grassroots membership base that pioneered adoption and spay/neuter programs all over the country. By the end of the 1990’s, the number of animals being killed in shelters dropped from 15 million each year to less than 5 million. Today, the no-kill movement is firmly established and, now under new leadership, Best Friends continues its work for homeless pets.

Meanwhile, millions of other kinds of animals are losing their homes all over the planet. At the grassroots level, a new pioneering effort is called for. Shortly after stepping down from his work with Best Friends, Michael teamed up and co-founded Zoe with Landon Pollack, a successful entrepreneur with a passion for animals.

Lori Marino – Science Editor. Lori is senior lecturer in psychology at Emory University, and is considered the leading expert on the brains of dolphins and the intelligence of marine mammals. She is the Founder of The Kimmela Center for Animal Advocacy, which focuses on applying science and scholarship to animal advocacy.

Hal Herzog – Psychology Editor. Hal is Professor of Psychology at Western Carolina University, and author of Some We Love, Some We Hate, Some We Eat – Why It’s So Hard to Think Straight About Animals.

Ptolemy Tompkins – Culture Editor. Ptolemy is former Senior Editor at Guideposts magazine, and the author of several books, including Paradise Fever and, most recently, The Divine Life of Animals.

Bonney Brown – Companion Animals Editor. Bonney is the Executive Director of the Nevada Humane Society, and the original director of the No More Homeless Pets Campaign at Best Friends Animal Society.

Gay Bradshaw – Ecology Editor. Gay is the executive director of The Kerulos Center, whose mission is to translate knowledge of animals as fully sentient beings into animal care, conservation, policy, and human-nature relationships.

Ingrid Fromm - Web Manager.  Ingrid is former TV producer for Cablevision’s Local Programming and Web Producer for News 12 Interactive and then Web Manager for North Shore Animal League America.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Campaigns and Partnerships

Zoe works closely with other organizations looking to bring about a fundamental change in our relationship to other animals. These include:

• The Nonhuman Rights Project, which is working to break through the legal wall that separates humans from nonhumans, thereby gaining legal “personhood” for nonhuman animals, beginning with some of the most intelligent animals on earth, like chimpanzees, elephants and dolphins.
• The Kimmela Center for Animal Advocacy, a community of scientists, scholars, educators, writers, and advocates who apply science, scholarship, analysis and education in the service of animal advocacy projects.
• The Orca Superpod, an informal group of scientists, journalists, attorneys, former orca and dolphin trainers, and many others who work together to bring an end to the captivity of marine mammals at seaquariums and other institutions.
• StubbyDog, which is working to change irrational fears and prejudices that lead to discrimination against any dog with a “pit bull” appearance. Pit bull-type dogs now make up the majority of homeless pets in shelters.
• And to grassroots groups of all kinds that are looking for help in building their membership and fundraising programs.

Zoe provides editorial and communications support, and publicizes the work of these important efforts.