Erica Meier - Celebration of a Legacy
From All-Creatures.org Animal Rights/Vegan Activist Strategies Articles Archive

FROM AnimalOutlook.org
March 16, 2021

"Thank you, from the bottom of my heart. Though I’m leaving Animal Outlook, I do so knowing the dynamic team will continue to thrive as a powerful, unwavering national force for farmed animals" - Erica Meier.

Dear Friends,

When I started working at Compassion Over Killing (now Animal Outlook) in 2005, we had three staff members and a shoestring budget but we were brimming with determination and resolve to create a kinder world for animals. While so much has changed since then, our commitment remains steadfast and continues to be one of our greatest strengths.

In serving as Compassion Over Killing’s Executive Director and more recently as President of Animal Outlook, it has truly been an honor to lead this organization through incredible growth, momentous change, formidable challenges, meaningful victories and an ambitious new era with our organizational rebrand in 2020.

After leading this charge for the past 16 years — and after much soul searching — I have made the decision to step down. I’m deeply grateful for the abundant opportunities this role has provided to merge my personal passions with my professional path, and I will carry these experiences with me as I forge ahead, exploring new endeavors. My last day will be May 7, 2021.

While many of you have only known this organization with me at the helm since 2005, it’s always been powered by the collective force of our entire team. It’s their ongoing commitment, creativity, and mission-driven energy that has inspired me throughout the years.

My spirit is lifted when I think of our victory removing the egg industry’s misleading “Animal Care Certified” claim from cartons, CNN breaking the news of our undercover video inside a chicken factory farm, persuading BOCA Foods to go 100% egg-free, 25,000 vegans and pre-vegans alike celebrating at our DC VegFest, and so much more.

As I reflect on my tenure here and look toward the future, I’m filled with pride knowing that our tireless efforts have had a profound impact on our movement, our society, our food system, and most importantly, on the lives of animals. While there is still much to be done, Animal Outlook’s unrelenting and innovative work is uprooting the systemic cruelties of Big Ag and shifting vegan eating from the margins to the mainstream. The plant-powered food revolution is now well underway.

These victories and advancements for animals will continue under the bold leadership of Cheryl Leahy, who I’ve had the honor to work alongside since 2006 when she joined our team as General Counsel. She has long been a thought-leader in our movement, and at Animal Outlook she has pioneered groundbreaking legal and investigative initiatives, successfully targeting the harmful practices animal ag relies upon to exist and shuttering the doors of these facilities.

In the past several years, Cheryl’s leadership has expanded — to Executive Vice President in 2019 and as of December 2020, to Executive Director. In this new role, she has already taken the lead in the organization’s visionary and strategic development as well as overseeing the day-to-day demands.

By harnessing the power of compassion, Animal Outlook is blazing a path for change: exposing truth, delivering justice, revolutionizing the food system, and inspiring others to stand up for animals by leaving them off their plates. Your support makes it all possible.

Thank you, from the bottom of my heart. Though I’m leaving Animal Outlook, I do so knowing the dynamic team will continue to thrive as a powerful, unwavering national force for farmed animals.

With heartfelt gratitude,

Erica Meier
President

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