ABOUT THE CENTRE FOR ANIMAL-BASED TOUISM

The Centre for Animal-Based Tourism is the world's first organization dedicated to transforming animal welfare across the global tourism industry.

WHAT WE STAND FOR

The whole orientation of our work.

CAT exists for a single reason: animals used in tourism deserve better, and the knowledge to give it to them already exists. Our job is to move that knowledge into practice.

I. MISSION

To move knowledge into practice for the just treatment of animals in tourism.

— What we do, day to day.

II. VISION

A just global tourism industry that values and respects the wellbeing of animals.

— The world we are working toward.

III. SLOGAN

Change through knowledge.

— The shortest version of all of it.

THE PRINCIPLES

Our Values.

CAT exists for a single reason: animals used in tourism deserve better, and the knowledge to give it to them already exists. Our job is to move that knowledge into practice.

Accountability

ii.

Collaboration

iii.

Justice

iv.

Research Innovation

Respect for Nature

vi.

Stewardship

vii.

Sustainability

viii.

Transparency

ABOUT DAVID A. FENNEL, PhD

The research behind CAT.

DAVID A. FENNELL, PhD

FOUNDER, CENTRE FOR ANIMAL BASED TOURISM

PEER-REVIEWED RESEARCH

BROCK UNIVERSITY

David A. Fennell, PhD. has spent his entire academic career asking questions the tourism industry has been slow to answer. What do we owe the animals that make our experiences possible? How do we measure their suffering? What does justice look like for a species that cannot advocate for itself in the boardrooms and policy chambers where decisions about its fate are made?

He created the animal ethics in tourism sub-field in 2000, at a time when the idea that animals deserved serious ethical consideration in tourism studies was not yet on anyone's agenda. In the 25 years since, he has published more in this domain than any other scholar in the world, building a body of work that now spans animal welfare, ecotourism, tourism ethics, conservation, and the science of suffering.

He is a Professor in the Department of Geography and Tourism Studies at Brock University, Canada, and the founding Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Ecotourism. He is recognized by ScholarGPS as a Highly Ranked Scholar, Lifetime, placing him in the top 0.05% of scholars worldwide across all disciplines. His books include Ecotourism (6th edition), Tourism Ethics (2nd edition), Tourism and Animal Ethics (2nd edition), Codes of Ethics in Tourism, and Sustainable Tourism: Principles, Contexts, and Practices, among others. He is the editor of the Routledge book series on tourism ethics and two Routledge Handbooks: Tourism and the Environment, and Ecotourism.

He has been the principal force shaping the tourism and animal ethics literature for a quarter century, and is a Fellow of the International Academy for the Study of Tourism, a body representing the top tourism scholars in the world.

CAT represents the natural progression of that body of work. Decades of research on animal welfare, ethics, and ecotourism now sits at the foundation of the world's first certification system for animal-based tourism operators, and an education mission reaching tourists, operators, and communities across the globe.

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THE FOUR PILLARS

How CAT works.

CAT's work is organized around four interconnected areas, each essential to the mission of transforming animal welfare in tourism.

Pillar i.

Research

CAT generates cutting-edge knowledge on animal welfare, ethics, and ecotourism through targeted research projects, graduate student support, and international scholarly collaboration. New knowledge is only useful if it reaches the people who need it, which is why research at CAT is always connected to practice.

Pillar ii.

Education and Literacy

Most tourists and most operators are unaware of the welfare impacts of animal tourism, not because they do not care, but because the knowledge has never been made accessible to them. CAT develops educational programs, welfare literacy frameworks, and practical tools that change that at every level of the industry.

Pillar iii.

Conservation

Animal welfare and conservation are inseparable. CAT's work addresses the broader ecological context of animal tourism, including biodiversity loss, habitat destruction, and the long-term survival of the species that tourism depends on.

Pillar iv.

Community Ecotourism Development

Transforming how animals are treated in tourism requires transforming the economic realities of the communities that depend on that tourism. CAT works with local operators and communities to develop responsible, sustainable models of ecotourism that protect animals and support the people who care for them.

PARTNERS AND AFFILIATES

A growing global network.

CAT works with operators, researchers, conservation organizations, and institutions across multiple countries and continents. The network is growing as the Justice Pathway gains recognition worldwide. If your organization shares CAT's commitment to animal welfare in tourism, we would like to hear from you.

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Affiliates & partner institutions