We changed our name to be more effective

The rebranding to 'Animal Welfare Observatory' is the result of exceptional work that has kept us busy for the past year, particularly in the communication department.

We are extremely radical. When the data and the voices around us, particularly those with more experience in communication, tell us that we need to update our image, name, and communication style, we challenge the status quo and guided by our value of persistence, we embark on an irreversible journey to create a new brand that aligns with the organization's new direction and needs.

The main challenge we encountered was finding a way to balance our political work with a more direct and impactful approach based on launching campaigns targeting companies and producing investigative reports.

Using a mixed communication style means that we hadn't been able to satisfy a large portion of our followers, who demanded either a more institutional approach or a more rock & roll style, but not both at the same time. This situation was hindering our organic growth of members, not to mention the confusion it generated within the team due to this hybrid communication approach. What was lacking were clear guidelines from a well-defined communication framework. These challenges provided us with a splendid opportunity to regenerate and start from scratch and create a theory of change that would establish the steps we will take to move us closer to fulfilling our vision: a food system free from factory farming.

Years ago, several voices with experience in communication and branding were already suggesting to us the possibility of a rebrand, based on aligning both the name and the logo with our mission and vision.

I have to admit that at first, I resisted. However, I came to understood that a process of growth and maturity involves a personal challenge of how to do things better. If both communication experts and our advisors were proposing a rebrand, who was I to oppose the organization's growth?

In fact, it didn't take long for me to become one of the strongest supporters of the rebrand. Furthermore, I came to realize that a natural process this change should involve a redefinition of our vision and our direction.

So we handed over the project's management and creative aspects, including the name and logo change, to the communication department. "Animal Welfare Observatory" is the name that best represents the nature of our work, allowing us to engage on both institutional and corporate fronts. After all, the concept of an "observatory" is to oversee whether companies truly uphold their stated commitments.

Our rebranding process has been accompanied by a change in the organization's direction. Through the refinement of our mission and vision, as outlined in our theory of change, we have established the steps to follow, progressively moving closer to our vision: a food system free from factory farming.

Our ambition goes beyond merely achieving the highest standards of animal welfare in factory farming. It extends to eradicating it because factory farming represents the most severe form of cruelty to animals. No animal deserves to be treated the way they are in factory farms.

That's why we are full of  energy and excitement to introduce the Animal Welfare Observatory and do our part to ensure that all the dreams we've outlined in our theory of change and vision come to fruition.

Furthermore, to accelerate change, we will continue to focus on supporting and leading international campaigns and we will remain part of the international coalitions we are currently involved in in order to continue fostering collaborative ecosystems with dozens of organizations.

We are committed to a style of communication with direct, impactful, and visual features, just as we have done under the Equalia brand, through research releases that expose the harsh reality animals face daily. But the novelty lies in combining direct and visual information with a dynamic, fun, fresh, youthful, ironic, and even satirical communication approach.

The topics we bring to the table are highly sensitive due to the harshness of the field we operate in – animal abuse. Nevertheless, we want to provide a perspective of hope: not everything around us is bleak; we have thousands of reasons to be optimistic. We are the organization that injects energy, strength, and positivity into change!

You will discover positive and hopeful tones that engage with our audience and share the optimism we feel as we bring you stories of victories for animals. We even laugh at ourselves, because, in the end, we are human and we all need to include optimism, joy, and hope in our fight for a better world... which we will certainly achieve!

Join our army of volunteers, and together we will bring an end to the cruelest practices in factory farming. You'll proudly be able to say that you were part of effective activism and that you helped eliminate cages and the factory farming industry. The animals need you!

Additionally, there are other ways to support the Animal Welfare Observatory. For example, could you contribute monthly by donating a small amount to help sustain our work? Donate here.

We are building a legion of volunteers, and that's why I'm asking you, the person reading this, that if all those images of extreme cruelty to animals that you have seen have moved you to tears, take those tears and turn them into action.