Abstract
Inequities exist in all facets of society, and animal welfare organizations (AWOs) and their communities are no exception. These organizations interface with multiple stakeholder groups. An active analysis of stakeholder groups to identify under-served areas and communities has not been performed. Using stakeholder data from Toronto Humane Society (THS) from 2015–2019, this study performed a retrospective spatial analysis to identify well served and under-served geographic areas for adopters, surrenders, public veterinary service (PVS) clients, volunteers and foster parents, using Hot Spot analysis. Correlation analysis was performed to determine whether the spatial distribution of the groups correlated with the four socioeconomic metrics of the 2016 Ontario Marginalization Index (residential instability, material deprivation, dependency, and ethnic concentration), and a metric representing the distribution of Indigenous residents. For each stakeholder group, there were well served areas, typically in central Toronto where THS is located, and under-served areas, typically in the north-west and north-east corners of Toronto and in the surrounding cities of the Greater Toronto Area. The area served by THS PVS extended further north than the other hot spot areas. The number of adopters increased as the residential instability metric increased, whereas the number of adopters decreased as the ethnic concentration metric increased. The rate of surrenders increased as the Indigenous metric increased. Public Veterinary Service clients increased as the residential instability, material deprivation, and Indigenous metrics increased. One of the primary limitations of this study was the confounding factor of distance from THS. Individuals living further from THS are less likely to utilize its services, particularly if there is another accessible AWO nearby, and therefore may appear to reflect an under-served population that may not truly be under-served. A regional approach would help to overcome this limitation. The results provide useful insights into stakeholder engagement and provide a foundation for analysis of more targeted areas, as well as for strategies to reach under-served demographics. Similar analyses by other AWOs would be helpful to address inequities in a larger geographic area. Animal welfare organizations can improve program effectiveness by adding data analytics skills to the more traditional skills associated with this sector.
Highlights
The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed and exacerbated deep and chronic societal inequities, many of which are directly related to race and class [1]
Animal welfare organizations interface with, and create a community of, multiple stakeholder groups. These include those who derive meaning and belonging from giving, those who welcome and cherish new non-human family members, and those who utilize other services provided by animal welfare organizations (AWOs). This culture of compassion and giving is difficult to reconcile with the statement that “the animal welfare industry lives at the intersection of white privilege and systemic racism” [4]
The Greater Toronto Area (GTA) is comprised of 1,274 census tracts (CTs) of varying sizes, with populations ranging from 10–23,401
Summary
The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed and exacerbated deep and chronic societal inequities, many of which are directly related to race and class [1]. The murder of George Floyd in May 2020 was the catalyst for sustained protests by Black Lives Matter and other movements, primarily in the U.S and in other countries, including Canada This defining moment has led to seismic changes in social awareness, causing many individuals and organizations to examine their role and culpability in perpetuating systemic inequities, and their responsibility to acknowledge and address past mistakes. Animal welfare organizations interface with, and create a community of, multiple stakeholder groups These include those who derive meaning and belonging from giving (volunteers, foster parents), those who welcome and cherish new non-human family members (adopters), and those who utilize other services provided by AWOs (surrenders, public veterinary services). This culture of compassion and giving is difficult to reconcile with the statement that “the animal welfare industry lives at the intersection of white privilege and systemic racism” [4]
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