March 2019 by Kristen Auerbach, Director of Pima Animal Care Center

Audience: Executive Leadership, Shelter/Rescue Staff & Volunteers

Video Length: 51:25

Keynote: The Transparent Shelter, Building Trust with Your Community

What does it mean for a shelter to be truly transparent? In this session, no-kill leader, Kristen Auerbach, will tackle two separate but important topics in order for you to be one with your community. First, Kristen will explain the history of how a lack of transparency has led to mass killings in shelters. Second, she will describe some of the key characteristics of a truly transparent animal welfare organization. This presentation was recorded by Maddie's Fund® at the 2019 American Pets Alive! Conference.

About Kristen Auerbach

Kristen Auerbach is the Director of Pima Animal Care Center, Pima County's only open-admissions animal shelter which takes in 17,000 homeless, lost and abandoned pets annually and serves 15,000 animals through animal protection and outreach services. Under her direction, PACC is saving more than 90 percent of the cats and dogs who come to the shelter including orphaned puppies and kittens, pets recovering from illness and injuries, and animals who have been victims of cruelty or neglect. In 2017, she oversaw the opening of the newly-constructed state-of-the-art, animal services facility.

Kristen has received national recognition for her innovative, lifesaving programs. Her efforts have been featured in numerous national publications and websites, such as Animal Sheltering magazine, the Huffington Post, BarkPost, the Dodo and Buzzfeed, and on TV networks, including CNN, Fox and ABC. Kristen formerly served as the Deputy Director at Austin Animal Center in Austin, Texas as well as the Assistant Director at the Fairfax County Animal Shelter in Fairfax, Virginia.