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Every year, the Humane Research Council conducts an annual survey of U.S. adults that we call the "Animal Tracker." The survey enables advocates to track and understand how public opinion and behavior is changing over time, with respect to a wide variety of critically important animal protection issues. HRC has just completed year four of the Animal Tracker and the report is now available (for free) on HumaneSpot.org.

We're getting ready to launch year four of HRC's Animal Tracker annual survey of the public opinion and behavior of adults in the U.S. This year's survey, which will field in March, addresses specific behaviors that people change (or not) due to their concern for animals, perceived importance of humane education, and support for various advocacy tactics. We asked the exact same questions in 2008 and will be able to analyze changes over time. When the results are available in April, we’ll also refresh the Animal Tracker graphing tool that we launched in 2010.

2010 was the biggest year yet for HumaneSpot.org, with more users and more research content to help advocates help animals. The website is the Humane Research Council's primary means of sharing new research and we're excited to see that so many of you are making use of HumaneSpot.org and finding it valuable in your work for animals!

In our recent interview with Gene Baur of Farm Sanctuary, Gene pointed to "the rapid influx of vegan and vegetarian foods into society as one of the greatest advancements for the farmed animal movement." The Humane Research Council (HRC) works to support the growth of the vegetarian food industry by offering market research and insight under the name "Cultivate Research." Our goal is simple -- working with businesses to increase the availability of non-animal products and make foods that appeal to non-vegetarians to help reduce the suffering of farmed animals.

In a nutshell, the Humane Research Council (HRC) does three things: 1) Help our clients by designing -- and analyzing results from -- a wide variety of research projects; 2) Make resources like HumaneSpot.org available to both animal groups and individual advocates; and 3) Produce independent research to inform advocates and help them be more effective. However, some readers may not be aware of HRC's independent research; the full reports are free and available online, so here's a quick overview.

When fellow animal advocates ask me questions about research on animal protection issues, I typically ask them if they have looked at our research primers. In response, I usually hear "Research what? Where?" I am guessing that many advocates, even those of you who follow our work, are not aware of the full wealth of free data we have available. Here I want to highlight HRC's research primers, since they are a free resource that can help all advocates better understand the issues on which they are working. So let me tell you a little about them.

Written by Diane Venberg, one of HRC's 2010 interns, this wonderful overview of HumaneSpot.org shows the breadth of our research database and highlights a number of important studies. Be sure to give this blog a read if you've been wanting a taste of what HumaneSpot.org has to offer before applying for access. And if you have any research that you think should be included in our database, be sure to let us know.

As those of us at HRC mention regularly, the purpose of conducting research is often to overcome (or validate) our own assumptions and biased viewpoints. It can be difficult for advocates who feel strongly about animal protection to understand the attitudes and behavior of those who are less moved by the suffering of animals. To really know what non-advocates think - and why - it is essential to ask them directly and then filter their responses through rigorous analysis. You may be surprised by the answers and how different they can be from the beliefs of animal advocates.