Panel Discussion on The Care Necessities: Mental Health in Captive Care

Описание: This Panel discusses various aspects of mental health and how the panelists have dealt with this in their personal and professional lives. All participants gave consent for their experiences to be made public on Youtube.

As head of Animals Asia's Vietnam Bear Rescue Centre, Heidi Quine champions a diverse, international team of veterinary and bear care professionals. Having lived in Asia working with bears and animal welfare for 11 years, Heidi recognizes the inextricable link between team wellness and the welfare experienced by bears in the sanctuary,she prioritizes her team's well-being in her leadership approach. Heidi researched and advocated for Animals Asia setting up an Employee Assistance Program which has been rolled out globally to all team members, giving them free access to mental health care and wellbeing support and is a vocal proponent of accessing the service, as she want to break down the stigma surrounding mental health. Animal Asia Foundation - https://www.animalsasia.org/

Kyle Banton-Jones, zookeeper and founder of Wild Enrichment—a consulting company focused on enhancing animal welfare practices through behavioural husbandry. Through guidance and expertise, Wild Enrichment have introduced innovative enrichment programs and techniques that have positively impacted the lives of countless animals. Kyle also has a fantastic podcast and website full of resources about animal enrichment. We asked Kyle to join us on the panel because he published an insightful and impactful blog titled Learn to Soar - Dealing with Burnout in the Animal Care Industry. In this blog he uses the most brilliant analogy of vultures and mental health which we will certainly be asking him to talk to us about. Wild Enrichment- https://wildenrichment.com/

Sarilana Warilan, a professional facilitator and coach with specific interest in leadership and behavior change, conservation education and communication. With almost two decades of experience, Sari mental health has championed mental health awareness and support after seeing her colleagues struggle, as well as her own battles. Previously working for organizations such as RARE Indonesia, Sari has now co-founded Digdaya Selaras, an agency that focus on developing people who are working in sustainable development and conservation sectors. Sari is currently developing a program for NGOs to discuss mental health and wellbeing within their organizations, recognising it as an essential component of organizational development and success. Digdaya Selaras - https://digdayaselaras.id/

About the event: The Asia for Animals Sanctuaries and Rescue Centers Coalition is teaming up with Wild Welfare to discuss mental health in captive care! Often, keepers, animal carers, veterinarian staff and managers own welfare is overlooked as they strive for the best for the animals in their care. But on top of everyday life, and the worry for your animals, their future, and the future of the planet it can all get overwhelming. The Care Necessities: Mental Health in Captive Care is a free, two hour online event where we will welcome speakers from around the world to talk about many aspects of mental health, and what you can do to look after yourself, or support those in your team. Recorded August 30, 2023.

The Care Necessities Event Page - https://www.sarccoalition.com/events
Asia for Animals Sanctuaries and Rescue Centers Coalition - https://www.sarccoalition.com
Wild Welfare - https://wildwelfare.org/

If your NGO is interested in joining the Asia for Animals Coalition, https://www.asiaforanimals.com/join-afa