We are animal welfare and environmental protection organization with a strong will to end animal cruelty and protect our environment from everyday human devastative actions. We are a group of effective altruists from a different professional background, working with a collaborative spirit towards shared responsibilities.

Our ideas are dynamic in nature, yet specific. We take action across key issues affecting animals, humans, and our immediate environment. Our work span animal welfare, environmental health, climate change, effective altruism, and sustainable agriculture through plant-based food systems.

Because we believe everything that has life is sentient, which also includes animals, therefore, we strive to ensure animals are equally treated on the grounds of social justice, respect and compassion, by taking actions across humane education, corporate and institutional campaigns, research, policy and governance.

Because we believe all life forms coexist in different habitats surrounded by the same environment, therefore, we work to ensure the environment is not polluted by human actions due to negligence or deliberate action. We take actions across biodiversity enrichment, preventive measures against agricultural chemicals and other industrial pollutants, public health awareness on zoonotic diseases and pandemics, and awareness on environmental-friendly and sustainable food systems.

Because we believe human actions like animal exploitation, and carbon and forest footprints contribute to climate change, we work to ensure that in the discharge of our duties, we carry communities along in the fight against climate change through awareness, education, adaptations, and preventions.

Because we believe in the principles of EA and ideas, we work to ensure our work ethics reflect these principles which are: commitment to others, openness, integrity, scientific mindset, and collaborative spirit. And also work around EA ideas which are existential risk, emerging techs, effective mindset, and expanding compassion. We do this through capacity building and applying the EA principles around work ethics.

Because we believe in the United Nations Sustainability goals, we ensure our work reflects some of the sustainable goals like climate action, life on land, zero hunger through alternative protein and sustainable food systems, life below water, and partnership for the goals.

Since its inception in 2019 till date, at the Animal Protection Organization of Nigeria – APON, we continue to uphold our passion and expand our ideas toward a safe haven for animals and a clean environment. Our work has attracted the Nigerian government and international communities, who truly care, and appreciate our work. In testimony thereof, APON has officially been recognized by the Ministry of Environment, as an environmental organization, working to improve environmental health. Similarly, the Oyo state government (old western region) under the ministry of education has equally granted us approval to teach animal welfare and environmental health in schools across 5 local government areas of the state.

In 2019 and 2020 respectively, we launched our ‘respect and justice for all’ campaign in schools, targeting k2-k5 pupils in selected schools in Lagos and Oyo state. The objective of the campaign was to teach compassion among children. Through respect and justice for all, children will learn the foundation of moral values which encompasses kindness to humans, respect for animals and the environment. We believe when kids grow with this ideology, they will grow up to become more sensitive about the environment and compassion to humans and animals alike.

Another program we launched in 2022, which is still on-going, was the marine life enrichment. The intervention is to improve welfare of aquatic life and the biodiversity along coastal lines, by engaging communities along coastal areas through education, advocacy, and awareness about the importance of keeping coastal lines free from debris and other harmful materials. The campaign was flagged-off on October 4, 2021, which happens to be World Animal Day.

In July of 2021, the Animal Protection Organization of Nigeria was awarded a grant size of $30,000 through CEA Animal Welfare Funds to launch a 1-year chicken welfare campaign toward a cage-free Nigeria. Through the EA Animal Welfare Funds, APON has implemented diverse interventions in commemoration of the campaign – ranging from a cage-free radio program, corporate outreach, institutional campaign, and vegan advocacy.

Another program APON launched in the second quarter of 2022 was the dog welfare project. At APON, we pride ourselves in animal welfare work. This covers all animals, both domestic and wild. The canine welfare project was established to find out about the exponential increase of dogs at the dog meat market in two major meat market in Ibadan, Akinyemi market and Molete market.

Our partnerships with regional and international bodies have opened new windows of opportunity for us as this has improved our professional work and expanded our reach. We have been represented and continue to represent APON in various animal and global health conferences. In 2022, APON was proudly represented at EA Global, London organized by the Centre for Effective Altruism, Cage-free Conference in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania organized by African Network for Animal Welfare – ANAW, and Cage-free Summit organized by the Open Wing Alliance – OWA.

The convener and founder of APON is AMB. Joseph Odika. He was conferred a climate Ambassador by WeDIDit Health, a US-based health and wellness organization. His interest in animal welfare and protection started in 2012, then as a publisher of a polo sports magazine. A column in his magazine known as ‘Poloplus Magazine’ was dedicated to pony welfare after he witnessed a young stallion die from a fatal limb injury during one of the polo games he was capturing. A few years later – he expanded the article to cover all animals. And in October 4^th of 2019, he founded the Animal Protection Organization of Nigeria, alongside his friend and Co-founder.

AMB. Joseph is one man too many. He works with the strength of 10 men put together. He has role-modeled leadership roles beyond human comprehension.  He has fearlessly spearheaded protests and campaigns against big brands in Nigeria alongside his brave and dedicated volunteers who always roll in their teeming numbers.

As a dynamic young and vibrant vegan, he has been spreading the vegan message across sections of people and institutions to address the menace of factory farming and the impact of carbon and forest footprints, and how to upscale interventions.