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Success Story – Anna Cabrera
“A better world for animals is a better world for all.’
Anna Cabrera is a long-standing advocate for animal welfare, environmental justice, and sustainability.
As a lawyer, advocate, and Executive Director at the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS), she has been instrumental in shaping the future of animal protection in Southeast Asia. PAWS is a non-profit organisation dedicated to promoting the humane treatment of animals through education, legislation and veterinary services. PAWS is a member of ACTAsia’sCompassionate Choices Network (CCN), and has been supporting ACTAsia’s Plant Forward campaign since its inception.
With over two decades of experience in the animal protection movement, Ms Cabrera is a leading voice in Southeast Asia on issues related to animal welfare, sustainable living and environmental advocacy. Under her leadership, PAWS has helped bring animal issues to the forefront in the Philippines.
Ms. Cabrera hails from Sampalok, Manila and has always been passionate about animal welfare. “I have been a cat rescuer since I was a small child,” she shares. “Sampalok is a very thickly populated, urban area. My sister and I would often find kittens, thrown away with household trash on top of garbage heaps, meowing so pitifully. When we would find them, pick them up, and bottle feed them until they were weaned.”
“It broke our hearts just to try to care for these animals,” explains Ms. Cabrera, “I went into animal welfare because of those cats.”
Established in 1954, PAWS is known for its multifaceted programmes aimed at ending pet homelessness and preventing cruelty. These include spay and neuter services, community-based Trap-Neuter-Vaccinate-Return (TNVR) initiatives and outreach programmes that bring affordable veterinary care to underserved communities. In addition to rescue and rehabilitation, PAWS is deeply committed to public education, legal reform and disaster relief efforts.
Anna Cabrera, PAWS and ACTAsia
Ms. Cabrera’s connection to ACTAsia is grounded in a shared commitment to education and sustainable living. She believes in ACTAsia’s advocacy for humane education and sustainability is interconnected with animal welfare. PAWS and ACTAsia became connected through Joy Lee, ACTAsia’s CCN coordinator. “Joy has been a good friend since the early 2000s,” Ms. Cabrera says. “She was the one who introduced Plant Forward to us.”
PAWS is a valuable collaborator with ACTAsia on its Plant Forward campaign, an annual two-week festival that celebrates the benefits of a plant-based diet and raises awareness about sustainable fashion and cruelty-free, eco living. Organised by ACTAsia’s Compassionate Choices Network (CCN), and reaching seven countries with online and in-person events, Plant Forward promotes the idea that our everyday choices – from food to fashion – can help build a kinder world for animals, people and the planet. For Ms. Cabrera, the campaign is a perfect fit with PAWS’ long-standing values.
“Up until we [PAWS] were approached for Plant Forward as part of the CCN, we hadn’t been able to do as much work promoting plant-based sources in our campaigns,” shares Ms. Cabrera. “It was exactly what we were looking for.”
Overcoming Ignorance and Teaching Compassion
Despite PAWS’ incredible impact, Ms. Cabrera shares that some of the toughest obstacles to animal welfare in the Philippines is denialism from farming industries and an educational framework in need of transformation.
“There must be a more humane or compassionate solution,” she says, “people need to be taught about animal sentience. At the moment, it is not part of the educational system.”
“When we have had campaigns about more humane farming practices, the industry is in denial that animals have welfare issues. I think it is easier for them to say that there is no pain and no suffering, because if you acknowledge it, then that would make the industry that you’re working for an evil one. And most people aren’t willing to accept that.
However, if at an early age, everyone has already been taught about animal sentience, I think that everything else will follow,” comments Ms. Cabrera. “We would have a kinder world.”
Hopes for the Future
Ms. Cabrera looks forward to seeing the Plant Forward campaign continue to grow. She believes it has the potential to influence policy, improve community health and transform attitudes towards animals and the environment. Her vision is rooted in practical experience but also in a belief that change is not only possible but already happening.
Having recently become an attorney, Ms. Cabrera is even more hopeful about the impact she can make. She envisions a Philippines where compassion and sustainability are at the core of everyday life, with stronger laws and policies supporting animal welfare and plant-based living. She believes that her legal expertise, combined with her long-standing advocacy and collaboration with organisations like ACTAsia, will help to overcome institutional challenges. “After we have established cases against animal offenders for dogs and cats, we aim to file cases that would hold the food industry accountable because they have not just violated animal welfare laws. They’ve also violated many environmental laws.”
“I want to go for the big industries,” she says. Her ultimate hope is to foster a more compassionate society where respect for all living beings guides collective action and decision-making.
For ACTAsia, working with PAWS and Ms. Cabrera is an honour. Her unwavering commitment, strategic insight and compassionate leadership continue to inspire those around her. Whether in the courtroom, at the shelter or on the stage at Plant Forward, her message is clear: a better world for animals is a better world for all.
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