Our Philosophy

We believe that innovative and effective policy solutions are born in a space of collaboration. Problems don’t exist in a vacuum–they may be intertwined into the very fabric of all of our lives. Finding common ground and shared perspectives about these problems we share can help determine next steps in a spirit of mutual trust and cooperation. So let’s sit at the table together and see where the conversation takes us. Our differences may also be our strength–and a bridge to lasting change.

Our Team

Announcing our Board of Directors and additional Team Members soon - stay tuned!

Amy Van Aartsen, Executive Director and Co-Founder of The Marty Project

Amy Van Aartsen is a triple alum from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with degrees in Organic Chemistry (MS), Public Health (MPH), and Biochemistry (BS). She currently works in medical research using novel alternative methods, including diseased patient-derived cell lines.

She believes that the technology largely already exists to move away from using dogs for human product safety testing and this issue can be tackled through a public health dissemination and implementation approach supported by legislative changes. Amy hopes her background in science and public health will be an asset to working collaboratively with policy makers, scientists, and biotechnology companies to better understand and address barriers to implementing new technology so we can promote dog welfare while simultaneously advancing science.

Amy has had the privilege of having beagles as companion animals throughout her life. She is the proud dog parent to her beagle, Maggie. Amy has been organizing at the grassroots level for the last several years after she first learned about the issue of dogs being used for human product safety testing and is thrilled to be able to focus on upstream advocacy efforts to prevent dogs from ever entering laboratories.

*Amy's views are solely her own and do not represent that of her employer.