The term “microsanctuary” was coined by MRC’s cofounders, Roz and Alastor Van Kleeck. After rescuing two hens from a local shelter in central North Carolina in February 2014, they started Triangle Chicken Advocates on 3 acres of land to provide a permanent sanctuary home to their new family members. While larger farmed animal sanctuaries were well known in the vegan community at that time, there weren’t widely available models of sanctuary for vegans who wished to do caregiving on a smaller scale.
After realizing that “sanctuary” was defined by ethics, standards of care, respect for individuals, and a commitment to animal liberation–not by property size–they began connecting with other vegan caregivers.
Thus began the Microsanctuary Movement!
In 2016, we launched our microgrant program. These grants of up to $1,000 became one of only a few sources of funds for animal care and resident-focused projects, for both individual vegans as well as nonprofit sanctuaries. Since our first grant–for chicken veterinary care–in early 2016, we’ve provided microgrants to hundreds of recipients around the world, supporting: animal medical care; resident infrastructure projects; emergencies due to medical issues and weather-related damages; and more!
Having originally started our organization as “The Microsanctuary Movement,” in 2018 we changed our name to Microsanctuary Resource Center, in order to better reflect our commitment to supporting and sustaining the microsanctuary movement through educational materials, community building, and funding.
We remain committed to building a better world and providing a vision for the animal liberation movement.
We support the growth of the sanctuary movement to be more diverse and inclusive, welcoming vegans of all identities and abilities to take part.
We believe that all beings deserve equality, respect, justice, and compassion.