Welcome to the inaugural post on the Be the Change for Animals!

Be the Change (for animals in need) is a movement that began at BlogPaws, the first-ever convention for pet bloggers held in March, 2010. The message delivered that weekend was simple yet inspiring: If we band together for a common cause and spread the word, we can create a better world for animals.

The response was fantastic. On April 16th, 2010, more than 50 bloggers engaged their audiences by outlining their visions for change. They addressed the needs of shelters, volunteered their time, hosted Paw Pawties and supported one another. Their readers participated too. There was a tangible feeling of solidarity, a coming together, a sense of community.

So, we all set off on our missions – each working independently to reach our stated goals — but it was difficult to keep up with the scattered blogs and tweets, the successes and the needs. We missed our community connection.

And that’s when it hit us. Our best way to “Be the Change” was to build this website for people passionate about animal causes. The premise is simple. If you can commit just a few minutes a week, you can Be the Change!

Get involved. It’s easy!

There are four ways to participate: Champion a cause, support a cause, blog about a cause and comment on a cause. Here’s what we mean.

Cause of the Week: Have one?  Submit it here! We’ll choose one cause to announce each Monday, outlining the issue at hand and how you can help. Your response, should you choose to participate, will take less than 15 minutes and no money is required. We’ll announce milestones along the way and celebrate the winning goal: making a difference for animals in need! Oh, and we’ll never ask for money. How cool is that?!

Blog the Change Days: Held on the 15th of January, April, July, and October, Blog the Change is your chance to rally folks behind your cause. Highlight a shelter in need, foster a dog or collect pet food for food pantries, the ideas are endless. Once you’ve posted, add your link to our list. (Don’t look for the list now. It only goes live on Blog the Change Days. Learn more here). Don’t forget to Tweet it (hashtag #BtC), post it to Facebook and visit other participants. Don’t have a blog? Leave a comment for somebody else. A kind word inspires change too!

What now?

Get our news through email, RSS, Facebook and/or Twitter. On Monday, we’ll announce our first cause and your first opportunity to Be the Change for Animals. You won’t want to miss it!

We’re eager to move forward and we’re glad you’re on board.

All the best,

Kim, Amy and Rod