Earlier this month, Niki Gianni - recently turned 17 - was honored with the Young Animal Activist Award at the 2010 Animal Rights National Conference (ARNC) in Washington, D.C. The Award is presented each year by ARNC to a young person who has made an outstanding contribution to animal liberation before his or her 18th birthday. This year the Award was presented to Niki by MFA's Nathan Runkle, a past recipient of the Award himself. Other past recipients include major figures within the animal rights movement, including Paul Shapiro of The Humane Society of the United States.
Niki became inspired to help animals nearly ten years ago. Her family had planned a summer trip to Sea World, but upon discovering the numerous whales, dolphins and other marine animals captured and killed for its theme parks, her mother canceled the trip and brought Niki to see orca whales in the wild instead. Niki immediately became involved in working to stop cruelty to marine mammals, which "flourished into a desire to help all beings from goldfish to elephants to cows and everything in between." Niki went vegan in the eighth grade after viewing footage of factory farm cruelty and is now an active member of MFA's volunteer team. In 2008 she was presented with the Youth Activist of the Year Award from Mercy For Animals.
Niki is now looking forward to becoming a veterinary technician and wildlife rehabilitator after high school and still continues her campaign to stop cruelty to marine mammals - working to free captive dolphins and whales from theme parks across the globe.
