(Community Recognition Statement, 7 May 2024, Legislative Assembly, NSW Parliament)

On behalf of the Sydney electorate, I wish to acknowledge the 20 years of strategic work of Voiceless, the animal protection institute. Voiceless plays a vital role in examining and improving animal law and policy, has developed animal education programs, especially targeting schools and carries out independent research and reports on animal cruelty. The small organisation produces an animal law toolkit and an animal cruelty index that compares Australia with other countries. Voiceless work covers a wide range of issues and animals: from ducks to dairy cows, live export, broiler chickens, kangaroos, battery hens, pigs, puppy farming and animal sentience. They provide an encyclopaedic amount of information and evidence about animals and how we treat them. On top of that Voiceless provides grants to support animal protection projects and ground-breaking research and innovations. Voiceless exists because of the philanthropy of the late and wonderful Brian Sherman and his daughter Ondine, who established the organisation. The Sherman family continues to fund this impressive range of work and also founded the Sherman Contemporary Art Foundation. I commend Voiceless for this unique contribution to our understanding and treatment of animals and their ongoing efforts to protect animals.