About Bridges of Respect
The animal protection movement is a movement to uplift humanity. A sense of compassion toward animals is a natural precursor toward ethical and thoughtful behavior in people. Cruelty can only take place when humanity's most prized values of compassion, responsibility, mercy, and empathy, are absent. Our efforts to protect animals are our efforts to help humanity avoid the traps of ignorance, materialism, violence, and convenience that underlie all great injustices.
Established in March of 1999, Bridges of Respect offers a series of dynamic, educational presentations on animal and environmental issues for middle school and up in the Twin Cities metro area. Programs are modified for each age group.
The interactive programs encourage student participation and critical thinking by combining lively discussions with short videos and activities. Programs are flexible in length and format to meet the interests of the audience, and may be tailored to fit specific curricular needs. Bridges of Respect's instructors are available to present at school assembly programs, classrooms, after-school club meetings, and other community organizations.
Bridges of Respect is funded through grants and public donations. Bridges of Respect is a Twin Cities-based, tax-exempt nonprofit that seeks to transform our society into one that maintains a nonviolent and sustainable relationship towards the nonhuman world.
Lisa Kimball, President
Lisa Kimball began working with Bridges Of Respect in 2001 and became President in 2004. Working with volunteers, coordinating resource development, organizing tabeling events and the group's finances, as well as, creating promotional and educational materials are just some of the activities on Lisa's part that have made Bridges Of Respect successful.
Lisa has held a variety of leadership rolls with nonprofit organizations and is currently a member of Compassionate Action for Animals' fundraising committee. She holds an Associate of Arts degree from Anoka Ramsey Community College and has been active in the Minneapolis community for many years.
About Bridges of Respect's Humane Educators
"We don't tell students what choices to make, we teach them that their choices matter."
Christine Coughlin
Christine Coughlin has been an Educator with Bridges of Respect since 2005 presenting Lions, Tigers & Bears: Animals In Entertainment. As Executive Director of both Minnesota Voters for Animal Protection and the well-known Minneapolis non-profit Circus Reform Yes, Christine has a specialized knowledge of society's use of animals for entertainment. As well as other venues, she has provided presentations for students ranging from 6th to 12th grade and brings her real world experience of working on animal protection with policy makers and the media into the classroom.
Christine earned her BFA from the State University of New York at Purchase and is also proficient in American Sign Language. For Deaf or Hard of Hearing classes or groups she co-presents alongside a Deaf Humane Educator.
Shannon Kimball
Shannon Kimball began working with Bridges Of Respect in 2001. Since then he has presented various topics to thousands of students ranging from the 6th grade to college ethics classes. He also plays many other rolls within the group developing programs, coordinating presentation dates and library displays on nutrition, training others to present, and advertising.
Shannon graduated in 2008 with an Associate in Arts degree from Century College and is pursuing freelance art. He is a member of Compassionate Action for Animals' fundraising committee and has helped coach a couple of after school clubs. Shannon enjoys working with students to help put animal protection into focus with our daily lives.
Program Advisors
Freeman Wicklund
Freeman Wicklund founded Bridges Of Respect in 1999 and served as the primary humane educator until 2003, and now works with Mercy for Animals, a national animal advocacy organization. Despite moving to Ohio, he takes an active and important role in advising Bridges of Respect and its humane educators.
Freeman studied philosophy and political science at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois before changing his major and school to get a B.S. in Nutrition at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities campus. He received humane education training at the International Institute of Humane Education in Surrey, Maine.
During his nearly three decades of advocacy, Freeman has held numerous leadership roles within the animal protection, environmental and social justice movements. He currently serves as Adviser to Bridges of Respect and on the Advisory Board for both Seeds for Change Humane Education in La Jolla, California and the Institute for Animals and Society based in Baltimore, Maryland. In 2001 he was one of the Green Party endorsed candidates for the Minneapolis Public School Board.
Gregory Oschwald
Gregory Oschwald has been working with Bridges of Respect since 2003. He has a JD from Yale Law School and an undergraduate degree in mathematics. As a law student, he explored the role of our legal and social system on animals and the environment, and as an undergraduate, he took an extensive array of science and math courses.
In the past decade he has worked with numerous non-profits, within both the animal protection and social justice movements. He has served on the Compassionate Action for Animals' Board of Directors and as the Chapter Director for their most active chapter. He also acted as the coordinator of Bridges of Respect's presentations from early 2004 until late 2006.
Ramona Ilea
Dr. Ramona Ilea is an Assistant Professor of Philosophy at Pacific University where she teaches ethics classes, including "Environmental Ethics," "Animal Ethics," and "Ethics, Medicine and Health Care."
Ramona has over twenty-five conference presentations as well as a number of published articles. The latest one, "Intensive Livestock Farming: Global Trends, Increased Environmental Concerns, and Ethical Solutions," was just published in the Journal of Agricultural and Environmental Ethics. She was also recently asked to write the "Animal Rights" entry for the Encyclopedia of Global Studies.