TIR executive director Dr. Gieri Bolliger was appointed as a Fellow of the renowned Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics in December 2020. The Oxford Centre is an independent institute dedicated to improving the ethical status of animals through research and education. Since 2006 it has been promoting animal welfare through academic studies and public discourse. The Oxford Centre also co-edits the Journal of Animal Ethics (JAE) with the University of Illinois and has its own animal ethics series with Palgrave MacMillan.

The Oxford Centre comprises over a hundred Fellows from nineteen different countries. The Oxford-Fellows are academics who conduct research in the natural sciences or humanities and who have made outstanding contributions in the field of animal ethics.

Under the rules, appointment is offered only once to successful individuals within their lifetime and the selection procedure is rigorous. Appointment is by invitation or nomination only and only a small proportion of those nominated are eventually selected as Oxford-Fellows.

According to Professor Andrew Linzey, director of the Oxford Centre "All these individuals are pioneering new work in animal ethics – helping to press the envelope in terms of new thinking”. With Gieri Bolliger, the Centre has now appointed the first Swiss animal welfare lawyer as a Fellow. TIR congratulates Gieri Bolliger on his appointment and looks forward to a close and exciting collaboration with the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics.