Our Team
Marine Lercier
Founder & Executive Director
Director of Legal Research & Advocacy
Marine is a dedicated advocate for the intertwined causes of human and animal rights, committed to driving meaningful and long-lasting change. As a PhD candidate in Global Animal Law and a Researcher at the Autonomous University of Barcelona, she combines academic research with practical application to advance legal frameworks that protect and enhance the welfare and rights of animals. Marine is the Co-founder of the Journal of Animal Rights Law, where she serves as Editor-in-Chief, Financial Manager, and Conferences and Symposia Organiser, and the Founder, Executive Director, and Director of Legal Research and Advocacy of the International Centre for Animal Rights and Ethics (ICARE).
Her doctoral research pioneers the concept of ‘Animal Labour Law’©, exploring avenues to grant labour rights to non-human animal workers. Using racehorses as a case study, she aims to address gaps in their protection and safeguard racehorses’ fundamental interests, including through a legal right to retirement beyond their racing careers.
Marine graduated with high honours in Animal Law and Society from the Autonomous University of Barcelona. She completed the Cambridge Centre for Animal Rights Law Lecturers’ Workshop, regularly lectures on Animal Law and has organised and judged speed moot courts on human rights and animal rights. She also taught Animal Law and Roman law at the Autonomous University of Barcelona. She has coordinated numerous international and national academic conferences, symposia, roundtables, and book talks.
Known for her collaborative spirit and reliability, Marine frequently advises and collaborates with other researchers and NGOs and is always ready to help. She has been a Junior Fellow (2020-2022) and Fellow (2022-2023) of the Animals & Biodiversity programme at the Global Research Network Think Tank, where she contributed her expertise to a community of like-minded individuals and mentored Junior Fellows. She ran for the Animalist Party in France's parliamentary elections (2022), underscoring her commitment to legal, institutional, and policy reforms.
Meganne Natali
Legal Researcher & Lead Advisor on International Wildlife Crime
Dr Meganne Natali is a lawyer, lecturer, and leading legal expert in wildlife crime, holding a PhD in International Law and a Visiting Fellowship at Portsmouth University. She is dedicated to both advancing academic knowledge and implementing practical solutions to global challenges.
As a consultant collaborating with prominent organisations, including the Global Initiative to End Wildlife Crime, Four Paws, the International Centre for Animal Rights and Ethics (ICARE), and World Animal Justice (WAJ), she works to strengthen international legal frameworks aimed at combating wildlife crime and reducing zoonotic disease risks through the regulation of wildlife trade.
Additionally, as a Case Manager at the Doctoral Clinic of International Law and Human Rights of Aix-en-Provence (France), she is committed to nurturing the next generation of legal scholars and advancing groundbreaking research.
Catarina Oliveira
Project Manager & Video Editor
Catarina is passionate about animal rights and justice, and believes they are key to creating a better society for humans and non-human animals alike. She is committed to promoting animal welfare and social justice for all sentient beings.
With her experience as a Project Manager, Catarina has developed the ability to coordinate production and facilitate the smooth run of operations behind the scenes.
She takes pride in managing complex workflows, collaborating with specialised teams and supporting them to achieve effective results. She is excited to help projects and people succeed together towards a shared goal.
Lauren Bestwick
Marketing & Campaign Manager
Lauren has been vegan for five years and lives in the UK. She is a history graduate and an alumna of the Oxford University Society for Animal Ethics. She has been published in the Journal of Animal Ethics (JAE), where she examined attitudes towards animals in seventeenth-century England. Currently, she works in Digital Marketing.
Isabella
di Silvestro
Social Media Content Designer and Manager
Isabella is an undergraduate student in Environmental Studies at McGill University, learning about the environment and climate change from an intersectional lens. She has been vegan for five years and is a fierce advocate for animal rights, with dreams of working in animal rights law or policy. Alongside her passion for animals and the environment, Isabella has a creative eye and uses her skills to create informative, eye-catching content.
Louise Lallican
Legal Researcher, Animals in Disasters
Louise is a French legal counsel with a Master’s degree in International and European Criminal Law, as well as a university degree in Animal Law. She has gained valuable experience in legal and compliance roles in France and Ireland. Driven by a strong commitment to advancing animal welfare—particularly for wildlife and farm animals—Louise is dedicated to advocating at the legal and policy levels to strengthen protections and improve welfare standards for animals worldwide.