News

Published: 04 January 2024

Meeting the greatly increased responsibility and complexity

The management of the German association Doctors Against Animal Experiments (DAAE) has been expanded to three people. With this step, the organisation meets the increased demands and opportunities to finally put an end to animal testing. The new structure with three specialised Chief Executive Officers will create even more stability and allows the growing association’s ever-increasing potential to be better utilised.

The previously sole Chief Executive Officer Claus Kronaus took office in June 2015; at that time, the organisation had six employees. In 2024, the organisation counts 26 employees, which translates into an enormous increase in complexity in their fight against animal experiments and in favour of animal-free research at all levels. Many new fields of activity and numerous new units have been added as a result of the increased number of employees. One example are the legal steps that DAAE has been taking and will expand further.

"Our workforce has more than quadrupled in the last 8 years thanks to our great supporters. We need more specialisation at management level in order to really do everything in our power to end the senseless suffering caused by animal experiments," says Claus Kronaus.

Claus Kronaus will take care of the finances in future. Dr Tamara Zietek, who holds a doctorate in biochemistry and was previously Coordinator of the DAAE Science Team, will now become Chief Executive Officer Science. As a long-standing research group leader for human intestinal organoids at the Technical University of Munich, she is an expert in animal-free research and experienced in leadership. Dr Zietek has already represented the association very successfully for years on the international stage, where animal-free research is booming - in stark contrast to Germany, where a strong animal research lobby is putting the brakes on innovation.

The new trio is completed by Dr Melanie Seiler, who holds a doctorate in biology and is also a primatologist. She will take over the management of public relations. Dr Seiler also has many years of relevant management experience as the former Chief Executive Officer of an association for animal and nature conservation. Her in-depth knowledge of primatology, behavioural research, and species protection in particular will significantly strengthen Doctors Against Animal Experiments’ scientific stance against animal experiments.

Claus Kronaus adds: "With all these necessary structural changes, we must never forget that our goal is to abolish ourselves. We want animal research to be a thing of the past – and with that, we want our organisation to become superfluous. In order for this to happen as quickly as possible, we need even more competent leadership than before."

The three new Chief Executive Officers of Doctors Against Animal Experiments:
(from left) Dr Tamara Zietek, Claus Kronaus, Dr Melanie Seiler

Credit: Doctors Against Animal Experiments