A day in the life of our skins campaign team

Now in its 25th year, the Charity Awards is the longest-running and most prestigious awards programme in the charity sector. 

This year our ‘Stop The Slaughter’ campaign was shortlisted in the Campaigns and Advocacy category, so our team share more about why the decision to become a leader in the fight against the global donkey skin trade is the biggest and boldest challenge we have undertaken in over 50 years of operation.

All aboard for the awards!

Watch as the team head to London for the awards…

Whilst we didn’t come out on top, we were honoured to receive the ‘Highly Commended’ award, with two incredible charities alongside us in the ‘Campaigning and Advocacy’ category – National AIDS Trust and Ashden Climate Solutions.

Our PR & Marketing Campaigns Manager Shona explains why the real significance lies beyond the outcome, 

“National platforms like the Charity Awards offer the chance to speak to new audiences, those who may be unaware of the scale, brutality and urgency of the donkey skin trade. Entering a national award takes time, thought and commitment. But it also builds momentum. It forces us to assess what’s working, to celebrate success, and to think strategically about how we communicate our impact.” 

Matthew Nolan, Chief Executive of Civil Society Media which organises the Charity Awards, congratulated The Donkey Sanctuary on making the highly-coveted shortlist. He said: 

“For a quarter of a century now, the Charity Awards has been showcasing and celebrating the terrific work of UK charities large and small. At a time when the sector is struggling with higher costs, shrinking donations and ever-increasing demand for its work, it is reassuring and inspiring to see the extent and quality of charitable activity that is still going on across the country.” 

A campaign worth celebrating  

It has been almost ten years since The Donkey Sanctuary first received reports of donkeys being bought or taken from villages in Africa, only to be found, days later, slaughtered with their skins removed. We did not know it at the time, but we were about to embark on the biggest donkey welfare protection movement in our history. 

Through years of research, grass roots action, partnerships and advocacy, we have developed a deep understanding of the drivers, actors and consequences of the global trade in donkey skins.  

Shona explains: “We have had to be bold, agile and willing to engage new sectors and forge unlikely alliances. By making the arguments relevant to them, we have engaged global transport companies, law enforcement and governments. 

“When we embarked on this campaign, we could not have imagined that today we would be co-hosting workshops with Interpol, developing aviation guidelines with the largest airline in the world or that we would see African leaders agree to ban the slaughter of donkeys for their skins. By being inventive, this campaign has gone from strength to strength and we believe an end to this devastating trade is in sight.” 

“We’ve learnt how to harness the talents, knowledge and passion of colleagues across The Donkey Sanctuary”, Shona continues, “This campaign has developed from a few committed individuals in a small team working tirelessly to make a difference, to a much larger body from almost every part of our global organisation whose skills and specialism have been leveraged to achieve these campaign milestones.” 

Moments that matter 

Take a look at what happened when the team arrived at the 2025 Charity Awards…

“You could hear a pin drop in the room when our Stop the Slaughter campaign was introduced”, Shona explains, “and then when the ban on the carriage of donkey skins by Emirates was announced the room then erupted in applause.”  

Awards provide a platform for important and sometimes little known issues, reminding everyone involved that their work is making a difference and deserves to be celebrated. 

Recognition like this not only strengthens our resolve but brings new allies to the cause. We are thrilled to have been recognised amongst some leading campaigns in the UK and are reminded why we will continue to fight to Stop the Slaughter.