Interview! Joyce Briggs, President of the Alliance for Contraception in Cats & Dogs “I am determined it’s going to be my legacy in this field that we get the tools that we need to really reach the cats we want to be able to help.” Joyce Briggs, President of the Alliance for Contraception in Cats & Dogs (ACC&D), told us all about how she got started in the field in Episode 157. She’s back this time to talk to Stacy about the ACC&D symposium that’s being held in Boston, July 22-24. The three-day conference kicks off with a reception – and a refresher class on dog and cat reproduction! – on Sunday evening, and then goes into two full days of content, featuring over forty speakers. ACC&D is focused on non-surgical approaches to fertility control, and Joyce herself is particularly passionate about that in regards to community cats. She knows how difficult it can be to have enough surgical resources out there to help the number of community cats that need it, and she feels that non-surgical sterilization can be a great addition to our toolbox. The July symposium will round up all the work that’s been done in the field, and showcase the newest work and developments as well. There will be a major focus on two particular questions: How would a product be implemented in the field? and How do we make decisions ethically? Joyce encourages cat advocates – from higher-ups in the animal welfare world to those doing “boots on the ground” work – to attend the symposium, as she feels that it’s critical for the people working on designing non-surgical sterilants to understand what’s important to those working in the field. To learn more about ACC&D and the July symposium, you can visit acc-d.org.