PETA Asia was just named the most influential international charity on Sina Weibo – the major Chinese social media network that resembles Twitter. This impressive achievement is a testament to PETA Asia‘s constant work to educate the public about the ways in which animals are abused and how to help them!

Social media is a big deal in China – after all, there are 659 million active social media users in the country, more than in Europe and the US combined. And while the mainstream media are not always the most reliable source of information, online channels play a vital role in exposing cruelty and helping people learn the truth.

Fortunately, PETA Asia is ensuring that the message that animals deserve respect and kindness is being heard loud and clear. The group’s posts and videos on YouTube, Weibo and other Chinese networking sites, such as QQ and WeChat, regularly reach millions of people.

Here are just a few examples of how online advocacy is changing hearts and minds:

A post about the Chinese angora industry reached 72.5 million people, and the investigative video was viewed hundreds of thousands of times.

Chinese actor Sun Li teamed up with PETA Asia and Ogilvy & Mather for an innovative art installation, “Fur Hurts” , which was shared 23,719 times and reached 20 million people. As a result, 240,000 people pledged never to wear fur on an accompanying website.

, which was shared 23,719 times and reached 20 million people. As a result, 240,000 people pledged never to wear fur on an accompanying website. Posts exposing the cruelty of the dairy and meat industries reached tens of millions of people.

In a project that turned the tables on fur-wearers, PETA Asia created a fake online shop that attracted customers interested in buying fur. When they tried to purchase the items, however, they were confronted with information about how animals suffer in the fur industry.

Hard-hitting investigative videos about the products of cruel industries, such as dog leather and civet coffee, have been viewed hundreds of thousands – or even millions – of times.

Of course, there is always so much more work to be done, in China and around the world, before animals will get the protection they deserve. But, day by day, the message of compassion is being heard by more and more people, and our movement is gaining the momentum it needs to make the world a kinder place for animals.

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