Emily Knickerbocker (she/her)

Leadership Team - Government

Emily Knickerbocker is a graduate student at New York University, pursuing a Master’s degree in Animal Studies. She currently serves as an Intern at the Mayor’s Office of Animal Welfare in New York City. Most recently, Emily completed a six-month paid fellowship as a Legislative Intern with the ASPCA, where she worked closely with the federal lobbying team on Capitol Hill to advocate for animal welfare policies.

Before pursuing graduate school, Emily worked at the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA) in Washington, D.C., where she served as Senior Coordinator and later Foundation Relations Manager. Over nearly four years at NPCA, she managed her own foundations portfolio, cultivated donor relationships, and collaborated with cross-functional teams to secure funding for conservation efforts across the Mid-Atlantic Region and the Youth Engagement Program.

With a BSC in Animal Science from the University of Vermont, Emily brings a wealth of knowledge and experience in animal welfare, conservation, and environmental policy. She has a longstanding commitment to animal advocacy, with previous experience as a Communications Intern for Humane Society International in London and as an ICU Technician at Vermont Large Animal Clinic.

Yair Atlas

Leadership Team - Ethic and Academics

Yair is an M.A. student in NYU's Bioethics department. He is passionate about creating a better world for non-human animals and believes that building communities of like-minded people is crucial in this goal. As an undergraduate, Yair collaborated with various student organizations and non-profits to foster a strong network of animal advocates on campus. Further, he's written about ethics of dietary choice, animal experimentation, and the value of animal lives.

Caya van der Sluis

Leadership Team - Food Systems

Caya is a Dutch Fulbright student in the M.A. Animal Studies program at NYU. Ever since she had her first course in animal studies years ago, she has been in love with this academic field. Everything she has learned about non-human animals as a result has made her more passionate about fighting for their lives and happiness. She has been a vegan for six years now, and combined with her previous master’s in agroecology, her biggest interest lies with nonhuman animals in our food system and how we can improve their lives and end their exploitation. As a result, she’s responsible for arc’s projects that are linked to food and the environment.

Tanya Chaudhry

Treasurer

Tanya is a senior at the College of Arts and Science majoring in Chemistry and minoring in Psychology with a concentration in Pre-Law and an avid interest in pursuing a career in medical ethics. Growing up loving all animals, Tanya has been a mom to three toy poodles, Ella, Belle, and Prince, and a foster mom of a black cat, Jose. From working with different animal shelters and nonprofit organizations like PETA and Animal Haven, Tanya is committed to serving the outreach community for animal welfare and rights.

Iliana Rios

Branding Director

Iliana is a senior in the College of Arts and Science, majoring in Environmental Studies and minoring in Animal Studies. She loves exploring the city and spotting urban wildlife. This year she looks forward to spreading the word about the Animal Rights Collective and joining other students in fostering compassion for animals. Iliana just finished an internship with the Leave It Better Foundation, facilitating classroom discussions about the environment and advocating for the impactful organization through social media.

Cassandra Salazar

Branding Team- Website

Cassandra is a senior studying computer science at the NYU College of Arts and Science. She aims to become a software engineer and also use her skills to help wildlife in any way that she can. She loves to be in nature and hopes to make a difference in animal rights and welfare in the future.

Elisa Matson

Branding Team - Social Media

Elisa is a senior in Global Liberal Studies studying politics rights and development with a minor in french and law and society. This year she plans on completing her senior thesis on the artificial insemination of female cows and society’s treatment of bodies. She is the social media manager for the ARC and has been passionate about animal liberation since 3rd grade. Her dog, Bianca is her whole wide world.

Naveen Kumar Bhaskaran

Branding Team - Website

Naveen is currently pursuing an Executive MBA at NYU Stern with a focus on Sustainability, AI, and Leadership & Change Management. He is fully dedicated to a vegan lifestyle, firmly believing that a world free of animal cruelty and exploitation is not just aspirational but should be the standard. Naveen enjoys exploring new vegan restaurants, traveling, and connecting with like-minded individuals. With nearly two decades of experience in technology, he aims to leverage his expertise and MBA to help organizations combat climate change and reduce their carbon footprint.

Naveen Kumar Bhaskaran

Branding Team - Website

Naveen is currently pursuing an Executive MBA at NYU Stern with a focus on Sustainability, AI, and Leadership & Change Management. He is fully dedicated to a vegan lifestyle, firmly believing that a world free of animal cruelty and exploitation is not just aspirational but should be the standard. Naveen enjoys exploring new vegan restaurants, traveling, and connecting with like-minded individuals. With nearly two decades of experience in technology, he aims to leverage his expertise and MBA to help organizations combat climate change and reduce their carbon footprint.

Gabrielle Zimerman

Branding - Newsletter

Gabrielle is a senior majoring in Psychology in CAS and minoring in Child and Adolescent Mental Health Studies, Public Health, and Art History. She has been a vegan for 9 years and has always had a passion working with animals, and has wanted to be a veterinarian since age 5. All throughout high school she was the president of Vet Club and she even had the opportunity to work with exotic animals one summer in Costa Rica. She is hoping to do something related to animal therapy and is looking forward to being a member of ARC!

Alicia (allie) Abramson

Branding - Photography and Videography ​

Allie is a pre vet graduate student in the Animal Studies Department who helps create digital content for the ARC. She plans to attend vet school after finishing her graduate degree, and the bulk of her research revolves around veterinary medicine and an ethical consideration of shark treatment in the tourism and captive settings. She is also vet tech for birds and exotic animals at the Center for Avian and Exotic Medicine, a renowned practice and the only exclusive avian and exotic animal hospital in NYC. Passionate about shark conservation and protection, she's conducted participant ethnographic research at the New York Aquarium and has gone undercover to investigate shark hunting tournaments in Long Island.

Rosey Jones

Musical Events Director

Rosey Jones is an animal rights and environmental activist with education and experience in music business, management, audio, event planning, and creative utilization of the internet. She’s in a band called Dasi and has more than 4 years of experience managing bands + social media, running events, releasing original music, and growing and engaging audiences online. She’s been vegan for 6 years and has had a lifelong love and connection to nature. Through her music and events she aims to educate and empower younger generations, cultivate a sense of community and belonging, and inspire positive action towards environmental and social change.

Devyn Costello-Henderson​

Musical Events Coordinator

Devyn is a senior studying classical vocal performance in Steinhardt with a minor in French. She is extremely passionate about unearthing our relationship to the natural world, remembering that all species are interconnected and therefore deserve protection. As an environmental and social justice activist, she has worked with many climate organizations such as Sunrise and Extinction Rebellion, and she is looking to connect this work with performance to bring a wider audience to the movement.

Morgan Greenlaw

Greener By Default Liason

Morgan is a sophomore at CAS studying Biochemistry, considering a career in medicine. She successfully campaigned for a daily vegan option in her high school’s cafeteria, and has spoken to her entire grade on the importance of plant-based eating. She recently completed a fellowship with New Roots Institute to campaign for default vegan menus. Morgan fosters collaboration between the Greener by Default Coalition at NYU and the Animal Rights Collective, connecting food system reform with animal rights and welfare. Driven by the horrific reality of factory farming, she is determined to make change our food system for the animals, the environment, and humans.

Melissa He (she/her)

Volunteer Events Director

Melissa is a junior in Gallatin, studying conservation science, animal studies, public policy, and arts. She grew up with many non-human family members surrounding, and she has committed to being the voice for the voiceless. Melissa has worked with The Ocean Foundation for coral reef conservations, and she also loved working with shelters. In her spare time, she has run a social media account in Mandarin regarding animal rights for four years. She recently joined WATR lab and the ARC, where she loves being in community with the most loving people! And of course, she loves her furry family members (Morris and Riffle) more than anything.

Lucy Whitney

Advisor

Lucy is a recent graduate of NYU with a degree in Global Liberal Studies, concentrating in Sustainability, Health, and the Environment, whose passions include environmental education and fighting for a more just food system. She is an alumna of the New Roots Institute's Fellowship through which she worked on plant-based defaults with the Greener by Default Coalition at NYU. She is a Teaching Fellow at New Roots and a Campus Education Architect at Switch4Good, both positions that allow her to develop and deliver food and environment-centered curricula. She is also completing research about native bees and urban farming in NYC through a grant provided by Food4Thought. Outside of advocacy, she loves being outdoors and experimenting with new recipes!

Adalea Khoo

Advisor

Adalea is a senior majoring in Environmental Studies and minoring in Animal Studies. She's passionate about the intersection between animal agriculture and climate change, especially how environmental justice plays into that relationship. Adalea has collaborated with the Humane League, PETA, and the Animal Defense League at protests and is always looking for the best way to end the exploitation of all sentient beings. She hopes to see you at our events this year!

Alden Smathers​

Advisor

Alden is a recent NYU graduate who is passionate about veterinary medicine, animal behavior, and welfare. She majored in Anthropology with a minor in Animal Studies and Chemistry. Alden is also a member of the WATR lab where she is working on a systematic review of aquatic animal welfare in aquaponics. She leads farm tours and works with the Koi, Goldfish, and Mirror Carp at Oko Farms. Alden is looking forward to helping plan and organize events centered on decolonial approaches to conservation with the ARC.