Maya Angelou once said, “Good done anywhere is good done everywhere.” Wherever we live and whatever our lifestyle, physical capabilities, or time limitations, it’s easy for each of us to do something that will make a difference for animals.

On the road or in the air? Stock rest stops and airplane seatbacks with PETA literature. Live in a house? Leave a bowl of water on your porch or deck for birds and squirrels. Have a break at work? Share animal activism posts. It all starts with you.

There are countless ways to advocate for animal rights. Here are some simple things you can do in your daily life to help animals. Most take less than five minutes, but their impact can last a lifetime.

• Share what you know about animal rights. For example, when someone asks why you’re vegan, tell them what happens to animals in the meat, egg, and dairy industries and give them a vegan starter kit.
• Set a good example for your community by having your animal companions spayed or neutered and keeping them up to date on veterinary care.
• Show off your compassionate lifestyle. Share photos of your delicious vegan meals on social media, and wear animal rights T-shirts everywhere.
• Give animal rights books as gifts. Animalkind by PETA President Ingrid Newkirk and Gene Stone and 250 Vital Things Your Cat Wants You to Know and Making Kind Choices, both by Ingrid, are effective for spreading awareness.

Take action online. The internet offers countless ways to get involved wherever you are.

• Sign up for PETA’s action alerts. You can play a vital role in getting animals out of cruel situations by speaking up about a variety of urgent animal issues.
• Follow PETA on Facebook, download our iPhone app, and sign up for our mobile alerts to stay up-to-date on our campaigns.
• Keep an eye out for current issues involving animals, then write letters to the editors of newspapers and magazines. They could be seen by thousands of people.
• Choose a clever animal rights name (such as “Milk Is Mean” or “End Speciesism”) for your Wi-Fi to spread the message to people searching for available networks.

Get involved in your community. What better place to stand up for animals than your own backyard? Talk to your neighbors—they may want to take action for animals with you!

• Place PETA literature in community centers, Little Free Libraries, doctors’ offices, gyms, and magazine racks—wherever people will see it. You can order everything you need here.
• Share your personal story about going vegan, adopting a homeless animal, switching to cruelty-free cosmetics, tearing up your tickets to an animal-abusing circus, or another animal rights topic through blog or social media posts or just in casual conversations with friends, family, or coworkers.
• Join PETA’s Action Team. We’ll notify you of protests, movie screenings, and other animal rights events being held in your area so you can act quickly and get involved with like-minded people.
• Encourage local schools to incorporate PETA’s humane education program, TeachKind, into lesson plans.
• Lobby elected officials to create new animal-friendly legislation, such as a spay/neuter ordinance or a ban on tethering dogs outdoors.

Include the whole family. Teaching kids to respect animals from a young age helps them grow into kind adults.

• Volunteer with a local vegan group or animal sanctuary and invite your grandchildren or a group of kids from the neighborhood to join you.
• Make fleece blankets and cat toys to deliver to local animal shelters.
• Host a garage sale and donate all proceeds to the animal organization of your choice.
• If you run, bike, or swim, join the PETA Pack to raise funds and awareness for animals.
• Decorate your neighborhood, bus stops, and local strip mall with some animal rights stickers.

Focus on food. Everyone has to eat, so every meal is an opportunity to spare animals and inspire others to make compassionate food choices.

• Put meatless crumbles next to ground beef and “chicken” sliders next to nuggets in the grocery store to inform shoppers of cruelty-free options. And chat with the cashier (loudly enough for the person behind you to hear) about the great vegan ice cream and cheese the store sells.
• Invite a friend to your favorite vegan restaurant so they can experience delicious animal-friendly eating.

Change takes time and effort, but anything is possible when we all work together!