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Greece Integrates Animal Protection Into Disaster Management
FOUR PAWS supports our partner organisation, Dogs' Voice, in its new role as national Animal Crisis Coordinator
Greece has taken an important step toward making animal protection a formal part of national disaster management. With the launch of the National Plan for the Protection of Animals During Natural Disasters, animal protection is moving from ad hoc emergency response into the country’s formal civil protection system.
The plan was launched under the joint authority of the Ministries of the Interior, Climate Crisis and Civil Protection, and Environment and Energy. The involvement of the Ministry of the Interior is particularly significant: it signals that animal protection is not treated solely as an environmental or civil protection matter, but as a question of national governance.
Crucially, the new framework recognises that animals must be considered not as an afterthought, but as an integral part of disaster preparedness and emergency response. In a country increasingly affected by wildfires, heatwaves and other hazards, this is an important development. When animals are included in disaster planning, responders can act faster, coordination can improve, and more animals can be rescued, treated, sheltered and reunited with their families.
How the organisation Dogs’ Voice is redefining animal disaster response in Greece
At the centre of this development is Dogs’ Voice, a Greek animal welfare organisation that has been responding to disasters since 2017. Over the years, the organisation has become a leading operational actor supporting companion animals affected by wildfires, floods and other emergencies. Its work includes animal rescue, emergency veterinary care, temporary accommodation, registration and identification, reunification with guardians, foster care and adoption.
Dogs’ Voice has also advocated for animals to be formally included in Greece’s disaster management and civil protection system, helping drive a major institutional shift. Under the new framework, the animal welfare movement has elected Dogs’ Voice to serve as the national Animal Crisis Coordinator, with responsibility for coordinating animal welfare organisations during disasters and working within the broader civil protection framework.
By not accepting direct government funding, Dogs’ Voice maintains its independence to advocate for animals, lobby decision-makers and hold government accountable. Collaboration instead takes the form of in-kind government support, such as providing public space for a temporary emergency animal shelter, while Dogs’ Voice contributes the expertise, manpower and, often, its own funding needed to make these resources fit for purpose.
Importantly, the framework creates a space for NGO collaboration in animal disaster response, regardless of which organisation holds the Coordinator role. Dogs’ Voice has earned its position through its track record and operational experience, while the structure ensures that the NGO seat remains an independent partner to the state.
The next steps
Over the next three years (2027–2029), Dogs’ Voice will play a central role in implementing Greece’s new animal disaster response system. Its work will include strengthening animal emergency response capacity, supporting dedicated rescue structures, contributing to firefighter training, providing temporary animal accommodation, and helping integrate animal-related procedures into Greece’s wider disaster preparedness and response framework.
This will be a demanding phase. Formal recognition is a major achievement, but it is through implementation that the new system will be tested and strengthened.
FOUR PAWS has been partnering with Dogs’ Voice under a framework agreement with the organisation. We were grateful to attend the launch on 15 June 2026 and celebrate this milestone with Dogs’ Voice and its team. We warmly congratulate them on this important achievement and look forward to scaling up our partnership as they enter the next phase: turning this national commitment into a functioning system that protects animals during disasters.
To support this work, FOUR PAWS is releasing a support package to help Dogs’ Voice make the necessary preparations ahead of the coming wildfire season and ensure it is ready to respond and rescue animals as part of the Civil Protection system.
For animals in Greece, this means their needs are now recognised within the systems designed to protect life during disasters. When disaster strikes, more animals should have a better chance of being found, rescued, cared for and brought to safety.
