File:Alveus Sanctuary Logo.png | |
Formation | February 2021[1] |
---|---|
Legal status | Non-profit Organization |
Purpose | Conservation and online education |
Headquarters | Austin, Texas |
Region served | Worldwide |
Official language | English |
Executive Director | Maya Higa[2] |
Revenue (2021) | $763,380[3] |
Expenses (2021) | $144,411.80[3] |
Website | www.alveussanctuary.org |
Alveus Sanctuary is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that houses non-releasable exotic animals and provides online conservation education, primarily through 24/7 live-streamed content on Twitch.tv and produced content on YouTube.[4][5] The name Alveus borrowed from Latin alveus ("the channel or bed of a river").
History and Funding
Higa founded Alveus in February 2021, with a 21-hour-long live stream to raise initial capital to fund the sanctuary. The live stream raised over $500,000, with donations over $100 receiving a metal leaf that would be displayed at Alveus.[6][7] An auction was also held during the stream which included a pair of loafers from T-pain, and an hour with streamer Shroud which was won by Ludwig Ahgren (Ludwig) with a $53,000 donation.[8][9]
Alveus continues to use the live streams on Twitch as their main way to educate their audience on conservation, and to raise funds to continue operating. Since their founding, Alveus has raised over $1,000,000 through donations on their streams.[10] Alongside accepting donations at any time on the stream, they also host many dedicated fundraising events, such as their 2022 Art Auction which sold off paintings created by the ambassadors at the sanctuary for donations, raising over $40,000 during the single event.[11]
Other content creators also help to raise funds for Alveus, through collaboration streams at Alveus, or through dedicated fundraising events for Alveus. At DreamHack Atlanta 2022, Ludwig raised $315,000 during his 50-hour-long glass box stream, with 50% of that being donated to Alveus.[12] Fellow streamers Britt and Malena held a fundraising live stream for Alveus in November 2022 and raised over $20,000 for the sanctuary, during a period of time where Higa had stepped away from streaming.[13]
In April 2023, the new CEO of Twitch, Dan Clancy, visited Alveus to meet the staff and ambassadors.[14][15][16]
Conservation and Education Efforts
Alveus takes in animals for a variety of reasons, some of them being non-releasable due to injuries, or confiscations from the pet trade, and so on, with 32 animals at the sanctuary currently. These animals act as ambassadors for their species, all with different stories and conservation missions.[17][18] These animal ambassadors are used in Alveus' educational content to allow viewers to build a connection to the specific animal, and then learn to care for the species as a whole. “I learned that model of people falling in love with an individual animal and then caring about their species and planet,” Higa told KXAN, “If they knew, they would care, because they love these animals, and so my job is to be that bridge and teach people.”[18]
Stompy, an Emu, was the first ambassador at Alveus and helps educate viewers on the exotic meat trade, traditional medicine, and over exploitation of animal products in cosmetics. Higa hand-raised Stompy on many of her live streams as Alveus was initially built, with viewers watching him grow from a tiny baby to a 5ft-tall fully-grown Emu, quickly forming a close bond to the bird along the way.[19] Other ambassadors at the sanctuary include Macaws, European Red Foxes, a Carpet Python, Donkeys, Chinchillas, Marmosets, and more.[10]
The sanctuary is based on 15 acres of land in Austin, TX,[19] but is not open to the public due to safety concerns. Education at Alveus all happens online in a few different forms, from the 24/7 live cams of the ambassadors at the sanctuary, to collaborations with different content creators to spread the conservation messaging to a wider audience, and other produced content.[20][21][5][4] Higa hosts Animal Quest, a live series where each episode introduces viewers to a new ambassador at the sanctuary, teaches them about their story, their species' importance to the environment, and what they can all do to help.[18][22]
References
- ^ "About Maya | Alveus Sanctuary". Alveus Sanctuary.
- ^ "Alveus Sanctuary Inc - GuideStar Profile". GuideStar.
- ^ a b "2021 | Annual Reports | Alveus Sanctuary". Alveus Sanctuary.
- ^ a b "AlveusSanctuary - Twitch". Twitch.tv.
- ^ a b "Alveus Sanctuary - YouTube". YouTube.
- ^ "Twitch Streamer MayaHiga Raises $573,000 to Start Animal Sanctuary". Insider.
- ^ "Twitch's "Bird Girl" Raises $500,000 For Animal Sanctuary: Is Twitch the Future of Fundraising?". Popdust.
- ^ "Twitch in disbelief over man's $53,000 bid to hang out with popular streamer". Yahoo Finance.
- ^ "Maya's charity auction huge success as she goes bald, Ludwig pays $53k for hour with shroud". GINX.
- ^ a b "Texas Sanctuary Raises Money on Twitch". The Dallas Express.
- ^ "Maya Higa auctions off over $40,000 of art pieces painted by animals for Alveus Sanctuary". Dot Esports.
- ^ "DreamHack Atlanta attracts 27K fans from around the world". Atlanta News First.
- ^ "Britt and Malena raise more than $20k during Alveus Sanctuary charity stream". Dot Esports.
- ^ "Twitch's new CEO defends job cuts, plans creator meeting". TradeAlgo.
- ^ "Maya talks about having the NEW Twitch CEO at Alveus - YouTube". YouTube.
- ^ @TerkvLive (April 18, 2023). "Accidentally turned down a photo with the CEO of Twitch today because I didn't recognize him. He looked like a conversationist visiting Alveus" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ "Ambassadors | Alveus Sanctuary". Alveus Sanctuary.
- ^ a b c "How a Texas sanctuary uses social media to highlight animal conservation needs". KXAN.
- ^ a b "The Streaming Sanctuary | BirdNote". BirdNote.
- ^ "Collaborations | Alveus Sanctuary". Alveus Sanctuary.
- ^ "Twitch streamer HAChubby left terrified after sneak attack by goat". Dexerto.
- ^ "Animal Quest | Alveus Sanctuary". Alveus Sancutary.