Our Board

Julianne Petersen – Chair

Julianne was appointed Chair of the Board in December 2020 after founding Director, Michael Kennedy stepped down. She has almost 40 years of executive management experience running major retail operations in a number of settings and brings a wealth of business expertise to the organisation. She has also served on a number of nonprofit boards gaining governance expertise that she brings to the HSI Board.

Gregory Tolhurst – Secretary

Greg has a long established career in the legal profession having both practised and taught law at senior levels. He is PhD qualified, a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and currently the CEO of the Australian Bar Association and a Professor of Commercial Law at the University of Sydney in the School of Law.

Jeffrey Flocken – President of Humane Society International

As the president of Humane Society International, Jeffery leads our work confronting cruelty and advancing the welfare of animals in more than 50 countries. He works with international executive directors, professional campaigners, scientists and lawyers to advocate on behalf of all animals around the globe. Before joining HSI, Flocken worked as the North American regional director for the International Fund for Animal Welfare and for the U.S. government, where he focused on international species conservation policy, outreach and global conservation grant programs. He has served as a consultant on numerous movies, books and television shows addressing wildlife conservation and animal welfare topics. He lives in Virginia with his wife, their daughter, rescue cat Dasher and dog Chewbacca, whom HSI rescued from the dog meat trade.

Kitty Block – Director

Kitty is the President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Humane Society of the United States and CEO of HSI Global. With her legal background, she has worked as a legal investigator uncovering cruelties and achieving major policy reforms including European Union and US bans on imports of dog and cat fur and bans on slaughtering horses for human consumption. As CEO of HSI Global, she oversees all international campaigns and programs and continues to expand them in both impact and scope.

Alison Corcoran – Chief Development and Marketing Officier

Alison Corcoran is the chief development and marketing officer for the Humane Society of the United States and Humane Society International. She leads our Marketing, Communications and Philanthropy departments while implementing robust fundraising strategies to support our work for all animals. Corcoran brings a wealth of experience to this role, including expertise in marketing and digital strategy, crisis management and corporate branding. For more than 20 years, she has led initiatives on social impact, corporate purpose and health equity. Before joining the HSUS, she was the executive vice president and chief marketing officer at DentaQuest, an oral health company focused on expanding access to dental care in the United States. Corcoran received her MBA from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College and her bachelor’s degree from Williams College. Growing up in Japan, Myanmar, South Korea and Mexico, she developed a global mindset at an early age. As an adult, she has lived and worked in the United Kingdom and Canada. Today, Corcoran lives in Boston with her husband, Ned. They have four grown children and a dog, Bogey.

Policies and Governance