on that airplane, but I did it.”
Her experience there, developing training and educa-
tion programs, was equal parts amazing and affirming.
“This is where I realized that my work isn’t necessarily
with animals,” she says. “I’m not a veterinarian or a sci-
entist. My work is on the human dimensions of animal
welfare. I’m really good at working with humans.”PEACE WORK
When it’s your job to make a serious difference, treading
into dark topics is an occupational requirement. “A big
part of the work we’re doing right now at CFHS is on the
violence link: the link between animal violence and
human violence,” says Cartwright. “This area is really
impactful on women involved in domestic abuse. Their
pets are often used as part of that cycle of violence. The
perpetrator will harm the animal or use threats against
it to punish the woman.” Eye-opening – and sobering –
stats reveal that upwards of 40 percent of women delay
leaving an abusive situation because they can’t house
their pets, and one-third of those who do leave go back
because the abusers still have their companion animals.
For 2018, Cartwright has her sights set on building a
national coalition on the violence link. Its aim will be to
connect the legal community (including law enforce-
ment, prosecutors and judges), animal welfare and
social services to build a better response system to the
violence link in Canada. This would thereby contribute
to reducing overall violence against animals and people,
she says.
It’s a capita l-B big goa l, and Cartwright has, no doubt,
written it down somewhere. “Every year, around Decem-
ber 21, I w r ite out my objectives of what I wa nt to ach ieve
for the new year,” she says. “I set them out in terms of
family, health, money and career, and I go back to those
on a regular basis. I set some mantras I want to use for
the year and go back to those regularly as well.” Cart-
wright also has a daily ritual of penning three pages of
unedited internal dialogue. “I’ve found it instrumental
in my ability to know what I want in life and to stay posi-
tive,” she says.
Other key elements in Cartwright’s feel-good plan
include sticking to a vegan diet. “I’ve been a vegetarian
since I was 16, but it feels really good to eat this way and
my body feels much more energetic,” she says.
“I also love chocolate, and I really love chips,” says
Cartwright. “I don’t limit myself that way – I think it’s
important to treat yourself for your soul.” If she indulges
one day, she’ll step up her physica l activit y the nex t. “I doneeds to be done and connect to the government about
changes. Contributing to the long-term survival of a spe-
cies is something I’m very proud of.”
READY TO WORK
Before joining the CFHS in 2011, Cartwright nimbly
switched gears over the years. “One of the things that’s
always guided me is that I strongly believe in doing what
I love and the money will come,” she says.
Growing up in Burlington, ON, Cartwright forecasted
a future in veterinary medicine. She parlayed volunteer
work at a local clinic into a receptionist job, but when
circumstances required that she assist the vet with an
injured animal, she knew it wasn’t her calling. After
graduating from university with a degree in geography,
she kicked off her CV by landing a job working with
youth across the country.
“We would spend the day doing workshops with them
on what skills they need to take action on something
that’s important to them,” she says. “I got a lot of expo-
sure to facilitation, training and skill building, and that
was a really amazing opportunity. I continue to carry
many of those skills forward. It also introduced me to
the nonprofit world. I was hooked and never left.”
From there, she moved on to teach with Outward
Bound Canada, connecting her love of the outdoors with
her interest in human dynamics and skill development.
“I loved the fact that we were in the wilderness but we
were also teaching life skills,” she says. “I got into work-
ing with women survivors of violence and women
empowerment courses, which really drove my desire to
do more of this work, particularly around empowering
women leaders. It’s such a circuitous route in a way, but
it all comes together in this job I have now.”
BRAVE HEART
A pivotal life moment can be both absolutely thrilling
and completely terrifying. How does Cartwright deal?
“I say to myself, ‘Feel the fear and do it anyway,’” she
says. It’s a mantra she learned as a young woman, and
one she relied on to take her biggest risk: After an inspi-
rational meeting with Dr. Jane Goodall at a nature con-
ference in Scotland, Cartwright moved to Uganda in
- Her mission: to live and work on an island with 40
orphaned chimpanzees.
“Being able to live the life I want to live – an inten-
tional, on-purpose life – has really come down to getting
past the challenge of being afraid to, for example, give up
my job and move to Uganda,” she says. “It took a lot to get
36 DECEMBER | JANUARY 2018 best health besthealthmag.ca