Madalyn Nielsen is Program Officer, VETS at Veterinarians Without Borders North America/Vétérinaires Sans Frontières Amérique du Nord.
Madalyn joined VWB in October 2025, bringing a lifelong passion for the intersection of animal and human well-being. Her early experiences showing dairy cattle in rural Mi’kma’ki (Nova Scotia) and working in a small animal veterinary clinic inspired her pursuit of a Bachelor of Arts in Bioveterinary Science and a Master of Arts in Global Development Studies—grounding her in the principles of One Health that now guide her work.
Madalyn has seven years of experience working for international cooperation programs and is a published academic author in the gender and rural development space. She is interested in how intersectional gender dynamics affect livestock-based livelihoods and believes that locally driven solutions including all gender identities are invaluable. Madalyn previously volunteered in Kenya through VWB’s Emerging Leaders Program as a Gender Advisor Volunteer.
In her free time, Madalyn loves to spend time outdoors, travel, and spend as much time with animals as possible.
#VETSVolunteerVoices brings you stories of our passionate VETS program volunteers from the field. Meet Donald Hilborn, an Agricultural Advisor from Ontario who recently completed his third VETS placement in Kenya (March–April 2026) with our local partner, Meru Dairy, supporting small-scale dairy farmers in building more sustainable and resilient feeding systems.
In recognition of International Day for Biological Diversity 2026, VWB reflects on how healthy rangelands, community-led animal health systems, and pastoralist knowledge help sustain resilience across working landscapes worldwide.
Based on field insights from Senegal, this blog examines how VWB’s COHERS program is helping drive early gender-transformative change at the household level — reshaping who decides, who acts, and how families respond to risks affecting both human and animal health.
