Tanja Kisslinger is the Director of Communications at Veterinarians Without Borders North America/Vétérinaires Sans Frontières Amérique du Nord.
Tanja is a senior communications leader and cross-cultural storyteller with more than 20 years experience supporting global health, humanitarian, and international development initiatives. She has led communications, public engagement, brand and content management strategies for organizations including CARE, SOS Children's Villages, Save the Children, and Medair, working across diverse and often fragile contexts to connect local realities with global audiences.
Her work is grounded in ethical, community-centred storytelling that brings visibility to systemic inequities, humanitarian crises, and locally driven solutions. Over the course of her career, Tanja has lived and worked across Africa, Asia, and Europe, shaping narratives alongside communities affected by displacement, food insecurity, gender inequality, and health crises.
Most recently, Tanja led CARE Canada’s multi-year Feed Her Future public engagement campaign, which focused on the social and gender norms shaping nutrition and health outcomes for women and children in Southern Africa. At Veterinarians Without Borders, she leads strategic communications across international development, humanitarian response, and companion animal health programming—amplifying the organization’s One Health approach and strengthening engagement with partners, supporters, and volunteers.
Tanja holds a Master’s degree in Criminology, an Honours degree in Psychology, and professional certifications in cross-cultural and emergency communications.
From coordinating veterinary clinics to supporting future Community Animal Health Workers, Helen Klengenberg's story highlights the importance of local leadership in strengthening animal health across Nunavut. As communities continue to build local capacity, we explore how VWB is working alongside northern partners to improve access to care.
Access to veterinary care looks different in every community. This blog explores how mobile clinics, local veterinary partners, and Community Animal Health Workers help bring care closer to animals and families in Northern Canada, Ukraine, Senegal, and beyond.
In recognition of World Zoonoses Day 2026, this article explores how community-centered One Health approaches can help detect, prevent, and respond to zoonotic diseases before they become global health emergencies.
