Since its establishment in 1981 with a $1 million grant from the Cosmetic, Toiletry, and Fragrance Association, the Johns Hopkins Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing (CAAT) has been pioneering humane science and alternatives to animal testing. Today, CAAT is a world leader in the development and use of new approach methods in biomedical research, product safety testing, and education.
CAAT seeks to effect change by working with scientists in industry, government, and academia to find new ways to replace animals with non-animal methods, reduce the numbers of animals necessary, or refine methods to make them less painful or stressful to the animals involved.
In 2010, CAAT became the first transatlantic competence center in the field of alternatives with the establishment of CAAT-Europe at the University of Konstanz, Germany. Since then, CAAT and CAAT-Europe have brought together stakeholders from the US and Europe to forge consensus, harmonize policy, and drive scientific innovation.