“CSI” actress Jorja Fox has made rescuing lions one of her life’s missions.

“‘What:”’ Animal Defenders International (ADI) ambassador

“‘Why:”’ ‘I’ve been passionate about habitats, preservation and animals in captivity for a long time," says Fox, who appears in and is an associate producer of the documentary Lion Ark. “We’re at a very critical time for this work to happen. We can do a lot better by these animals. We all know that.”

“‘When:”’ Lion Ark, which follows 25 lions rescued from illegal traveling circuses across Bolivia through their journey to a sanctuary in Colorado, is now at festival screenings ([lionarkthemovie.com/screenings lionarkthemovie.com/screenings]).

“Most of these lions had never put their paws to grass, yet alone had acres and acres to meander,” Fox says. “It’s a feel good movie; in many ways, sort of a mission impossible. I knew it was going to be an outstanding amazing thing for these animals. I underestimated what a great human story it was going to be. It really is true, a small group of people can come together and work diligently to make really big changes in something they are passionate about.”

“‘Learn:”’ [ADIrescuediary.com ADIrescuediary.com]