Challenges and opportunities
Animals are facing some of the biggest challenges in our 200-year history. Lower welfare farming grows unsustainably, causing suffering to billions of animals worldwide every year.
Devastating climate events, such as heatwaves, wildfires and floods are ravaging human and animal communities alike. Wildlife habitats are being lost at an alarming rate. The financial downturn has seen people struggling to feed their pets, and political volatility threatens to push animal welfare down the agenda. War in Europe has taken a heavy toll on people and animals.
Social and cultural norms are also shaping the way we see and treat animals. Social media is exposing more people, especially the young, to animal abuse online, and normalising the exploitation of animals for clicks and likes. Millions watch animals getting squashed, scared or eaten on popular TV shows.
Our ability to get what we want at the click of a button has exacerbated the commodification and exploitation of animals to suit our needs, This includes the extreme breeding of pets which prioritises looks over health, or buying cheap chicken to eat from birds who have grown so heavy so fast they struggle to walk.
But there are also huge opportunities for animals. The legacy of the pandemic reminded us of the important role animals play in our lives, whether it is the comfort pets bring in an increasingly isolated society or the uplifting power of nature. Our growing understanding of animal sentience offers the chance to deepen society’s understanding of animals and our impact on them.
Technology too offers huge opportunities to advance animal welfare, whether it is replacing animals in science with cutting edge organs-on-chips, developing lab-grown meats or AI which helps us interpret animal communication. However, left unchecked and unregulated, technology could also cause huge suffering.
We have an important and unique role to play in inspiring a radical rethink of the role of animals in our society. A world that is better for animals is better for us all.