animal welfare

PETA announces sexiest veggie celebs of 2007

PETA has announced this year’s winners of their annual “Sexiest Vegetarian” contest. This year’s hottest plant-eaters? Tonight Show band leader Kevin Eubanks and American Idol-crooner-turned Grammy-winner Carrie Underwood (who won in 2005 as well, but dropped to runner-up last year). This year’s runners up include our favorite babe teenage sleuth Kristen Bell (who knocked Underwood […]

Extinction of an outdated industry on the horizon?

... you ignorant ass.

You may have noticed the ads here on Grist from the International Fund for Animal Welfare calling for an end to the Canadian seal harvest. This short, simple, balanced article from MSNBC is a timely rehash of this annual controversy.

Because sustainability is ostensibly the main goal of environmentalism, it's difficult to criticize the Canadian seal harvest, because it appears to be a classic case of a sustainably harvested natural resource providing poverty reduction for those who live close to that resource.

Here are the two main reasons the IFAW wants to end the seal harvest: It is cruel and puts the harp seal species at risk.

Cage-free Croissan’wich, anyone?

This has been a big week for animal-welfare advocates, as BK now commits to buying eggs and pork from animals that have not been raised in cages. There are big environmental impacts here as well, although I'm still trying to sift through them.

Is humane meat better for the environment?

According to this NYT article, one of the country's biggest restaurant moguls has decided that he will only sell humanely treated animals in all of his restaurants. This is, in one sense, a great victory.

Nope, still hunting

Hunting is, as this article demonstrates. There will always be tensions between hunters and environmentalists (not that they can't collaborate), but hopefully, the major groups can agree that ending sport hunting of polar bears is something we should do ASAP.

Times reports on vegan fashion

The Times reports on cruelty-free fashion today. Not that any of us can afford this stuff. But still. Just saying. It’s there. And we’re glad of it. But could this bring eco-fashion to the fashion-conscious masses? And could it signal the end of Summer Rayne Oakes’ unchallenged hegemony in the sphere of eco-fashion?

Animal welfare and environmentalism, again

Over the past few months I have tried to accomplish two things with respect to the topic of animal welfare:

1. Demonstrate that animal welfare issues are central to environmentalism, and
2. lay out policies regarding animal welfare that environmentalists should support.

In retrospect I think I skipped an important step: laying out the basic principles that underlie this connection.

They don’t ignore it

In order to further elucidate the role of animal welfare issues in environmentalism, let us examine mission statements from some of the top environmental organizations in the world.

Let's start with the first line of the mission statement from the World Wildlife Fund:

"Protecting natural areas and wild populations of plants and animals, including endangered species."

Notice that WWF talks about protecting wild animals independently of whether they are endangered (only later do they go on to discuss the sustainability of resources).

Here's the first sentence from the mission statement for the Defenders of Wildlife:

No demand for Iceland’s whale meat

Two weeks ago, Iceland announced it would defy the 20-year-old worldwide whaling ban and resume its commercial whale hunt. They sure didn't waste any time! Two whales have already been caught, leaving 37 more kills to go.

Iceland claims this decision is all about business, so let's take a look at the business side of what they actually are doing. For those of you who slept through this lesson in high school, I'd like to tell you about a little thing I like to call "economics."