Public Awareness/Attitudes Archive

Circular Economy | credit: Igor Starodubtsev, Shutterstock

Jan 09, 2024 A Circular Economy and “Feel Better”

Posted at 10:18h In Education, Land Management, Letter from the President, Public Awareness/Attitudes, Resources, Sustainability/Biodiversity, Well-being - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil and Kathleen Rowan CEO, WellBeing International

Increasingly, the world recognizes human population growth, excess consumption, overuse of natural resources, and degradation of the natural environment as threats to planetary sustainability.Linear vs. Circular EconomyThe current global linear economic framework, characterized by resource extraction, product manufacture, and consumption, followed by product disposal, is...

Centenarian | Photo credit: cometary, iStock

Jan 09, 2024 The Blue Zones, Well-being, and Feel Better

Posted at 10:14h In Articles, Human Well-being, Public Awareness/Attitudes, WellBeing News - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil and Kathleen Rowan CEO, WellBeing International

Multiple media reports have been published on five “Blue Zones” – areas with relatively high numbers of people living to be 100 years old or older. In addition, these centenarians have lower rates of dementia and enjoy good health. Are there genetic or environmental traits...

Northern gannet (Morus bassanus) flying in front of sea cliffs at Noss breeding colony, Noss, Shetland Islands, Scotland, UK | Video credit: Distil-Media, Shutterstock

Nov 19, 2023 Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza Revisited

Posted at 11:42h In Animal Well-being, Animals, Articles, Environment Well-being, Public Awareness/Attitudes, WellBeing News - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil

The February and March issues of WellBeing News carried articles on the emergence of a highly pathogenic avian influenza virus. While the world is thoroughly sick of hearing about pandemic virus threats, we are adding another update because of the high risk to biodiversity of...

Sep 29, 2023 Review of “The Rat Trap” by Pandora Pound

Posted at 16:27h In Animal Well-being, Book Review, Laboratory Animals, Public Awareness/Attitudes, Tales of WellBeing - By Laura Gosse

A new book, The Rat Trap by Pandora Pound, has just been published, criticizing modern medicine's reliance on animal research. Pound is a medical sociologist now employed by The Safer Medicines Trust, a UK charity whose mission "is to make medicines safer by facilitating a...

Bullfight in Bogota, Columbia | Photo credit: Gary Yim

Sep 14, 2023 UN Support for Children, Animals, and Healthy Development

Posted at 08:19h In Animal Sentience, Animals, Letter from the President, Public Awareness/Attitudes, Well-being - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil

In 1989, T Berry Brazelton, American pediatrician and author of numerous popular infant development and child-care books, was a plenary speaker at an international human-animal bond conference in Monaco. His talk included comments on an infant's attraction to and affinity with animals. He noted that...

Tryptych of photos of WIllie B, the iconic great silverback ape.

May 17, 2023 Life of Willie B. – Public Policy & Psychological Well-being – Part 3

Posted at 12:30h In Animal Well-being, Animals, Articles, Ethics, Regulation, Law, Public Awareness/Attitudes, Tales of WellBeing, Wildlife in Captivity - By Terry L. Maple, Ph.D., Dept. of Psychology, College of Charleston

The incredible story of Willie B was influenced by the aspirations of Mayor William Barry Hartsfield, who served twenty-four years as Mayor of Atlanta, and the leadership of Atlanta Mayor Andrew Young, who had the courage and the vision to reimagine Atlanta’s zoological park when...

Garbage Patch | Credit: Pro-Vector, AdobeStock

May 02, 2023 Plastic Waste and the World’s Seas

Posted at 15:45h In Letter from the President, Oceans, Public Awareness/Attitudes, Sustainability/Biodiversity, Well-being - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil and Kathleen Rowan CEO, WellBeing International

Fifty years ago (Feb 10, 1973), Science News published a short article, “Setting sail into a plastic sea.” The story noted that scientists on an oceanographic voyage in the North Pacific “recorded 53 manmade objects in 8.2 hours of viewing” even though “they were 600...

Wren | Photo credit: Andrew Howe, iStock

Apr 16, 2023 The Avid Birder

Posted at 16:29h In Articles, Public Awareness/Attitudes, Tales of WellBeing, Wild Animals - By John Hadidian, PhD

In 1955, The United States Fish and Wildlife (FWS) inaugurated a periodic survey focused on Americans’ recreational, wildlife-related activities. One might immediately assume that hunting and fishing would dominate this field, but that would be wrong by a long shot (pun intended). While some 40...

Women walking in the woods | Credit: RichLegg, iStock

Mar 29, 2023 World Happiness Report 2023

Posted at 15:45h In Letter from the President, Public Awareness/Attitudes - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil

The first World Happiness Report (WHR) appeared in 2012. In 2013, the UN General Assembly declared March 20th the International Day of Happiness (Resolution 66/281). In 2013 and every subsequent year except 2014, the World Happiness Report, written by an expanding group of experts, was...

Mar 01, 2023 The Anniversary of the UNEA Nexus Resolution

Posted at 15:28h In Animals, Articles, Letter from the President, Public Awareness/Attitudes, Well-being - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil and Kathleen Rowan CEO, WellBeing International

On March 2, 2022, the United Nations Environment Assembly (the world's environment parliament) passed a landmark resolution calling on the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) to produce a report on the Nexus between animal welfare, the environment, and sustainable development. This Resolution offers enormous potential...