Tales of WellBeing Archive

Wild Bear Cubs | Credit: Hanna Glafke, iStock

Jul 24, 2024 The 1964 Wilderness Act: Transforming U.S. and Global Conservation

Posted at 13:43h In Articles, Environment Well-being, Ethics, Regulation, Law, Public Awareness/Attitudes, Tales of WellBeing, Wild Animals - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil

The Wilderness Act was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson on September 3, 1964. The USA system of wilderness areas now includes over 800 areas covering more than 110 million acres. Currently, all but six states—Connecticut, Delaware, Iowa, Kansas, Maryland, and Rhode Island—have...

Jul 24, 2024 The Kakamas Peach: Transforming South Africa’s Canning Industry

Posted at 11:18h In Articles, Tales of WellBeing - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil

Certain foods mark the various seasons of the year, such as mince pies at Christmas, hot cross buns at Easter, matzah at Passover, and harira at Ramadan. One is spoiled for choice in summer as local farmers' markets sell various melons, vine-ripened tomatoes, fresh blackberries...

Book Cover of "When Animals Dream" by David M. Peña-Guzmán, Ph.D.

Jul 24, 2024 Do Animals Dream? Exploring Consciousness and Ethics in David M. Peña-Guzmán’s New Book

Posted at 11:10h In Animal Sentience, Book Review, Tales of WellBeing - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil

The author David M. Peña-Guzmán, Ph.D. loves intellectual challenges. Previously, he wrote an article on whether or not animals can commit suicide, which has been downloaded over 44,000 times from the WellBeing International Studies Repository since its publication in late 2017. Now, the author has...

Baby elephant | Credit: Right Cameraman, AdobeStock

Jun 18, 2024 Communicating Animals: A Doctor Dolittle Story

Posted at 15:46h In Articles, Public Awareness/Attitudes, Tales of WellBeing, Wild Animals - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil

In 1980, Robert Seyfarth, Dorothy Cheney and Peter Marler published a paper in Science reporting that a vervet monkey troop in Amboseli National Park in Kenya used three different alarm calls to signify danger respectively from eagles, leopards and snakes. According to Snowdon, this paper...

European Roller | Credit: Film Studio Aves, iStock

Jun 18, 2024 A Roller Bird Gathers No Moss

Posted at 15:40h In Articles, Public Awareness/Attitudes, Tales of WellBeing, Wild Animals - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil

How animals migrate reliably from one place to another yearly has been an enduring puzzle. Donald Griffin, the discoverer of bat echolocation, also investigated bird migration to determine how birds could navigate the ocean. He and his colleagues tracked migrating flocks using a repurposed military...

Jun 18, 2024 Animal Rescue in Costa Rica

Posted at 15:35h In AHPPA (Asociación Humanitaria para la Protección Animal), Animal Well-being, Articles, Companion Animals, Global Dog Campaign, Tales of WellBeing - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil and Kathleen Rowan CEO, WellBeing International

In 2015, Costa Rican government agencies brought seized and rescued companion animals from substandard conditions or illegal activities such as dog fighting to the animal shelter near San Jose. The shelter, run by the Asociación Humanitaria Para la Protección Animal (AHPPA), a partner organization in...

Humpback Whale | Credit: Lightleak Films, AdobeStock

May 20, 2024 Animals, Biodiversity, and Climate Change

Posted at 10:55h In Articles, Climate Change, Land Management, Public Awareness/Attitudes, Sustainability/Biodiversity, Tales of WellBeing, Well-being, Wild Animals - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil

On December 19, 2022, representatives from 188 countries adopted a new agreement on biodiversity, now known as the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF). The 2022 GBF aims to halt and reverse biodiversity loss by adopting four overarching global goals and 23 targets, including conserving 30%...

Book covers of The Light Eaters by Zoe Schlanger & Planta Sapiens by Paco Calvo with Natalie Lawrence

May 20, 2024 Branching Out: Examining Plant Cognition and Sentience

Posted at 10:09h In Book Review, Environment Well-being, Public Awareness/Attitudes, Tales of WellBeing - By Steven Hansch and Leslie Barcus

The Light Eaters by Zoe Schlanger & Planta Sapiens by Paco Calvo with Natalie LawrenceRecently, two important books were published -- a year apart – and centered on the same topic: reviewing the accumulating scientific evidence that plants can and should be perceived as sentient...

Earth Day | video credit: smartboy10, iStock

Apr 17, 2024 Earth Day

Posted at 12:31h In Articles, Climate Change, Sustainability/Biodiversity, Tales of WellBeing, Well-being - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil

April 22, 2024, will be the 54th anniversary of the first Earth Day.The 1960s decade in the USA was a time of widespread citizen protests and demonstrations. Citizens used protest marches and sit-ins to campaign for civil rights. Women demanded equality in the labor market...

Service dogs and their veterans | Photo credits: K9 Warriors and Warrior Canine Connections

Apr 17, 2024 Service Dogs for Veterans

Posted at 12:18h In Animal Well-being, Articles, Companion Animals, Human Well-being, Tales of WellBeing - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil and Kathleen Rowan CEO, WellBeing International

IntroductionWellBeing International continues to explore the potential health benefits of the human-animal bond and return to the benefits of service dogs for veterans in this newsletter. There are now many organizations promoting and providing service dogs for veterans. WBI focuses on two organizations that provide...