WellBeing News Archive

Animals in War Memorial | credit: Darren Baker, Shutterstock

Nov 13, 2024 Animals in Conflict – Part 1: Conscripts and Victims

Posted at 13:19h In Animal Sentience, Animal Well-being, Articles, Companion Animals, Farm Animals, WellBeing News, Wild Animals, Working/Equid Animals - By Janice H. Cox, MBA and Jackson Zee

This article is the first installment of a three-part newsletter series examining the impact of human conflicts on animals. The newsletter series is adapted from the original blog by Cox and Zee, which was published by the Conflict and Environment Observatory and republished with their...

Guatemala Market | Credit: Ingo Bartussek, Shutterstock

Nov 13, 2024 Tackling Climate Change Through Global Food Systems at COP29 in Baku

Posted at 13:07h In Articles, Environment Well-being, Farm Animals, Sustainability/Biodiversity, WellBeing News - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil

The climate change conference COP29 is currently taking place in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan. This year's conference includes a pavilion dedicated to global food systems, aimed at creating a platform for "collaborative dialogue, knowledge sharing, and decision-making" regarding the important role of agriculture and...

Eco-friendly farm | Credit: Cardlrin, Shutterstock

Oct 10, 2024 Ending Cage Farming in the EU: The Fight for Animal Welfare

Posted at 15:59h In Animal Sentience, Animal Well-being, Articles, Ethics, Regulation, Law, Farm Animals, WellBeing News - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil

In 2014, Compassion in World Farming (CIWF) launched a campaign entitled "End the Cage Age" to end the use of cages for farmed animals in the European Union (EU). Toward the end of 2018, CIWF registered a European Citizens' Initiative (ECI) with the European Commission...

A couple with a dog and cat | Credit: KobusLouw, iStock

Oct 10, 2024 The Ongoing Challenge of Accurately Measuring Pet Ownership

Posted at 15:52h In Animal Well-being, Articles, Companion Animals, Human Well-being, WellBeing News - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil

In a 1973 article in the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, Carl Djerassi, often referred to as the "father" of the birth control pill, and his colleagues argued that an effective method of animal birth control (the article was titled "Planned Parenthood for Pets") was necessary...

Little brown bat with white-nose syndrome, Ryan von Linden/New York Department of Environmental Conservation), Public Domain, https://www.fws.gov/media/little-brown-bat-white-nose-syndrome

Sep 19, 2024 Vultures in India & Bats in USA: Impact on Animal Welfare & Human Health

Posted at 15:31h In Articles, Public Awareness/Attitudes, Sustainability/Biodiversity, Well-being, WellBeing News, Wild Animals - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil

A report by Frank and Sudarshan, ecological economists at the University of Chicago, provides an excellent example of how human and environmental well-being is connected to the well-being of animals – in this case, to the health of the vulture population in India. Ecological economics,...

Environmental Law | Photo credit: stocknshares, iStock

Sep 19, 2024 Rising Climate Litigation: Holding Governments & Corporations Accountable

Posted at 14:18h In Climate Change, Environment Well-being, Ethics, Regulation, Law, WellBeing News - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil

Multiple organizations, including the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), are actively monitoring and documenting the increase in climate-related legal cases in the 21st century. The Sabin Center for Climate Change Law at Columbia University, established in 2009, maintains a global database of climate litigation. It...

Outdoor cats | Credit: Stock-Enjoy, Shutterstock

Jul 08, 2024 Australian Cats: Making a Difference

Posted at 10:17h In Animal Well-being, Articles, Companion Animals, WellBeing News - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil

The January 2023 issue of WellBeing News included an article on the humane management of outdoor cats in Australian urban and periurban areas by the Australian Pet Welfare Foundation (APWF). The foundation was founded in 2011 by Dr. Jacquie Rand and three colleagues to advocate...

Mosquite | Credit: Melissa Harp, Shutterstock

Jul 08, 2024 Climate, Health and Dengue

Posted at 10:06h In Articles, Climate Change, Environment Well-being, Human Well-being, WellBeing News, Wild Animals - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil and Kathleen Rowan CEO, WellBeing International

Impact of Climate on Human HealthOn April 5, 2024, the World Bank released a brief on the impact of climate change on human health. According to the report, a warmer climate could result in at least 21 million additional deaths by 2025 due to five...

Walk in the park | Photo credit: ronstik, iStock

Jun 10, 2024 Nature and Health, A Walk in the Park

Posted at 13:31h In Articles, Human Well-being, Public Awareness/Attitudes, WellBeing News - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil

The Covid pandemic had a widespread social impact in addition to its effects on public health. For example, in the Washington, DC area, home buyers were focused on homes in the city pre-COVID, and the Washington suburban real estate market was in the doldrums. However,...

Lists and reports from World Animal Protection and American League Defense Fund

Jun 10, 2024 Do Lists Improve Animal Protection?

Posted at 13:31h In Animal Well-being, Animals, Articles, Public Awareness/Attitudes, WellBeing News - By Andrew Rowan, DPhil

It has been suggested that humans should be categorized as the species Homo classification rather than Homo sapiens because we are so attracted to making lists and developing categories to simplify and organize the world around us. For example, journalists recognize that the audience will...