Humane Society Institute for Science and Policy
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Children Observing Violence and Public Health Outcomes
No full textChildren observing violence is a public health threat that deserves increased global awareness
Wildlife conservation: The importance of individual personality traits and sentience
No full textIndividual differences in personality types within the same species have been studied much less than differences between species and populations. Personality differences are related to risk-taking and exploration, which in turn correlate with individuals\u27 daily responses, decisions, and fitness. Bold and shy personality types can have different advantages and disadvantages under different social or environmental pressures. Analyzing personality differences has helped clarify how elk habituate to a well-populated area and how management strategies can be adapted to them. For wolves newly repatriated to Colorado, individual personality factors are likely to prove important for adapting to their new homes as well as to the needs of the people cohabiting them. Animal and human factors need to be investigated jointly for the long-term success of conservation initiatives
PRECOMMENTARY: Animal personality needs animal sentience
No full textWe are grateful to Owens, Bryja & Bekoff (2024) for their important discussion of individual differences in animals, emphasizing the role of personality in conservation, wildlife research, and wellbeing. But their emphasis also raises new challenges: How should we conceive of personality in nonhuman species? what modern tools could be leveraged to best measure it? and, perhaps most important of all: how can we ensure that the conscious experience of animals — their capacity for wellbeing and for suffering — is not forgotten along the way? We touch on each of these challenges in this invited Precommentary in the hope that they will be taken up by other commentators
Complexities of consistent individual behavioral differences in effective wildlife management
No full textThe study of animal personality, or consistent individual behavioral differences, has faced numerous challenges since its inception, including terminological disputes, labor-intensive methodologies, and notable retractions. This commentary explores the mechanisms behind personality traits, questioning the link between personality and sentience, and highlights the bias towards megafauna in wildlife management. It underscores the ecological and ethical significance of considering arthropod personalities and the complexities of integrating personality into wildlife reintroductions. Caution is advised in generalizing personality effects, and the limitations of current measurement techniques are discussed, suggesting that personality traits should be one of many factors in comprehensive management strategies
Rising Climate Litigation: Holding Governments & Corporations Accountable
No full textExplore the global rise of climate litigation as legal battles shape climate change policy and hold governments and corporations accountable
Communicating Animals: A Doctor Dolittle Story
No full textArtificial intelligence and machine learning approaches are opening new opportunities to understand what animals say
The Ongoing Challenge of Accurately Measuring Pet Ownership
No full textDespite decades of surveys, accurately measuring pet ownership remains difficult. Learn how varying survey methods and human population density affect pet demographics in the US and UK, and why better data is essential for effective animal population management
Griffin\u27s slow burn revolution in philosophy and comparative cognition
No full textRistau presents Griffin as launching a scientific revolution supported by philosophical insights. This commentary focuses on two points: Griffin as a scientific revolutionary, although the cognitive ethology revolution is not yet complete; and on the immense influence Griffin had, and continues to have, on philosophy
The Blue Zones, Well-being and Feeling Better
No full textThe Blue Zone concept has emerged from studies of communities with large numbers of healthy centenarians
Research And Data As Tools In Advocates’ Decision-Making
No full textWhile all animal advocacy organizations have clear mission statements, priorities, and tactics that guide both day-to-day activities and big-picture planning, groups vary in how they use data in their decision-making. There is a growing interest in the animal advocacy ecosystem across many focal areas in taking evidence-based actions and having a research foundation for statements and positions. However, some organizations hypothesize that research and data might not be seen as relevant or able to be integrated with these foundational commitments.
In the animal advocacy space, Faunalytics acts as a knowledge broker, committed to what’s known as knowledge translation: the process of moving research, data, evidence from original researchers and research outputs into formats and framings for a wide range of actors. That’s why Faunalytics commissioned this study about the use of research in animal advocacy. This isn’t a program evaluation: none of the interview questions mentioned Faunalytics, though several of the participants did in their answers.
The purpose of this study is to explore how animal advocacy organizations access, interpret, and use research, data, and other forms of evidence in their work. The research project included primary data collection through interviews and thematic analysis of the interview transcripts. Participants were 20 staff members of animal advocacy organizations around the world, all of which include farmed animals in their mandate