Well Animal Research Project

 

Welcome to the website for the WELLANIMAL - Animal agriculture and the new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19) values-aware research project

The WELLANIMAL Project is funded by National Institute of Food and Agriculture, NIFA, USDA (Project # ALKW-2020-07183). The PI is Raymond Anthony, Professor of Philosophy, the University of Alaska Anchorage. 

 

well animal logo

 

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  • Conference Presentations
    The results of the Expert Panel focus groups were presented at the following venues:
     

    " Animal Disaster Management Decision-Making: Applying an Animal Welfare Science-Ethics Guided Framework within One Health,” 4th FSVO/UFAW Symposium - Humanely ending the lives of animals, Bern, Switzerland, 6-7 March 2024.

    “Emerging stronger from COVID: A Thematic Analysis of US Veterinarians’ Perspectives on Pandemic Preparedness, Animal Welfare and Ethics,” Veterinary Ethic Conference, Messerli Research Institute, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria, scheduled 27-29 September 2023.
     
    “WellAnimal – Promoting Farm Animal Welfare and Preparing for the Next Novel Pandemic: Applying Values- Aware Research and Better Science-Ethics Communication to Animal Agriculture and the New Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19) – Annual Report,” 2023 USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA)/AFRI Project Directors Meeting A1261, May 20, 2023.

    “More-Than-Human-Solidarity: Expert Panel Results from the Wellanimal Project,” One Health Symposium: Zoonotic Pathogens in Alaska, University of Alaska Anchorage, 28 October, 2022.
     
    “Advancing Farm Animal Welfare and Preparing for the Next Novel Pandemic: A Preliminary Analysis,” 2022 Congress of the European Society for Agriculture and Food Ethics (EurSafe) - Transforming Food Systems: Ethics, Innovation and Responsibility, Edinburgh, September 7-10, 2022.
     
    “WellAnimal – Promoting Farm Animal Welfare and Preparing for the Next Novel Pandemic: Applying Values- Aware Research and Better Science-Ethics Communication to Animal Agriculture and the New Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19) – Annual Report,” 2022 USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA)/AFRI Virtual Project Directors Meeting A1261, August 16-17, 2022.
     
    “Peacebuilding through the Ethic of Sharing: Recalibrating Regenerative Relationships with Food Animals to Advance Food Security,” New Philosophical Work on Food Justice-Culinary Mind: Center for the Philosophy of Food, 2022 Meeting of the Association for the Study of Food and Society, Athens, Georgia, 18-24 May, 2022.
  • Related Publications

    Journal Publications

    • Anthony, R., Miller, D.S., Hoenig, D.E., Millar, K.M., Goodwin, J., Dean, W.R., Grimm, H., Meijboom, F.L.M., Murphy, J., Persico Murphy, E., Scott, H.M., and De Paula Vieira, A. 2024. Incorporate ethics into US public health plans.Science 383,1066-1067. DOI:10.1126/science.adn7640.

     

    Proceedings

    • Anthony, R. 2023. “Emerging Stronger from COVID: A Thematic Analysis of US Veterinarians’ and Food Bioethicists’ Perspectives on Pandemic Preparedness, Animal Welfare and Ethics, Proceedings of the Veterinary Ethics Conference 2023, Messerli Research Institute, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria, pp. 91-93.
    • Anthony, R. 2022. “Advancing Farm Animal Welfare and Preparing for the Next Novel Pandemic: A Preliminary Analysis,” 2022 Congress of the European Society for Agriculture and Food Ethics (EurSafe) - Transforming Food Systems: Ethics, Innovation and Responsibility.
    • Anthony, R. 2021. “The Eclipse of Sharing within Food Ethics: Unearthing Blind Spots during the Covid-19 Pandemic,” Proceedings of the 16th Congress of the European Society for Agriculture and Food Ethics (EurSafe) Justice and Food Security in a Changing Climate. University Wageningen Academic Publishers.

National Survey Results are Currently Being Analyzed

  • covid molecule
    Magnified virus
  • vet with mask treating animals
    Farm veterinarian swabbing cows
  • masked cashier
     Supermarket cashier 
  • empty shelves
     Empty grocery shelves
  • man holding mink
    Mink farmer holding up mink 

About the Project 

The public health disaster resulting from the new coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19) pandemic is revealing the close social, economic and political complexities and linkages between human and animal welfare. It also raises serious concerns about the security and resilience of our food systems, including fragile supply chains and has impacted not only the profitability and sustainability of US farms, but also the capacity of farmers to provide animal care. 

 

The WELLANIMAL project seeks to improve the viability and sustainability of the US food system by providing ethical guidance on moral dilemmas during a pandemic and zoonoses. It will strengthen or supplement One Health strategies in alleviating conflicts during an emergency and propose ways of effectively communicating animal welfare issues during a pandemic or zoonoses with diverse publics.

View Project Design

 

Key Objectives

1. Investigate subject expert and layperson concerns and perceptions towards animals and disease risk assessment during a novel pandemic.

2. Explore barriers to communication and sources of misinformation regarding animal health and welfare during a novel pandemic.

3. Lay the groundwork for the development of a collaborative agenda for values-aware practice and research for animal welfare science and ethics within One Health.

Primary Outcomes

1. Addressing how values and ethical assessment/decision-making can strengthen national pandemic plans and international and multidisciplinary collaborations to promote animal welfare

2. Providing insight on evaluating the impact of disasters on the livestock sector, public health, food safety and security and mechanisms of animal care and risk management in disasters.

 

Principal Investigator

 
raymond anthony
Raymond Anthony

Professor of Philosophy
Phone (907) - 786 - 4459
Email rxanthony@alaska.edu
Website Raymond Anthony

 

Contact the PI