Joining Forces: Collaborative Opportunities Between The Animal Protection And Environmental Movements
Background
Climate change and environmental degradation have harmful effects on the lives of humans and non-human animals alike. Across the globe, we’re seeing the extinction of countless species, destruction of habitats, more frequent and severe natural disasters, food and water insecurity, and more. One key driver of this worldwide destruction is the animal agriculture industry, which indirectly helps unify the causes of animal advocacy and environmental protection.
Agriculture is a large source of greenhouse gas emissions and has extensive environmental impacts throughout the world. Over one-third of global greenhouse gas emissions come from the food sector, and most of these emissions can be attributed to the animal agriculture industry. Emissions from the food sector alone will take the world beyond the 1.5 degrees Celsius threshold by 2100 (Clark et al., 2020), meaning serious societal, economic, and ecological consequences for the planet.
In addition to the emissions resulting from animal agriculture, the industry is responsible for deforestation, land degradation, air and water pollution, water stress, and biodiversity loss. Nearly half of the world’s habitable land is used for agriculture, and of that land, it’s estimated that 77% is used by the animal agriculture industry for maintaining livestock and for producing animal feed (Ritchie et al., 2022).
Aside from animal agriculture’s impacts on the climate and environment, there are various other areas of overlap between environmental issues and animal advocacy. For instance, wild animal poaching causes immense harm to individual animals and entire species that may go extinct. This can result in changes to ecosystems, as animals who play a particular role in their functioning are removed. The same is happening in the world’s oceans and freshwater ecosystems as a result of overfishing, further contributing to biodiversity loss, ecosystem degradation, and climate change (especially when trawling is involved). Another example is the environmental impact that free-roaming companion animals like dogs and cats can have, contaminating ecosystems with their feces and greatly reducing biodiversity by hunting other animals.
Given the overlap that exists between animal advocacy and climate and environmental issues, as well as research indicating that environmental sympathizers are more likely to take pro-animal actions (Faunalytics, 2023), this study sought to evaluate the potential for collaboration between organizations working in the animal protection space and those in the environmental movement. Focusing particularly on Brazil, China, and the U.S. due to their high potential for environmental and animal advocacy efforts alike, we used a combination of desk research and interviews with environmental organizations to identify areas of overlap between the two movements and to consider environmentalists’ perspectives about partnering with animal advocates. By doing so, this study complements recent research looking at environmental organizations’ willingness to incorporate animal agriculture messaging into their tactics (Mercy for Animals, 2023).
Key Findings
- Many environmental organizations are open to collaborating with a wide variety of animal advocacy organizations. Of the eight organizations we interviewed, four were open to collaborating and four are already collaborating with animal advocacy organizations. While they represent approximately a third of the organizations we contacted, this suggests that a sizable proportion of environmental organizations whose work aligns in some way with animal advocacy (e.g., conservation, sustainability, tackling deforestation) are receptive to the idea of working with animal advocates. Half of interviewees mentioned they would like to collaborate with organizations focused on wild animals, while some are open to partnering with organizations focused on dietary shifts. Others are open to partnering with advocates helping farmed animals, companion animals, or any animal advocacy organization as long as they share some commonalities. These can include sharing similar interests, tactics, values, and/or audience.
- Environmentalists are especially interested in collaborating with animal advocates on legal advocacy, education, and promoting plant-based diets. Multiple organizations would like to take legal action and develop and/or improve policies and regulations to protect the environment and animals, particularly when it comes to industrial animal agriculture. They’re also open to collaborating on educating the public on the intersection of animal advocacy and environmental issues, as well as working with animal advocacy organizations to promote a reduction in animal products and a shift towards more sustainable diets. Although these were some of the most mentioned collaboration strategies, they are just a few of the many potential tactics described by interviewees.
- The most common challenge animal advocates and environmentalists may encounter in a partnership is having differing views. Six out of the eight organizations we interviewed recognized there may be differing views and approaches between the environmental and animal protection movements that could pose a challenge for collaboration. In particular, they brought up concerns about differences in opinion about certain topics, differences in the strategies generally implemented by each organization, and differences in what they consider to be the best messaging strategy to address a common audience (e.g., environmental vs. animal welfare messaging; promoting veganism vs. animal product reduction). Organizations also voiced concerns about society’s (negative) perception of animal advocates, the power of the animal agriculture industry in government, the movement’s marginalization of BIPOC and other historically disadvantaged groups, and more.
- By collaborating with animal advocacy organizations, environmental organizations hope to gain more support, resources, funding opportunities, and to add new perspectives to their efforts. Nearly all interviewed organizations would benefit from sharing resources and support with an animal advocacy organization, such as sharing connections to each other’s networks, knowledge of animal advocacy and environmental issues, and experiences with various advocacy tactics (e.g., diet campaigns). Partner organizations could also seek funding together, granting each other access to funding opportunities normally unavailable to them.
- Environmental organizations’ willingness and ability to collaborate with animal advocates depends on a number of factors, but especially on there being some alignment between them. It’s important that potential partner organizations share similar values, interests, audience, and/or advocacy tactics (e.g., education or policy work). Other factors that can influence the potential for collaboration include the animal advocacy organization’s reputation, whether the animal advocacy group has an inclusive approach (of historically disadvantaged groups and of people who lead non-vegan lifestyles), and the environmental organization’s capacity to take on a collaboration given the time, money, and personnel involved.
- High-priority countries for farmed animal advocacy are also the world’s top greenhouse gas emitters. Our research found a strong relationship between countries’ emissions rankings and their potential for effective farmed animal advocacy — China, the U.S., and Brazil are responsible for over one-third of global emissions (about 40%) and slaughter the highest numbers of farmed animals. The animal agriculture industry is responsible for serious environmental damages in each of these countries, and we see this especially play out as the Global North drives animal agriculture and associated environmental destruction and degradation in the Global South.
Recommendations
For Animal Advocacy Organizations Interested In Collaborating With Environmental Organizations
- Don’t hesitate to reach out to environmental organizations that you’re interested in collaborating with. While each organization has its criteria for determining who to collaborate with, you won’t know what those are until you communicate with them. For some environmental organizations it can be as simple as sharing an interest in tackling a particular issue, while other organizations have more stringent criteria. Some environmental organizations already collaborate with animal advocates, are interested in continuing these collaborations, and are open to involving more animal advocacy organizations in their efforts. Even if the organization has never collaborated with animal advocates before, they may be open to the possibility following some discussions. So, when in doubt, just reach out.
- Take the time to explain your advocacy work to environmental organizations, as they may not have a clear understanding of what it entails. Before discussing collaboration opportunities, you might need to have a conversation about animal advocacy and your organization’s role in the movement. While some environmentalists may already have some connection to animal advocacy, most will not have an in-depth understanding of it. Furthermore, environmentalists may focus on the concept of wild animal conservation, not considering other animal advocacy issues and their connection to environmental issues (e.g., animal agriculture). As a result, when reaching out to environmental organizations, you may need to clarify how the particular issues you wish to tackle together relate to the environmental issues that they are concerned about.
- Communicate proactively and be open to compromise. Environmental organizations may have a number of concerns about collaborating with animal advocacy organizations, and it’s important to discuss these prior to beginning any sort of collaboration. Engaging in open and clear conversations early on will allow you to address these concerns and develop a plan to manage any expected challenges. Compromise may be necessary to ensure that both involved parties benefit from the collaboration despite differences in opinion. Past examples of successful compromises include using a One Health messaging framework instead of an animal rights framework, agreeing on a meat reduction message instead of an elimination message, and creating an anti-factory farming campaign instead of an anti-animal agriculture campaign.
- Be open to intersection work, social justice causes, and helping historically disadvantaged human groups. Particularly for organizations conducting environmental justice work, it’s important that collaborators share their values and interest in helping historically disadvantaged groups. This may involve finding common ground on social justice issues related to the animal advocacy and environmental issues you wish to collaborate on (Faunalytics, 2022). It’s also crucial to consider historical contexts when working with BIPOC communities or in a new country. Collaborating with local environmental organizations can ensure you have the necessary cultural and historical context. When possible, involve local communities and other historically disadvantaged stakeholders to ensure they are given a voice on matters that may affect them.
- Keep the distinction between meat production and consumption in mind when collaborating on driving dietary change in the Global South. If there are concerns about promoting plant-based diets in countries where meat consumption has not been historically high, such as China and Brazil, consider that collaboration efforts don’t have to focus on reducing demand for meat. Instead, the focus can be on tackling factory farming, especially given the rapid industrialization of animal agriculture throughout the Global South.
- Remember that “quiet collaboration” is also an option. It isn’t necessary to engage in a public collaboration with an environmental organization. This is especially the case if they have concerns about retaliation (e.g., by the animal agriculture industry or by their audience) for collaborating with animal advocates or are afraid of alienating their audience. Quiet collaboration can involve sharing resources and expertise, such as helping each other implement a particular strategy or incorporating environmental/animal advocacy messaging without openly collaborating.
- When possible, focus on the animal agriculture industry’s impact on animals and the environment worldwide, especially in Brazil, China, and the United States. Given how interconnected animal agriculture is across these three countries (Faunalytics, 2023), action needs to be taken in all three. This is where collaboration plays a crucial role, allowing for large-scale advocacy work in multiple countries. Animal advocates should consider partnering with environmental organizations and other animal advocacy organizations in each of these locations to provide necessary country-specific knowledge and to increase the number of groups working on the issues that unite our movements.
- Sometimes collaboration may not be the best course of action, and that’s okay. After meeting with a potential collaborator you may realize that you’re not a good match for each other — for instance, if your interests don’t align or if the collaboration wouldn’t logistically work. If it makes sense, consider referring each other to other organizations within your networks who may be a better fit, or share resources with each other without the need to collaborate.
For Environmental Organizations Interested In Collaborating With Animal Advocacy Organizations
- Don’t be afraid to incorporate animal advocacy messaging into your work. Research has shown that animal advocacy can be a great motivator for shifting to a plant-based diet (Faunalytics, 2021). Additionally, environmental sympathizers are some of the people most likely to take pro-animal actions, such as removing beef and pork from their diets, attending protests/demonstrations focused on farmed animal welfare, voting for ballot measures and pro-animal politicians, and more (Faunalytics, 2023). As a result, using a combination of environmental and animal advocacy messaging can motivate a wider audience to take actions in support of the environment and animals.
- Communicate your concerns about collaborating early on and be open to compromise. When discussing the possibility of collaborating with an animal advocacy organization, it’s important to not only discuss your shared goals and how you will accomplish them, but to also bring up any concerns you have about collaborating. No matter the hesitations — differences in opinion about messaging strategies, concerns about promoting veganism, or whatever is holding you back — addressing potential challenges before they arise will ensure a more successful collaboration. Keep in mind that some level of compromise may be necessary on both sides to ensure that everyone benefits.
- Remember that “quiet collaboration” is also an option. If you would like to collaborate with an animal advocacy organization but fear alienating your target audience or causing backlash from the animal agriculture industry or even the government (e.g., in China), consider collaborating in a less public way by sharing resources and expertise. This will allow you and your partner organization to help each other reach a common goal by providing the support you both need, without going public about your association.
- Invest time into understanding the animal protection movement and how it ties to the work you do. The animal protection movement is as diverse as the environmental movement when it comes to the various focus areas of organizations and the strategies they implement. While this report primarily focuses on the potential to collaborate at the intersection of animal agriculture and the environment, there are many other ways the two movements are related (e.g., human-wildlife conflicts putting wild animals at risk of extinction; environmental degradation caused by free-roaming domestic animals; and the environmental consequences of research using lab animals).
Learn about the different kinds of issues that animal advocates work on in the Faunalytics Library, stop by our Office Hours to chat about how your work relates to animal advocacy, or reach out to animal advocacy organizations whose work interests you to learn more about what they do and how you may be able to collaborate.
Applying These Findings
Some of the environmental organizations interviewed for this study that are open to collaborating with animal advocacy organizations include: Black Girl Environmentalist (U.S.), Earthjustice (U.S.), Food For Climate League (U.S.), Fridays For Future U.S., Global Forest Coalition (International), and Mighty Earth (International).
They are by no means the only environmental organizations out there. If you are interested in finding more, check out Charity Navigator’s list of recommended environmental non-profits, the UNEP’s list of accredited organizations, Carbon Brief’s database of climate researchers in the Global South, or WANGO’s general NGO directory. For environmental organizations looking to ally with animal groups, review ACE’s list of recommended charities and their map of farmed animal advocacy organizations, IAA’s list of animal conferences, or Charity Navigator’s animal welfare non-profit list.
Envisioning collaboration can be tricky. To help, review Figure 1 below to see the most commonly-cited pathways to collaboration. This list was generated from examples given by our interviewees — use it as a starting point to spark ideas about new intersectional efforts to help animals and the environment!
We understand that reports like this one have a lot of information to consider, and that acting on research can be challenging. Faunalytics is happy to offer pro bono support to advocates and nonprofit organizations who would like guidance applying these findings to their own work. Please visit our Office Hours or contact us for support.
Figure 1: Collaboration Ideas
Behind The Project
Research Team
The project’s lead author was Constanza Arévalo (Faunalytics). Dr. Andrea Polanco assisted with the interviews and analysis, and Dr. Jo Anderson (Faunalytics) reviewed and oversaw the work. Interview support was also provided by Zach Wulderk (Faunalytics).
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank the environmental organizations that took the time to interview for this study, as well as the organizations that provided valuable input to help us identify potential interviewees. We would also like to thank our funders for their generous support of this research.
Research Terminology
At Faunalytics, we strive to make research accessible to everyone. We avoid jargon and technical terminology as much as possible in our reports. If you do encounter an unfamiliar term or phrase, check out the Faunalytics Glossary for user-friendly definitions and examples.
Research Ethics Statement
As with all of Faunalytics’ original research, this study was conducted according to the standards outlined in our Research Ethics and Data Handling Policy.
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