Ethos: The Practical Ethics Blog

This month is an embarrassment of riches! Once again I have the pleasure of introducing a contributing author to this Blog and an Advisor on Practical Ethics, Julie Urbanik.

Julie holds an M.A. in Women’s Studies from the University of Arizona (2000), and a Ph.D. in Geography from Clark University (2006). Her thesis, Living Our Environment: the Role of Ecofeminism in Women’s Studies Curriculums, was an exploration of why and how environmental issues such as the politics of spirituality, environmental economic policies, and post-colonial and animal rights theories need to become better integrated into Women’s Studies classrooms. Her dissertation, Geography and Animal Biotechnology: the Role of Place and Scale in Shaping the Public Debate, examined stakeholder strategies in the conflict over the production and use of genetically engineered animals and engaged with questions about science and democracy, geography and activism, and the intersections of power, species, and identity.

As an ecofeminist cultural geographer, she is motivated to explore how issues of identity, globalization, and technology are reconfiguring human relationships with the natural world. She has experience and interest in three broad research areas: the role of identity politics and social theory in environmental conflicts, the role of geography in science and technology policy conflicts, and the geopolitics of commodities. More specifically, she focuses on the topics of gender, nonhumans, and food technologies. The aim of her research is to contribute both to the academic dialogue on shifting nature-society interactions and to the furthering of effective participatory democracy in environmentally-related policy decisions.

As an educator, her goal is to impress upon students her love of learning and of our world. She wants to challenge students to disrupt notions of what is ’normal’ and to consider the social and historical constructions of their own experiences, beliefs, and daily practices. She introduces human-animal ’issues’ in every course she teaches, and relishes motivating students to experience light bulb moments.

You can contact her at:

Julie Urbanik, PhD
Assistant Professor
Geography and Regional Planning
Westfield State University
Westfield, MA 01086
413.367.3028
julie.urbanik@gmail.com

Selected Publications:

Urbanik, J. (in press). Locating the transgenic landscape: animal biotechnology and the Politics of place in Massachusetts. Geoforum.

Emel, J. and J. Urbanik. 2005. Feminism and animal biotechnology. In A Companion to Feminist Geography, edited by J. Seager and L. Nelson. Malden, MA and Oxford: Blackwell, pp. 445-457.

Urbanik, J. 2005. Brave new zoo: the world of animal biotechnology. New England Anti-Vivisection Society (NEAVS) Update, v.6, n.2, pp. 4-5.

Urbanik, J. 2001. Book review of Feminism & Ecology by Mary Mellor. Organization & Environment, v. 14, n.1, pp. 116-117.

Urbanik, J. 2000. Book review of The Emperor’s Embrace by Jeffrey Masson. Feminists for Animal Rights Journal, v. 12, n. 3/4, Autumn/Winter.

Urbanik, J. 1999. CARE re-visioned: an update on the Companion Animal Rescue Effort Program. Feminists for Animal Rights Journal, v. 11, n. 1/2, Winter/Spring.

William Lynn :: Aug.26.2007 :: Ethics, Geography, Human-Animal Studies :: No Comments »

There are so many important issues related to animals, ethics, and society, and I am thrilled to be a part of this forum for discussion on such topics. Today, I want to take a few steps back from the specific issues to talk about how we think about these things. All human inquiry is informed by ideas about how the world works. This is more than just academic or philosophical conversation. Theories are entirely practical; they can promote dialogue and exploration-challenging what is “commonsense” or taken for granted-and they can help us to describe, explain and evaluate the world we live in. What’s more, when thinking about our relationships with the nonhuman world, ontological positions are particularly significant because they determine who (or what) is to qualify for ethical consideration, the practical consequences of which can literally mean life (for those welcomed into the moral community) or death (for those excluded).

My own way of understanding human-animal interactions is dynamic, and I strive to honor both theory and practice by working with a set of overlapping ideas intended to guide thinking about our relations with animals. My approach is grounded in philosophical hermeneutics, incorporates a plurality of post-positivist thought, and utilizes a practical ethics framework. Essentially, when I think about issues like marine mammal policy or dolphin-human interactions (or anything else, for that matter), this is where I always begin:

• There is no value-free inquiry. All human understanding is rife with moral implications.
• There is a natural world that exists independent of us. Our perception of the world, which is historically situated and fluid, mediates our understanding of it.
• When seeking understanding about the world and our relations in it, we must take a flexible, dialogical and situated approach.
• Understanding requires interpretation of the individual experience through attention to meaning, articulated and enacted in contexts, which inform the action of conscious agents-both human and nonhuman.
• When it comes to conflict over what is “true” or what is “right” there are no absolutes. But we can decipher better (and worse) ways of living in the world.

This is the lens through which I see the world, and from which I join you here in these important discussions.

Kris Stewart :: Aug.17.2007 :: Ethics, Human-Animal Studies :: No Comments »

I have the great pleasure of introducing Denise Taylor as an advisor with Practical Ethics, and a contributing author to this blog.

Denise Taylor is an entrepreneur and conservationist whose primary interests are in education and learning in wildlife conservation.

A life-long passion for wildlife led Denise into becoming a volunteer conservationist in the early 1990s. Denise initially worked with Wolf Watch UK before moving to the UK Wolf Conservation Trust to become the founding Editor of Wolf Print magazine, which now enjoys an international reputation and is supported by wolf biologists, conservationists and researchers throughout the world. Wolf Print synthesises the work of academics for a lay-audience, and the content is often about the human dimensions of wolf conservation and wolf population recovery with a particular focus on wolves in Europe. Denise later became a director of the Trust.

Denise was awarded her degree in Business Administration in 1995, and is currently in the final stages of writing up her doctoral thesis at the University of Nottingham, England. Her research interest is the efficacy of wolf conservation education programmes throughout the world, with a focus on hard to reach target groups who are, or perceived to be, resistant to the primary goals of wolf conservation and consequently to any education strategy which has this aim, taking into account the cultural, socio-economic and political issues involved. Although a wolf advocate, Denise has a pragmatic approach to wolf conservation and along with colleagues is keen to engage and work with the various stakeholders in the conservation of wolves.

As a result of her research and her work with the UKWCT, in 2003 Denise founded E4C (www.education4conservation.org) which provides resources for conservation educators throughout the world. E4C also acts as a partner organisation with other NGOs to maximise funding opportunities for the benefit of wildlife conservation, education strategy development, community capacity building and helping to alleviate conflict situations involving predators and livestock depredation. The most recent of these partner projects raised significant funding to help set up and equip a Large Carnivore Centre in the Pirin Mountains in Bulgaria.

In the UK, E4C takes a more hands-on approach to conservation education; planning and implementing nature-based workshops, activities and festivals. Using a combination of nature, the arts and technology, the Inspired by Nature programmes are values-based and achieve a dual impact aimed at fostering respect for wildlife and nature and at the same time providing different perspectives, and new knowledge and skills, particularly for socially disadvantaged young people.

For the past few years Denise has combined her business and academic interests. She strongly believes that her background in the corporate world gives her a pragmatic approach to conservation that helps to bridge the gaps between the different disciplines and complements the work of science-based colleagues.

Denise is also a member of the IUCN (The World Conservation Union) Canid Specialist Group; comprising a group of 100 international experts from around the world. (www.iucn.org).

If you would like to get in touch with Denise, her contact information is below.

Denise Taylor
Founder and Executive Director
Education 4 Conservation Ltd
Hillcrest, Pailton Fields
Pailton
Rugby
Warwickshire CV23 0QJ
England

Tel: +44 (0) 1788 833232
Denise.taylor@btinternet.com
www.education4conservation.org
www.ukwolf.org

William Lynn :: Aug.07.2007 :: Environmental Studies, Human-Animal Studies, Wolves :: No Comments »