The intent of this book and video review guide is to help us to live according to Kingdom standards which bring Heaven to earth.
“The call for a science of animal well-being is not only much needed but
also long overdue.”
—Kim Stallwood, author, Growl: Life Lessons, Hard Truths, and Bold
Strategies from an Animal Advocate
Bekoff and Pierce want to create a shift in the human-animal relationship,
and those that are ready to do so will want to read this book.”
—Library Journal
“Through meticulous research and with a rational and reasoned approach,
prolific animal rights advocate Bekoff (Rewilding Our Hearts, 2014)
and colleague Pierce advocate for violence-free, more compassionate, and
harmonious relations between humans and animals in all situations.”
—Booklist
“[The book] makes for a thought-provoking read, one that will force you to
re-evaluate many of the assumptions you may hold about animals, animal
behavior, and animal well-being in our present era.”
—Speak for the Animals
“My eyes have been opened as never before, and if we long, as I hope we do,
for a more balanced and kinder world, welcome this book, as I do, with open
arms, minds, and heart.”
—Virginia McKenna, Founder and Trustee, The Born Free Foundation
“An increasing number of compassionate people care deeply about animals. But
there are not yet enough of us. We need to change the way the world is run,
so that all creatures can enjoy their lives and bring up their offspring
without interference. Education is the key; that’s why everyone should read
The Animals’ Agenda. This book will change hearts and minds.”
—Brian May, CBE, founding member of Queen and founder of the Save Me Trust
“Bekoff and Pierce are informed, concerned, and provocative thinkers. Their
information is solid; their plea is ethical. If you’re not there with them
when you open the book, their research and logic will give you a lot to
think about. If you are already in philosophical agreement, your arguments
will be more informed than ever by their richly built book.”
—Carl Safina, author of Beyond Words: What Animals Think and Feel
“The Animals’ Agenda is a bold and important book that everyone
should read, argue over, and think about deeply. Not only does this book
expose the obscene abuses of factory farms and lab animals, but it tackles
deeper, harder, more complex questions as well. Should humans eat animals at
all? Do we have the right to confine animals in zoos or aquariums? Is it
morally defensible to let our cats roam free, where they will kill native
wildlife, or to frustrate their hunting drive by restricting their freedom?
People who love animals may come to different conclusions—but these are
questions we should be discussing and debating if ever we are to evolve past
the human-centered Anthropocene. The Animals’ Agenda brings us
closer to the day when our behavior toward our fellow species is determined
not by convenience or greed but by compassion.”
—Sy Montgomery, author of The Soul of an Octopus and The Good
Good Pig
“This wonderful and inspiring book reminds us in particular that we should
treat wild animals as our co-citizens on this planet and treat them with
respect and protect their natural environment. A must-read by anyone who
aspires to morality and justice.”
—Matthieu Ricard, author of A Plea for the Animals
“Marc Bekoff and Jessica Pierce remind us of our unique place in the diverse
orchestra of life and of our moral responsibilities to other animals. Human
kindness is vital for individuals of other species to survive and to thrive,
and vital for our own survival in a challenging and ever-changing world.”
—Ingrid E. Newkirk, president of PETA
“This book is at the forefront of our evolving understanding, in science and
ethics, of what we must do to protect animals in an increasingly
human-dominated world.”
—Dale Peterson, author of The Moral Lives of Animals and Jane
Goodall: The Woman Who Redefined Man
“The Animals’ Agenda upends the ways we grow up treating and
demeaning nonhuman animals and their habitats. The well-documented style
makes us want ‘to think anew and act anew,’ to use Abraham Lincoln’s
immortal words. Marc Bekoff and Jessica Pierce make you ponder and extend
your own mind and sense of wonder about what the natural world means to us
so we can in turn act more sensibly and kindly toward that sine qua non for
human existence. The Animals’ Agenda is a heartening book for all
ages.”
—Ralph Nader, author of Animal Envy: A Fable
“Thoroughly grounded in the history of animal protection, Marc Bekoff and
Jessica Pierce have written a manifesto for a science of animal wellbeing,
clearly distinguishing it from the science of animal welfare and
articulating a vision for how this new science may inform a world in which
humans live in community with their fellow creature.”
—Dale Jamieson, New York University, professor of environmental studies and
philosophy, author of Reason in a Dark Time and coauthor of
Love in the Anthropocene
Marc Bekoff has published thirty books, including The Emotional Lives of
Animals. He is professor emeritus of ecology and evolutionary biology
at the University of Colorado, Boulder, and a former Guggenheim fellow. He
lives in Boulder, Colorado.
Jessica Pierce, author of Run, Spot, Run: The Ethics of Keeping Pets,
is faculty affiliate at the University of Colorado Center for Bioethics and
Humanities. She lives in Lyons, Colorado, with her husband, daughter, two
dogs, and a cat.
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