We're All In This Together: Restoration Ecology And Animal Welfare
An Environmental Article from All-Creatures.org

FROM Sarah Streeter, Faunalytics.org
March 2020

Humans and animals are part of one community. Restoration ecology can be more successful by taking animal welfare into account when planning recovery projects.

Hummingbird
Photo by Benjamin Wong on Unsplash

Restoration ecology is the scientific study that supports ecological restoration. It provides the science that informs the most effective approaches to restoring damaged ecosystems. In his book “The Land Ethic”, conservationist Aldo Leopold expanded the idea of community to include soils, waters, plants, and animals. A land ethic puts humans back into the role of member or citizen of the land rather than its master. We are supporters of the community rather than engineers or conquerors.

Despite how the land ethic values animals, there is still no consensus on whether or how to support their well-being. Researchers in the restoration ecology field continue to debate how or whether the well-being of wild animals should factor into restoration efforts. The authors of this opinion piece offer three ways to incorporate the perspective of wild animal welfare into restoration ecology.

Read the entire article at We're All In This Together: Restoration Ecology And Animal Welfare


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