“The message we are getting is that if we don’t take care of nature, it will take care of us.” —Elizabeth Maruma Mrema, deputy executive director of the United Nations Environment Programme
There is no doubt that human animals and nonhuman animals share numerous common traits and that the well-being of both are closely connected.1 Poorva Joshipura's book Survival at Stake: How Our Treatment of Animals Is Key to Human Existence examines this connection. Many of us agree with her view: "If we reject speciesism—the belief in human superiority—and accept that we are animals, too, irrevocably interconnected to other species, from the largest elephant to the smallest bee, and a part of, rather than holding dominance over, nature, we can take the necessary steps towards the betterment of all the planet's inhabitants." What harms "them" (nonhumans) harms us.
Marc Bekoff: Why did you write Survival at Stake?
Poorva Joshipura: While things are changing, when I tell people I help animals, their common response is that we should tackle human problems first. I believe animals are inherently worthy of respect. But with each question I have answered, I have been reminded that many people do not realize that the well-being of humans and other animals is intertwined. That’s the gap in understanding Survival at Stake seeks to fill.
For example, animal agriculture is driving the climate catastrophe along with various forms of pollution and antibiotic resistance, SARS originated in a wildlife market as COVID-19 likely did, and HIV and Ebola are thought to have been transmitted to humans who hunted other primates. Now, law enforcement experts tell us cruelty to animals is often a precursor to rape and other violent crimes against humans.
We have limited time to effectively change our current damaging course.
MB: How does your book relate to your background and general areas of interest?
PJ: I have worked in different capacities for various People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals global entities for nearly a quarter of a century. This has included work in the US, UK, Europe, India, and Jordan. It has also involved working as an undercover investigator, mainly visiting facilities using animals for food and experimentation.
Survival at Stake is my second book. My first book, For a Moment of Taste, describes in detail how animals in India specifically are treated for meat, eggs, and dairy. Per UN estimates, India was set to overtake China in April 2023 as the world’s most populous country. According to a recent report, 38 percent of Indians are vegetarian, but that still leaves an enormous population larger than the size of almost every country that eats meat, and most consume dairy.
MB: Who do you hope to reach with your book?
PJ: I suggest what governments and industries should do to be more at peace with nature for everyone's sake. They must recognize and demonstrate through their policies and decisions that humans, other animals, and the environment are interdependent. I could rail against the powers that be for endorsing damaging systems and policies. But governments and industries are made up of individuals; these steps focus on you and me.
While I hope to influence the decisions of policymakers and corporate CEOs, this is for individuals—what individuals can do to help animals, thereby helping ourselves. The simplest and most important action of which is treating animals as we would like to be treated ourselves.
MB: What are some of the major topics you consider?
PJ: Our treatment of animals is linked to key crises affecting us today like pandemics and epidemics, climate catastrophe and pollution, antibiotic resistance and other threats to public health, and even violent crime. We too are animals.
Today, ethologists confirm many resemblances between humans and animals, from whales to even invertebrate creatures like bees. They describe these and other animals as sentient, intelligent beings who express emotional states.
Research reveals that bees appear to dream, chickens are clever and even cunning, pigs can be taught to play video games, and fish form friendships. Animal behaviorists also tell us that cows grieve and that octopuses experience emotional pain and videos on the internet show that dogs risk their own lives to save that of a loved one.
By establishing similarities between humans and animals, I hope readers will be less surprised that the well-being of animals is intertwined with our own.
MB: How does your book differ from others that are concerned with some of the same general topics?
PJ: News of how animal agriculture worsens the climate crisis hits the headlines although it should do so far more often considering what’s at stake. Survival at Stake takes a comprehensive approach toward how our treatment of animals affects us. That is, not just for food, but for other uses like clothing, experimentation, and entertainment.
MB: Are you hopeful that as people learn more about the plight of other animals, we can treat them with more kindness, compassion, dignity, and respect?
PJ: I certainly am. I believe all animals have an inherent worth—but animal rights also matter as do human rights and planetary health. As Elizabeth Maruma Mrema, deputy executive director of the United Nations Environment Programme, said in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, “The message we are getting is that if we don’t take care of nature, it will take care of us.”
References
Poorva Joshipura is the author of For a Moment of Taste: How What You Eat Impacts Animals, the Planet and Your Health (2020). She is the Senior Vice President of International Affairs for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) Foundation UK, through which she oversees numerous global PETA entity operations and projects. She is the former chief executive officer of PETA India and the former director of PETA UK. Early in her career, she also worked in various capacities for PETA US. She is a member of the board of directors for PETA India and the former co-opted member of the government body Animal Welfare Board of India. (Also see.)
1) One of the major goals of the One Health initiative is to have people recognize the close connection between our treatment of other animals and our health. "One Health is a collaborative, multisectoral, and transdisciplinary approach—working at the local, regional, national, and global levels—to achieve optimal health outcomes recognizing the interconnection between people, animals, plants, and their shared environment." Also see Saving Animals, Saving Ourselves: What Harms Them Harms Us.
login
who are we?
contact us
qosheapp
Toi Staff
Gideon Levy
Belen Fernandez
Andrew Mitrovica
Mort Laitner
Nikkei Editorial
Rami G Khouri
Ali Fathollah-Nejad
visit website
