COP26: Changing food systems and how we treat animals is a major opportunity for climate change mitigation
31 October 2021
News
For too long, animal protection has been absent from the conversation around the climate emergency. However, animals and animal-related sectors play a significant role in ensuring a transition towards climate-resilient societies.
Today marks the start of the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) in Glasgow, where parties and world leaders will come together to accelerate action towards the goals of the Paris Agreement and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.
One of the main themes of this year’s COP is nature-based solutions to the twin crisis of climate change and biodiversity loss. This provides an important opportunity to raise the profile of animal protection issues in the climate agenda.
Livestock farming represents a significant share of the planet’s emissions that cannot be ignored. The recent report on global warming from IPCC is clear: we have no time to lose in cutting methane emissions. Reducing livestock numbers could contribute significantly to achieving the Paris Agreement targets. Failing to reduce livestock numbers will put most of the UN SDGs out of reach.
Eurogroup for Animals’ contribution
To inform COP26 attendees about the environmental issues associated with animal-related sectors, as well as how improved animal welfare and transformed food systems can help build back better, Eurogroup for Animals have created a leaflet entitled “Protecting Animals to Protect the Planet”.
Religious slaughter: A spectacular win for animals in Greece
29 October 2021
Hellenic Animal Welfare Federation
The Hellenic Council of State (Supreme Administrative Court of Greece) annulled a 2017 ministerial decision which, in the context of religious slaughter, allowed the slaughter of animals without prior stunning. The Court ruled that the Greek state omitted to aim for a balance between its obligation to protect animals and that to respect religious freedom.
The Court rejected the claims of the Greek State that it was bound by Regulation (EC)1099/2009 to allow slaughter without prior stunning, accepting instead the arguments put forward by Animal Protection associations and meanwhile confirmed by the European Court of Justice.
This confirms that the Regulation itself does not make the compromise between animal welfare and freedom of religion, but merely sets the framework for the necessary compromise between the two principles, providing member states with the possibility to regulate religious slaughter and maintain national rules or adopt new rules to ensure wider protection of animals, taking into account the evolution of values and perceptions in their society.
All game keepers are scum bags, the “game” shooting industry is trash and the way it decimates the wild and the environment all over the country is disgusting and needs to stop.
When we found out these pieces of shit in Shropshire were trapping and killing birds of prey we had to act.
We took a trip to the shooting estate near Chelmarsh and found the whole place covered in traps – larsens, fenn traps and bird of prey traps – which we destroyed.
The pheasant pens became another target for our rage and we completely dismantled them.
We raided their sheds and stole disgusting family photographs of the murderers, proudly displaying their past trophies, their guns and dead birds, smiley happy family days out killing.
gamekeeper with bag of the day braces of pheasants English rural scene
There were three partridge release pens, still full of birds waiting to be shot.
We returned in the night and released over 100 captive birds from those pens, then smashed the fuck out of them.
Those partridges will now be free and not just a flying target for sick murdering fucks to shoot.
With this action we send a clear message to this game keeper and game keepers all over – you fuck with birds of prey, we fuck with you.
And I mean…In the United Kingdom, around 50 million pheasants are ‘released into the wild’ after they have been reared in factory farms so that they can then be shot with the help of drivers and dogs while hunting.
A cursory glance at Wikipedia will tell any prospective applicant that a gamekeeper is “a person who manages an area of countryside to make sure there is enough game for shooting and stalking” and any online search will turn up pages of information on how that’s achieved.
Gamekeepers are a construct of shooting industrie. Without the shooting industry there would be no ‘need’ to industrialise the killing of native wildlife and no ‘need’ for gamekeepers.
Why they’re doing it for, we know that already.
They kill and they are paid to do it.
The point is that vast numbers of animals are being killed to protect the profits of the shooting industry.
The most important point is that our governments seem complicit in breaking the country’s laws on wildlife protection by issuing licences on behalf of the shooting industry, licences that cost nothing and don’t even have to be applied for.
And that the mass destruction of native wildlife has been normalised by the shooting industry and packaged as ‘countryside management’.
And because governments themselves are made up of hunting lobbyists or even passionate hunters, it makes a lot of sense not to make the craft of this criminal industry so easy.
Thanks to those who see it that way and act accordingly
Modern pentathlon votes to ditch horse riding after Tokyo Olympic turmoil
It is a sport conceived originally by the founder of the modern Olympics to help cavalry riders to develop the skills needed to survive behind enemy lines.
But after 109 years, modern pentathlon’s governing body has voted secretly to remove horse riding and replace it with cycling,“theGuardian” can reveal.
Multiple sources have said the decision was taken by the Union Internationale de Pentathlon Moderne’s executive board in recent days, and was hastened by the distressing scenes at the Tokyo Olympics when a horse was punched by a German coach after it refused to jump a fence.
Those pictures made global headlines and the UIPM is understood to have acted in order to preserve its status in the Olympics in the lead-up to the Paris 2024 Games.
While the decision has not yet been announced officially, it is already facing a backlash from some countries who believe that losing the horse-riding element fundamentally changes the sport.
Modern pentathlonhas been a core Olympic event since 1912 when it was invented by Pierre de Coubertin – and while it has since moved from a five-day event to a solitary day it has always tested athletes in fencing, swimming, show jumping, pistol shooting, and cross-country running.
The UIPM refused to deny the story when confronted by the Guardian, with a spokesperson saying: “I am not able to give you any information right now.”
However, the organisation later released a statement:“As part of UIPM’s commitment to maintaining a strong, dynamic profile for modern pentathlon, a series of strategic meetings are being held. These meetings will include an upcoming call with national federations later this week. The outcome of these meetings will be detailed in a press release to be published on 4 November.”
The former British modern pentathleteKate Allenby, who won a bronze for Team GB at the Sydney Olympics, told the Guardian any move to replace riding would be a “disaster” for the sport (!!!) “This needs talking about because it’s not modern pentathlon if it hasn’t got riding in it,” she said.
However another British OlympianGreg Whyte, who also won a world silver medal in 1994, said he could understand the change. “I don’t think it is necessarily a bad thing,” he said. “Back in the day, the fencing part alone used to take 14 hours, while in Paris the whole event will last just 90 minutes. All sports evolve, and no sport is immune from change in the modern TV era.”
And I mean…Absolutely brilliant news! That’s right thing!!!
Frustrated riders and tortured horses are not a sport but simply a ridiculous show at the expense of the animals.
Stop using animals for “sport”, job done!
Leather made from grapes, down made from flowers – the future of fashion is here and it can be yours! H&M, one of the largest global retailers,has teamed up with PETAto create and launch the vegan fashion collection “Co-Exist Story”.
This new, sustainable collection of stylish women’s, men’s and children’s fashion is made from innovative, animal-friendly materials.
Every part in “Co-Exist Story” is PETA-Approved Vegan, so you can be sure that these products are completely animal-friendly. This means that no animals have been exploited for their skin, fur, hair or anything else.
The collection celebrates the harmonious coexistence of humans and other animals on this planet.
The “Co-Exist Story” collection will be available from November 4, 2021 on HM.com and in selected stores (local launches may vary).
Which animal-friendly materials are in the H&M and PETA collections?
You probably love flowers and wine, but have you ever worn them?
At PETA, we’re always looking for new, animal-friendly materials that are even better for the planet.
That’s why we’re delighted that the partnership with H&M includes the most innovative vegan fabrics as part of the brand’s “Innovation Stories” initiative to find the best new fabrics for the future.
These materials are as functional as they are fashionable.
FLWRDW – wild flowers instead of down feathers
This vegan down filling is made from a cellulosic material made with natural wild flowers. It has a high filling power, so it will keep you warm and cozy.
In the “Co-Exist Story” it is used in down shoes and jackets, padded trousers and reversible quilted shoulder bags.
VEGEA – grape leather instead of animal skin
VEGEA is an innovative vegan leather alternative that is partially made from grape skins, stems and seeds that are thrown away during winemaking.
The embossed waistcoat and trousers in the “Co-Exist Story” collection are made from this material, so you can wear them proudly knowing that you are both stylish and animal-loving.
ECONYL– cozy knitwear made from nylon waste
ECONYL is a regenerated nylon made from waste such as fishing nets and scraps of cloth that would otherwise pollute the earth.
This material is not only a solution to the waste, it is also more environmentally friendly.
It reduces the global warming effect of nylon by up to 90% compared to material made from oil.
In the “Co-Exist Story” collection you will find ECONYL material in oversize knit.
What does “Co-Exist Story” mean for animals?
Geese are loyal companions for life, cows are loyal friends, and sheep are playful and affectionate – they are not jackets, shoes, or sweaters.
By choosing animal-friendly materials, H&M is setting a new standard in the industry and showing that compassionate fashion is the way to go. Using innovative materials like FLWRDWN, VEGEA and ECONYL makes it easy for customers to choose compassionate options for their wardrobe and coexist with all other sentient beings on this planet.
What does “Co-Exist Story” mean for the planet?
The “Innovation Stories” initiative from H&M is about finding new fabrics that drive the fashion industry towards sustainability.
VEGEA and ECONYL are creative examples that high quality, beautiful materials can be made with waste from other industries.
FLWRDWN uses natural wild flowers.
An environmentally friendly future is also a vegan one, as animal exploitation industries contribute massively to greenhouse gas emissions and groundwater pollution.
Coexistence means ensuring that all animals on our planet have a future by protecting habitats and using resources responsibly.
Shop the “Co-Exist Story” collection from H&M!
The collection will appear on November 4, 2021 and will be sold in selected stores such as Berlin (local launches may vary). You can also shop online at HM.com.
And I mean…Without a doubt a great idea, a great initiative and a promising start.
Just a little hint so that you don’t mean that this brand is now generally cruelty-free: only a part of the H&M collections is meant, not all.
But at least everyone who wants vegan clothes doesn’t have to search for hours, now everyone can find out about the collection and choose specifically within this collection. Thank you H&M, thank you PETA.
Rabbits are bright, curious and sensitive animals that love to dig in the cool sand, play with their friends and jump around in the grass. In the meat industry, however, they cannot meet these natural needs.
The keeping, rearing and killing of rabbits in the meat industry was not regulated in detail for a long time. There have only been minimum legal requirements since 2014 – but similar to the requirements for pig and chicken rearing, these provisions do not allow the rabbits to live in a species-appropriate manner.
There is also another major problem in rabbit fattening: private breeders.
Due to the widespread hobby keeping of rabbits, it is hardly possible to check whether the minimum requirements are being violated.
How many rabbits are bred and fattened in Germany for their meat has not yet been officially recorded.
However, it is estimated that there are tens of thousands of animals.
Rabbit meat: husbandry, production, laws and numbers
Before August 11, 2014, there were only non-binding guidelines that were determined by the breeding and rabbit keepers’ associations themselves.
Since then, legal minimum requirements have been set for keeping rabbits, but they are by no means sufficient to enable the rabbits to lead a species-appropriate life.
Even keeping them in cages with grid floors is still allowed. At the end of a life full of privation, the rabbits die in the slaughterhouse.
Production and sales figures can hardly be recorded
In contrast to meat from other animal species, rabbit meat (around 34 percent) is largely produced as a hobby and offered through direct sales.
This makes it difficult to regularly collect current data on kept and killed animals.
The main producing countries of the EU are Spain, France and Italy.
But in Germany too, it is estimated that around 15 million rabbits are killed every year for their meat in “backyard slaughterhouses” – less than 25 percent of rabbit meat is produced in industrial fattening operations. China is the world’s largest producer of rabbit meat and the main supplier of rabbit meat to the EU.
Overall, however, EU imports only make up a small percentage of the rabbit meat traded.
Facts about breeding and fattening: Millions of rabbits are killed every year in Germany
According to the federal government in 2010, over 41,000 tons of rabbit meat are consumed in Germany – this corresponds to around 30 million rabbits. The majority of it, around 33,000 tons, is produced in Germany. The indication in tons once again makes it clear: The animals do not count as individuals, but are degraded to a factor of production.
As in pig farming, a distinction is made between breeding and fattening rabbits. While female rabbits have to give birth to as many young as possible in breeding, rabbits in fattening should put on a lot of meat as quickly as possible.
WAV Comment – I think this issue alone, along with many other at COP26, shows that ’Mr Normal man and woman’ have now had enough with the over inflated, false promises made by so many over inflated, false and self-opinionated leaders from some of the worlds nations.
People want change and they want it now; not more weasel words which 10 years later amount to nothing as we have seen from recent COP conferences.
The complete U turn by the port authorities in Scotland relating to the ‘Rainbow Warrior’ was a very, very wise move. Who knows what would have happened if the young climate protesters on board were denied entrance to the Clyde / Glasgow.
Direct action works; and by their past lack of actions, the opinionated politicians are now viewed very much as a laughing stock by so many people – those who want action and change, Now !
And this is only Day 1; plenty more days to come and for the politicians to actually earn some respect (?) by finally taking action on global warming.
People have opinions and feelings – and THEY VOTE !
Climate activists on board the Rainbow Warrior are to sail into the heart of Glasgow after officials agreed to allow the ship into the Cop26 restricted zone.
Port authorities wanted to block the famous vessel from entering the area, which bans craft from the stretch of the Clyde next to the SEC conference centre, but on Monday afternoon Police Scotland confirmed the vessel was to be allowed to continue to its destination.
Activists Jakapita Faith Kandanga, 24, Edwin Namakanga, 27, Maria Reyes, 19, and Farzana Faruk Jhumu, 22, who are from communities which would be most affected by a changing climate, are on board the ship.
In a joint statement they said the “authorities understand that our presence at the climate summit is too important to shut out”.
“It’s ridiculous to think that climate talks could be held without the most affected people there and it’s positive that the police and port authorities have changed their minds,” they said.
“World leaders attending the talks could learn a lot from this co-operation. We have been ignored long enough, and now, with a safe passage to Glasgow, our voices must be heard at Cop26.”
Greenpeace said it had been warned by HMS Vigilant, as it approached the Firth of Clyde, that if the Rainbow Warrior continued its voyage it would be in breach of maritime laws and Police Scotland would “act appropriately”.
But the pressure group said that, following a meeting with Hettie Geenen, the ship’s captain, port authorities told her they would help facilitate the four youth climate activists’ arrival.
The four campaigners, from Namibia, Uganda, Mexico and Bangladesh, are just a handful of the thousands of protesters who are descending on the city as world leaders discuss how to fight a changing climate.
Police Scotland Assistant Chief Constable Gary Ritchie said: “Harbour authorities had been in regular communication with the Rainbow Warrior and had instructed that, due to the restrictions and some significant safety concerns, it could not sail to its intended destination.
“Despite this, the Captain of the Rainbow Warrior signalled her intent to continue.
“Accordingly, following consultation between police and harbour authorities, it was considered that the safest option for the crew of the Rainbow Warrior and wider public was to ensure the safe passage of the vessel to its destination.
“We are now engaging with Greenpeace and all relevant partners to ensure the safe passage of this vessel, it’s passengers and the wider public.”
Over the next two weeks of the conference, 120 dignitaries and heads of state are set to attend the UN event which has been billed as vital in stopping climate change and rising global temperatures.
As world leaders made their way to the city on Monday, Oxfam’s “big heads”, featuring Joe Biden, Boris Johnson, Emmanuel Macron, Angela Merkel, Justin Trudeau, Mario Draghi, Narendra Modi, Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping, made an appearance along with a traditional Scottish pipe band in Glasgow’s Royal Exchange Square, where they were “blowing hot air”.
Nafkote Dabi, Oxfam’s climate change policy lead, said rich nations are not cutting emissions fast enough to keep the most vulnerable countries safe.
“We must all halve global emissions in the next nine years but we are heading in the opposite direction. Leaders must not delay a moment longer – every fraction of a degree costs lives,” she warned.
“Developed nations must live up to their promise from 12 years ago to deliver 100 billion dollars (£73 billion) every year to help vulnerable nations adapt to climate change and reduce emissions.
“This support should be in the form of grants – not loans – and half of it should be for adaptation. It is also critical that they agree a way to finance loss and damage for the unavoidable impacts of climate change that are already destroying homes and lives.”
Greta Thunberg who inspired the climate strike movement across the globe, was surrounded by police officers and activists as she arrived at Glasgow Central railway station on Sunday night.
The 18-year-old is expected to take part in demonstrations during the summit, including a march through the city on Friday, organised by campaigning organisation Fridays for Future Scotland.
The demonstration will walk from Kelvingrove Park to George Square.
Ms Thunberg is also expected to speak at a rally taking place on Saturday, hosted by the Cop26 Coalition, which will march from Kelvingrove Park to Glasgow Green.
On Sunday, Extinction Rebellion marched through Edinburgh in solidarity with protests taking place across the world.
The ‘Bous al Carrer‘, an increasingly controversial centuries-old tradition: 17 deaths in the last seven years The ‘Bous al Carrer’ festivities are a tradition more than a hundred years old in the Valencian Community, and there are many neighbors who assure that it is part of their daily life (!!!)
The reason: more than 9000 celebrations are held a year and in more than 300 municipalities.
However, the controversy surrounding this celebration is more alive than ever: in the last seven years 17 people have lost their lives, the last of them in the confinements held this Saturday.
A 55-year-old man died in Onda,Castellón, during the celebration of this activity after being gored in the leg by a bull.
The event occurred on the last day of the start of these celebrations, when the man received a serious goring.
When he was injured in the femoral art, he lost a lot of blood.
Although he was immediately transferred to La Plana Hospital, he died in the health center.
The worst figure was registered in 2015, when seven people died as a result of goring or injuries when participating in bullfighting shows at street level. This makes many are against its celebration, especially animal associations. “We consider them to be cruel and bloody spectacles with animals,” said Javier Sánchez, PACMA spokesman.
” The celebration of ‘Bous al Carrer’ carries risks. It is an activity in which all of us who participate know what we are up against. We are facing an animal, a bull, whose mission is to attack and injure to defend itself, ” Vicente Nogueroles, president of the Federation of Bullfighting Peñas de Bous al Carrer, has argued, in statements to “laSexta”.
The Animal Party Against Animal Abuse (PACMA) is clear about it and asks for its cancellation. “Our position regarding the ‘Bous al Carrer’ is the abolition of this and any other type of popular celebration with animals,” Javier Sánchez clarified.
Thus, after the tragedy that occurred this Saturday, as well as those registered in recent years, the debate that divides the population is reborn: to abolish or not, an issue that does not seem to have a short-term solution.
And I mean.. Apparently some didn’t evolve.
That’s why some drunken psychopaths enjoy standing in front of a poor tortured animal that comes out of a damned box where there is no other way out than to run away and meet everyone who comes before it.
And those that haven’t evolved call it “tradition”!!
The bull does not want to be in this shit that they call traditions and festivals and for HIM it is also fair that those who torment him find a just death.
Therefore, it will not sound harsh to say that the human deads don’t cause the least sorrow to a compassionate person who abhorred animal abusers.
I have taken this directly from the site run by one of our supporter friends Barbara.
Please have a look at it when you can. You know we are primarily an animal rights group; but when we feel it is necessary, we change hats and speak up for human rights. Here is such a case.
In the U.S., Indigenous Peoples’ Day evolved as an alternative to « Invasion Day » – Columbus Day – which celebrated Columbus’ arrival in the New World on October 12th 1492 and the beginning of the colonization of North America.
Native Americans protested honoring a man who had enabled their genocide and forced assimilation.
About Barbara Crane Navarro – Rainforest Art Project
I’m a French artist living near Paris. From 1968 to 1973 I studied at Rhode Island School of Design in Providence, Rhode Island, then at the San Francisco Art Institute in San Francisco, California, for my BFA.
My work for many decades has been informed and inspired by time spent with indigenous communities. Various study trips devoted to the exploration of techniques and natural pigments took me originally to the Dogon of Mali, West Africa, and subsequently to Yanomami communities in Venezuela and Brazil.
Over many years, during the winters, I studied the techniques of traditional Bogolan painting. Hand woven fabric is dyed with boiled bark from the Wolo tree or crushed leaves from other trees, then painted with mud from the Niger river which oxidizes in contact with the dye.
Through the Dogon and the Yanomami, my interest in the multiplicity of techniques and supports for aesthetic expression influenced my artistic practice. The voyages to the Amazon Rainforest have informed several series of paintings created while living among the Yanomami. The support used is roughly woven canvas prepared with acrylic medium then textured with a mixture of sand from the river bank and lava. This supple canvas is then rolled and transported on expeditions into the forest. They are then painted using a mixture of acrylic colors and Achiote and Genipap, the vegetal pigments used by the Yanomami for their ritual body paintings and on practical and shamanic implements.
My concern for the ongoing devastation of the Amazon Rainforest has inspired my films and installation projects. Since 2005, I’ve created a perfomance and film project – Fire Sculpture – to bring urgent attention to Rainforest issues.
To protest against the continuing destruction, I’ve publicly set fire to my totemic sculptures. These burning sculptures symbolize the degradation of nature and the annihilation of indigenous cultures that depend on the forest for their survival.
With this action we send a clear message to this game keeper and game keepers all over – you fuck with birds of prey, we fuck with you.
Those pictures made global headlines and the UIPM is understood to have acted in order to preserve its status in the Olympics in the lead-up to the Paris 2024 Games.
The UIPM refused to deny the story when confronted by the Guardian, with a spokesperson saying: “I am not able to give you any information right now.”
However another British Olympian Greg Whyte, who also won a world silver medal in 1994, said he could understand the change.
The keeping, rearing and killing of rabbits in the meat industry was not regulated in detail for a long time. There have only been minimum legal requirements since 2014 – but similar to the requirements for pig and chicken rearing, these provisions do not allow the rabbits to live in a species-appropriate manner.
Every cage stomped is at least one life saved, probably more.
World Animals Voice 