Influencing human behaviour for animal welfare

In the next instalment of the Animal Welfare Foundation lectures, we take a step away from the animals and look at the people who impact upon them. In a three part series, “How can we influence human behaviour for best welfare?”, three speakers examine ways in which broad social trends can be influenced for the betterment of animal welfare.

In the first instalment, Toby Park of the Behavioural Insights Team explains the idea behind behaviour modification achieved through unassuming changes. The Behavioural Insights Team which was formed in 10 Downing Street in 2010, with the aim of using behaviour insights into public policy challenges and social impact objectives. In other words, they work out what makes people tick, and try to use that understanding to solve problems in society.

You can watch Toby’s full lecture here.

In the second part, Tony Barnett, Professor Social Sciences of Infectious Diseases, Department of Global Health & Development, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, delves into philosophical ideas of the evolutionary logic behind behaviour, such as personal motives, drives, and emotions. Could our prehistoric development subconsciously affect our behaviour towards animals, where we are programmed to see them either as food or a threat? Could we train ourselves, and society as a whole, to have a different view?

You can watch Tony’s full lecture here

In the third part, Roly Owers, Equine Sector Council and World Horse Welfare Chaired by Simon Doherty, BVA Junior Vice President and AWF Trustee, takes the aforementioned theory and explains how to apply it to more practical issues, such as biosecurity, with a specific focus on equine welfare.

You can watch Roly’s full lecture here