Industrial animal agriculture, sometimes called factory farming, is a significant contributor to climate change. This panel will provide an overview of the connection between industrial animal agriculture and climate change, as well as how it negatively impacts farmed animals, the environment, workers, neighboring communities, public health, and food safety. The panel will also address how our food policies facilitate the existence of industrial animal agriculture and disregard environmental justice issues, COVID-19, and other pandemic risks.

Australia burned for weeks. Venice flooded. Animals, both human and nonhuman, are suffering around the world. In the era of the twenty-four-hour news cycle, the impact of climate change is impossible to escape and can take a significant toll on our already stressful lives. Join us for a discussion on how to cope with climate change anxiety and compassion fatigue while still contributing to the solution.

Litigation has long been an important tool for animal advocates. This panel will explore how animal protection litigation strategies are impacted and informed by the climate crisis, and will examine the promises, challenges, and limitations of litigation as a tool to tackle climate change’s impacts on animals.

As habitats are being destroyed, oceans are warming, and factory farms proliferate across the globe, zoonotic diseases (those that spread between animals and humans) are also on the rise. Join our panel of experts to learn how the interdependence among animals, the climate, and human health causes adverse impacts to wild, aquatic, and farmed animals, and ultimately humans, as new infectious diseases, like COVID-19, emerge.

Join Center for Animal Law Studies Executive Director, Pamela Hart, as she speaks with Jonathan Safran Foer about his most recent book, We Are the Weather: Saving the Planet Begins at Breakfast, what changes he’s seen for better or for worse since the publication of Eating Animals, whether he’s optimistic about the future, and more. Time will also be reserved for audience Q&A.

Introduction by: Pamela Hart, Executive Director, Center for Animal Law Studies at Lewis & Clark Law School

Our food system is one of the key drivers of global climate change, animal suffering, and human exploitation. This panel will discuss current food policy and purchasing innovations designed to accelerate transition to a cleaner, more humane, and equitable food system.

Calling all attorneys! Russ Mead, animal law ethics expert, will lead attendees through an interactive and engaging set of hypotheticals aimed at examining challenging dilemmas that animal protection attorneys often face, and the appropriate response for adhering to the Model Code of Professional Responsibility. One hour of ethics credit will be available, pending bar approval.

Now more than ever, animal issues are represented in proposed legislation across the country. This panel will highlight legislative and regulatory updates that affect animals directly and indirectly, while also examining the unique challenges brought on with animal advocacy in a changing climate.

Increasingly, scientists and governments are acknowledging that factory farming and other animal-use industries are a significant driver of climate change. While addressing these issues is critical, this panel of experts will shed light on other leading climate change causes and how advocates can take meaningful steps to effect positive change for animals.

Climate change is accelerating the rate of extreme weather events, pandemics, and other crises. As the mass culling of millions of animals amidst the COVID-19 pandemic has vividly illustrated, it is more important than ever that facilities holding animals be prepared to care for them when such contingencies arise. This panel will discuss current efforts to ensure adequate planning for animals in emergencies by industry, policymakers, and animal protection groups.

Judges encounter animal-related issues in a number of different contexts, including criminal court, mental health court, and juvenile and family court. These cases can pose unique challenges for judges, particularly with regard to animals’ multifaceted legal status. This panel will highlight the key issues that frequently arise in animal cruelty cases from a judge’s perspective and the value of building coalitions among various stakeholders.