Freedom of Species

Why do we overlook insects so often? In this show we decided to focus on insects for a change. Our guest Alex Hill is doing his PhD research on human insect relationships. We discuss why people including animal advocates and vegans do not consider insects much at all. We have a short quiz on insects, we talk about the threat of insect extinction and look into the details about different species of insects. Music Played: Graeme Revell 'La Danse Des Ténèbres (Dance Of Shadows)' https://youtu.be/6DVbfPq4B9Y?feature=shared&t=742 Adrianne Lenker 'ingydar' https://adria...

This show features Ruby Ramsden on her PhD research on vegan activism in Japan. Some of the specific topics covered are: barriers to eating vegan in Japan, Ruby’s vegan/animal journey, “insider” and “outsider” research, a history of veganism and animal consumption in Japan, and tactical vegan advocacy.   You can look further into Ruby’s work by checking out her article Veganism in Japan: How ‘soft’ activism is changing minds in a meat-eating nation: https://www.melbourneasiareview.edu.au/veganism-in-japan-how-soft-activism-is-changing-minds-in-a-meat-eating-nation/  We also briefly touched on the Maintenance Phase podcast episode ‘Soy Boys’: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6XaOAFq1c49TpVOFFe9j2v?si=f87353dbab...

In this episode Meg interviews Rachel from Animal-Free Science Advocacy (AFSA), a not for profit organisation dedicated to advocating for the removal of animals from experimental science.  We talk about AFSA's efforts to facilitate a culture of animal free alternatives in research, experimentation and training, and how this relates to the evolution of non animal experimental models of all kinds. Join us as we talk about current technology, how AFSA is tapping into this ever evolving aspect of research, and why it's important to move away from animal models for scientific progress.  https://animalfreescienceadvocacy.org.au/what-you-can-do/ https://www.youtube.com/@Ani...

Katie and Nick discuss well-known vegan spiritual figure Supreme Master Ching Hai supporting Donald Trump. We use this as a starting point to cover broader issues around connections between spiritual/wellness movements, including some vegans, and the far-right. This broader discussion draws on Naomi Klein’s book Doppelganger: A Trip into the Mirror World.  Links: We’re releasing this show as two separate podcasts. You can hear part one of this show, where we analyse the book and movie Uglies from an animal rights perspective, via our website and a range of podcast apps: https://www.3cr.org.au/freedomofspecies/episode...

Katie and Nick analyse the book and movie Uglies through an animal rights lens. The movie is streaming on Netflix but Katie recommends the book over the movie!  We’re releasing this show as two separate podcasts. You can hear part two of this show, covering wellness/spiritual people including some vegans supporting Donald Trump, via our website and a range of podcast apps: https://www.3cr.org.au/freedomofspecies/episode/supreme-master-supports-trump-conspirituality-and-vegan-movement  Music: Animal Liberation by Los Fastidios: https://www.losfastidios.net/ I Don’t Like Myself by girli: https://girlimusic.com/en-au

In this show, Meg and Caroline discuss the history of companion animals and pethood and the ethical dilemmas this can raise.   Music we played:       Strange Fruit by Billie Holliday       This is America by Childish Gambino       Gibson Girl by Ethel Cain       We also highlighted the work of  Melbourne Activist Legal Support (MALS). MALS is an all-volunteer organisation that provides training for protest movements, information & resources on the rights to protest in Victoria, and fields Legal Observer Teams that monitor and report on the policing of protest events. MALS train organisers and activist groups in legal support approaches and strategies, and can help coordinate activis...

Food Empowerment Project (F.E.P) is a volunteer-based non-profit organization focused on veganism and food justice.  F.E.P's mission to to create a more just and sustainable world by recognising the power of one's food choices. They encourage healthy good choices that reflect a more compassionate sociert by spotlightin the abuse of animals on farms, the depletion of natural resources, unfair working conditions for produce workers, and the lack of availability of healthy foods in low-income areas. Please see the links below for further details on their work and impact for food justice. We also spoke about Plant the...

On this show, we play the recording of a recent panel discussion, "One Year In: Reflections and the Ongoing Resistance" held on September 28, 2024 and hosted by Dr Leila Dehghan. In this conversation, the panel reflect on the televised genocide of the Palestinians, the silence within the vegan and animal rights movement, and discuss actionable steps for moving forward in solidarity. This panel discussion is available on YouTube as a video recording. If you'd like to watch that, please find it here.    Dr Leila Dehghan, doctor turned plant-based nutritionist and the Founding Director of Plant-based Health Justice. Plant-based Health Justice’s initiativ...

We need to talk about an issue that doesn't get as much discussion as it needs. It's a particularly important topic right now with the state of the world and the exhaustion some activists are feeling.  Today we are talking about activist burnout, what it means, how we get to this point and what both the individual activist and the justice movements as a whole can do to prevent it happening and create a supportive, understanding and sustainable structure where activists can continue to do the good work while also giving back to themselves, nurturing their relationships and ensuring they don't...

Sometimes if we take a look at how animals were percieved in the past, it can give us new insight into our perceptions of animals today.  Join Meg and Trev to discuss how people in Medieval times in Europe perceived animals wild, domesticated and fantastical. We look at how the dominant paradigms of the times (Paganism and Christianity) affected how different animals were treated, the unique relationships peope of the time had with animals, how the different classes of people viewed animals, and take a look at human art from the Medieval period in the form of colourful depictions of ani...