UPF-Centre for Animal Ethics

25/08/2026

Non-human animals are systematically excluded from public narratives, rarely recognized as sentient subjects, and instead framed within anthropocentric narratives of production and consumption; efforts to challenge this pattern and make the more-than-human world visible often encounter editorial res...

04/08/2026

Es imprescindible observar nuestro alrededor sin fragmentarlo y defender que la protección de las vidas animales es un eje irrenunciable en cualquier posicionamiento ecologista. Para comprender que la ecología y la protección animal pueden ir de la mano hay que conectar las causas políticas, eco...

25/07/2026

25/07/2026

MAJOR WIN! A huge win for octopuses! 🐙

Nueva Pescanova has officially scrapped plans for the world’s first commercial octopus farm in Gran Canaria, Spain.

This victory follows five years of campaigning, including major research, more than 43,000 supporter emails, an open letter signed by 130+ NGOs and scientists, and global public opposition.

Octopuses are highly intelligent, wild animals that do not belong in factory farms. While this is a major milestone, the fight isn’t over—we’ll keep working to stop octopus farming and keep these incredible animals wild.

On 24 July 2026, reports confirmed that the company had withdrawn the project. According to reporting, the decision was attributed to business and regulatory factors, while animal welfare and environmental organizations described it as a landmark victory after years of campaigning.

Thank you and all activists involved! 🐙 🩵

23/07/2026

CFP CULIVIAN International Conference: "Animal Advocacy Nonfiction Film and Moving-Image Media"

Start: 7/14/26 11:50 AM
End: 11/1/26 11:50 AM

Details:
The conference is organized by the CULIVIAN Research Group in Valencia (“Animals in Literary and Visual Cultures”), as part of the research project “The Ethics and Aesthetics of Animal Advocacy Documentary Film in Twenty-first-century Western Cultures” (CIAICO/2023/046), funded by the Conselleria d’Educació, Cultura i Universitats (Generalitat Valenciana). The conference will be held face-to-face at the Facultat de Filologia, Traducció i Comunicació at the University of Valencia, Spain, on April 28-30, 2027.

See all the information here: https://culivian.es/en/activities/cfp-culivian-international-conference?set_language=en

06/07/2026

[ENG below]
Membres de l'UPF-CAE han col·laborat en l'elaboració d'un policy brief sobre biologia de la invasió en el marc del projecte PESTS, dirigit per la Núria Almiron i en el que també participen del nostre centre l'Eze Paez, Pablo Magaña, Laura Fernández, Sara Vidal-Ramón, Amanda Fincatti, Eva Navarro i Olatz Aranceta-Reboredo. El text fa una reflexió crítica al paradigma antropocèntric i bèl·lic amb que les polítiques públiques predominantment gestionen els animals a la natura que no són desitjats.

📄 Podeu consultar el document i el projecte PESTS aquí: https://www.upf.edu/web/cae-center-for-animal-ethics/past-cae-events/-/asset_publisher/FHBhNE3JQgsl/content/upf-cae-members-contribute-to-the-first-pests-project-policy-brief/maximized

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UPF-CAE members have collaborated in the development of a policy brief on invasion biology within the framework of the PESTS project, led by Núria Almiron and in which our center also includes Eze Paez, Pablo Magaña, Laura Fernández, Sara Vidal-Ramón, Amanda Fincatti, Eva Navarro and Olatz Aranceta-Reboredo. The text critically reflects on the anthropocentric and warlike paradigm with which public policies predominantly manage unwanted animals in nature.

📄 You can consult the document and the PESTS project here: https://www.upf.edu/web/cae-center-for-animal-ethics/past-cae-events/-/asset_publisher/FHBhNE3JQgsl/content/upf-cae-members-contribute-to-the-first-pests-project-policy-brief/maximized

22/06/2026

On 6 July 2026, the UPF-Centre of Animal Ethics will host the Seminar: "“Decoding” Nonhuman Animal Communication with Artificial Intelligence", by Caatje Kluskens, from Wageningen University and visiting researcher at UPF-CAE.

📍Sala En Construcció, Campus Poblenou (UPF)

🗓️ Monday, 6 July 2026- 17:00

In this talk, Caatje Kluskens, PhD candidate in the Philosophy Group at Wageningen University and visiting researcher at UPF-CAE discusses current AI for nonhuman animal communication projects, the epistemic debates surrounding them, and the broader question of what it might mean to listen to nonhuman animal voices.

The talk proposes that the technology is most valuable for the questions it forces us to ask about language, intelligence, and the moral consideration of other animals. Those questions, however, do not emerge and circulate independently. The extent to which AI for nonhuman animal communication can function as a site of inquiry depends on whether it is represented as one. The responsible media representation of the technology is therefore not an afterthought, but a condition for any meaningful outcome for nonhuman animals.

Everyone is welcome to attend.