World Academics to Debate the Ethics of Fur

Top academics from around the world will debate the ethics of the international fur trade at a Summer School at St. Stephen’s House, Oxford, from 23-26 July, 2017.

Philosophers, theologians, and ethicists will be among academics from more than 12 countries, including the US, India, Croatia, China, Brazil, Spain, Austria, Canada, Ireland, Estonia, Finland, and Italy.

The fur industry is a multi-million pound, multinational business, responsible for the deaths of tens of million animals, especially mink and fox every year. The task of the Summer School will be to interrogate and analyse the ethical claims of the fur industry.

The Summer School on the Ethics of Fur is being organised by the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics in partnership with Respect for Animals Educational Trust. The Centre pioneers ethical perspectives on animals through academic research, teaching, and publication.

“We are making history,” said Centre Director the Revd Professor Andrew Linzey, “since this is the first academic gathering worldwide on this issue.”

Speakers include:

*        Dr. Natalie Thomas, The Seal Hunt in Canada (University of Guelph-Humber);

*        Laura Donnellan, Cat and Dog Fur Regulation (University of Limerick);

*        Pei F. Su and Yuan-Chih, Lung, The Chinese Fur Industry and its Global Position (ACTAsia, and Tsinghua University);

*        Dr. Darren Calley, An Analysis of the WTO Fur Seals Ruling (University of Essex);

*        Professor Boris Bakota, Croatian Legislation Ends the Breeding of Chinchillas for Fur (University of Osijek, Croatia);

*        Kumud Kant Awasthi, Fur Farming in India (National Institute of Animal Welfare, India);

*        Dr. Margarita Carretero-González, And Some We Wear: The Sexual Politics of Fur (University of Granada, Spain);

*        Simon Brooman, Fur, Law, and Politics (Liverpool John Moores University), and

*        Dr. Letícia Albuquerque, Dr. Paula Brügger, and Gabriela Franziska, The Fur Trade in Brazil: Changing Legislation (Federal University of Santa Catarina, Brazil).

To help facilitate international attendees, the call for papers has been extended until 15 March, 2017. Information about the call for papers and registration is available at www.oxfordanimalethics.com/what-we-do/summer-school-2017, or email Clair Linzey at depdirector@oxfordanimalethics.com