 | |
| Abbreviation | SI |
|---|---|
| Formation | June 2017 |
| Founders |
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| Type | Think tank |
| Registration no. | EIN 82-2537926 [1] |
| Focus | Effective altruism and social movement research |
| Location |
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| Website | sentienceinstitute |
The Sentience Institute (SI) is an American interdisciplinary think tank that aims to expand humanity's moral circle. [2] It was founded by Jacy Reese Anthis and Kelly Anthis in June 2017 and has published research reports on social movements, morality, animal advocacy and digital sentience. [3]
The Sentience Institute was founded on the principle of effective altruism, a philosophy and social movement that uses evidence and reasoning to determine the most effective ways to benefit others. The institute bills itself as, "an advocacy think tank researching and advising advocates on the most effective strategies to expand humanity's moral circle." [4] Its founders, Kelly Witwicki and Jacy Reese Anthis, were working at Sentience Politics, which was part of the Effective Altruism Foundation. Sentience Politics is now a nonprofit organization running political initiatives in the German-speaking area. Anthis had also previously worked at Animal Charity Evaluators as chair of the board of directors and then as a full-time researcher. [5]
Anthis and Witwicki were selected for Vice Media's 2017 "Humans of the Year" award. Reporter Matthew Gault described the institute's research agenda as "a huge endeavor." Kelly spoke of the need for evidence and research in the study of social movements: [2] Witwicki and Anthis married in 2020. [6]
Sentience Institute synthesizes some of its research into a Summary of Evidence for Foundational Questions in Effective Animal Advocacy, which catalogs evidence from a variety of sources with implications for animal advocacy movement strategy. [5]
Since 2017, the institute has published several white papers including a study of the British antislavery movement, a study of the French nuclear power movement, and a study of genetically modified food. [2] [7] [8]
The institute polled the views of American adults towards animal agriculture, most notably finding that 47% agreed with the statement, "I support a ban on slaughterhouses." [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] It was replicated in January 2018 by a team of agricultural economists at Oklahoma State University who found the same result. [14] [15]
In November 2018, Anthis, writing under the pen-name "Jacy Reese", published The End of Animal Farming , which summarizes and builds on most of the institute's research and communicates it with the general public. [16] [17] [18] [19] Near the end of the book, Reese concludes that, "if I had to speculate, I would say by 2100 all forms of farming will seem outdated and barbaric." [20] [21] Reese criticizes the notion of humane meat. [22]
In 2023, the Sentience Institute indicates that it is focusing most of its research on digital minds, writing that while concern around artificial sentience may seem farfetched, it should be taken seriously notably due to the potentially extremely large number of instances in the future. [23] [24]
Alexander Fernando Pacheco is an American animal rights activist. He is the founder of 600 Million Dogs, co-founder and former chairman of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and a member of the advisory board of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society.
Animal Aid is a British animal rights organisation, founded in 1977 by Jean Pink. The group campaigns peacefully against the consumption of animals as food and against animal cruelty such as their use for medical research—and promotes a cruelty-free lifestyle. It also investigates and exposes animal abuse.
Bruce Gregory Friedrich is co-founder and president of The Good Food Institute (GFI), a Y Combinator funded non-profit that promotes plant- and cultivated meat alternatives to conventional animal meat. He is also a co-founder of the alternative protein venture capital firm New Crop Capital. Friedrich previously worked for PETA and Farm Sanctuary.
Animal rights is the philosophy according to which many or all sentient animals have moral worth independent of their utility to humans, and that their most basic interests—such as avoiding suffering—should be afforded the same consideration as similar interests of human beings. Broadly speaking, and particularly in popular discourse, the term "animal rights" is often used synonymously with "animal protection" or "animal liberation". More narrowly, "animal rights" refers to the idea that many animals have fundamental rights to be treated with respect as individuals—rights to life, liberty, and freedom from torture that may not be overridden by considerations of aggregate welfare.
Animal slaughter is the killing of animals, usually referring to killing domestic livestock. It is estimated that each year, 80 billion land animals are slaughtered for food. Most animals are slaughtered for food; however, they may also be slaughtered for other reasons such as for harvesting of pelts, being diseased and unsuitable for consumption, or being surplus for maintaining a breeding stock. Slaughter typically involves some initial cutting, opening the major body cavities to remove the entrails and offal but usually leaving the carcass in one piece. Such dressing can be done by hunters in the field or in a slaughterhouse. Later, the carcass is usually butchered into smaller cuts.
The practice of charity, which is the voluntary provision of assistance to those in need, serves as a humanitarian act, and is unmotivated by self-interest. Various philosophies about charity exist, with frequent associations with religion.
Effective altruism (EA) is a 21st-century philosophical and social movement that advocates "using evidence and reason to figure out how to benefit others as much as possible, and taking action on that basis". People who pursue the goals of effective altruism, sometimes called effective altruists, may choose careers based on the amount of good that they expect the career to achieve or donate to charities based on the goal of maximising positive impact. They may work on the prioritization of scientific projects, entrepreneurial ventures, and policy initiatives estimated to save the most lives or reduce the most suffering.
The consumption of dog meat is heavily restricted and soon to be illegal in South Korea. On January 9, 2024, the South Korean parliament unanimously passed a law banning the distribution and sale of dog meat, to take effect in three years. The three-year window allows for farmers to find other sources of income. According to a 2020 survey of South Koreans, 83.8% of respondents reported to never having consumed dog meat before.
The Humane League (THL) is an international nonprofit organization that works to end the abuse of animals raised for food through corporate, media and community outreach. It operates in the United States, Mexico, the UK and Japan. THL promotes plant-based diets, conducts research on the effectiveness of different interventions, and works to obtain animal welfare commitments from companies. It was founded in 2005 in Philadelphia by Nick Cooney.
Open Philanthropy is a research and grantmaking foundation that makes grants based on the doctrine of effective altruism. It was founded as a partnership between GiveWell and Good Ventures. Its current chief executive officer is Alexander Berger, and its main funders are Cari Tuna and Dustin Moskovitz. Dustin says that their wealth, worth $11 billion, is "pooled up around us right now, but it belongs to the world. We intend not to have much when we die."
The Good Food Institute (GFI) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that promotes plant- and cell-based alternatives to animal products, particularly meat, dairy, and eggs. It was created in 2016 by the nonprofit organization Mercy For Animals with Bruce Friedrich as the chief executive officer. GFI has more than 150 staff across six affiliates in the United States, India, Israel, Brazil, Asia Pacific, and Europe. GFI was one of Animal Charity Evaluators' four "top charities" of 2022.
Animal welfare and rights in Switzerland is about the treatment of and laws concerning non-human animals in Switzerland. Switzerland has high levels of animal welfare protection by international standards.
Sentience Politics is a Swiss anti-speciesist political organization with the goal of reducing the suffering of non-human animals. Founded in 2013, their activities include political campaigns, such as ballot initiatives for sustainable food, fundamental rights for primates or a ban on factory farming.
Jacy Reese Anthis is an American social scientist, writer and co-founder of the Sentience Institute with Kelly Witwicki. He previously worked as a Senior Fellow at Sentience Politics, and before that at Animal Charity Evaluators as chair of the board of directors, then as a full-time researcher.
The march to close all slaughterhouses is an international event in the form of annual demonstrations in support of the abolition of the meat, dairy, egg, and fish industries and their practices, including the breeding, fishing, and killing of animals for food products.
Animal–industrial complex (AIC) is a concept used by activists and scholars to describe what they contend is the systematic and institutionalized exploitation of animals. It includes every economic activity involving animals, such as the food industry, animal testing, medicine, clothing, labor and transport, tourism and entertainment, selective breeding, and so forth. Proponents of the term claim that activities described by the term differ from individual acts of animal cruelty in that they constitute institutionalized animal exploitation.
Moral progress refers to improvement in concepts such as moral beliefs and practices experienced on a societal scale. Michele Moody-Adams noted that "moral progress in belief involves deepening our grasp of existing moral concepts, while moral progress in practices involves realizing deepened moral understandings in behavior or social institutions".
The End of Animal Farming: How Scientists, Entrepreneurs, and Activists Are Building an Animal-Free Food System is a 2018 book by Jacy Reese that argues animal farming will end by the year 2100 based on effective altruism reasoning and social movement strategy.
Longtermism is the ethical view that positively influencing the long-term future is a key moral priority of our time. It is an important concept in effective altruism and serves as a primary motivation for efforts that claim to reduce existential risks to humanity.
Moral circle expansion is an increase over time in the number and type of entities given moral consideration. The general idea of moral inclusion was discussed by ancient philosophers and since the 19th century has inspired social movements related to human rights and animal rights. Especially in relation to animal rights, the philosopher Peter Singer has written about the subject since the 1970s, and since 2017 so has the think tank Sentience Institute, part of the 21st-century effective altruism movement. There is significant debate on whether humanity actually has an expanding moral circle, considering topics such as the lack of a uniform border of growing moral consideration and the disconnect between people's moral attitudes and their behavior. Research into the phenomenon is ongoing.