January 13, 2015, New Delhi: Witness a conference like no other. India for the first time is hosting the prestigious Minding Animals Conference where nearly 200 speakers from across the globe would come under one roof and share their insights on different facets of animal studies and welfare. Organised and hosted by Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) in collaboration with Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), this conference endeavours to help establish universals of welfare as well as legal and moral protection for all animals, both domestic and wild.

The conference being held from January 13-20, 2015, at Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi, strives to improve the status of animals and alleviate their exploitation by facilitating research and discourse among scholars, students, artists, activists, advocates (and members of the general population) in the trans-disciplinary field of animal studies and otherwise. The opening ceremony would see the presence of two cabinet ministers.

Shri Prakash Javadekar, Minister for Ministry of Environment and Forests & Climate Change, would be the chief guest and give an inaugural address on January 14. Ms. Maneka Gandhi, Minister of Women and Child Development, would give the keynote speech on the same day. Experts like Rod Bennison, Mahesh Rangarajan, Raman Sukumar, Jill Robinson, Lori Gruen, Vivek Menon, Donald Broom, Will Kymlicka, Tara Gandhi, Cindy Milburn, MK Ranjitsinh, Erica Fudge, among several others would share their insights with the participants in the sessions during the week-long conference.

Into its third leg, the previous two successfully held in Australia and the Netherlands, the Minding Animals Conference this year would see participation of experts from almost 30 countries. The participants would share their insights on animal welfare in the context of culture, humanities, art, literature, feminist studies, films, music, performance, confinement, among several others, citing references from across the world.

Rod Bennison, Chair, Minding Animals International Inc. said, “In its many transdisciplinary guises, Animal Studies has come to represent the key philosophical and academic foundation upon which animal protection is now based. That encapsulates environmentalism, animal care and compassion, animal liberation, animal rights, animal welfare and animal justice. Here in New Delhi, we will experience how wildlife welfare and protection is integral to the discipline.”

The talks would range from rats to elephants; Chimpanzees to Eastern blue tounged lizards; halal and animal welfare to Decolonization and Intersectionality between animals and religion; feminisms and sex work to queer normality and animal sterility; the Politics of Primates in South Africa to mentions of animals in Norwegian political party programs; Animal Slaughter in the Name of Allah to Contextualising Balidaana in the Kaamaakhyaa Cult; Gendered Representation of Sheep in Modern Japanese Literature to Animals in folk myths to a history of music for non-human listeners and its political implications; The Animal Attendants of Siva and Parvati to Beyond GDP: True wellbeing for animals and people; A Muslim Viewpoint on ethics of xeno-transplantation to the use of similes from the animal world to impart human values in India. These are just a few examples of the wide variety of talks that would feature during the course of seven days.

“India is at the crossroads wherein animal welfare and protection of their natural environments have taken a backseat to development and human welfare. As Mahatma Gandhi famously said that the greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated becomes even more important in current circumstances. Therefore, a conference to discuss issues of animal welfare couldn’t have come at a better time,” said Vivek Menon, Executive Director and CEO,WTI.

The first day of the conference would have a pre-conference Interfaith Programme and Multi-Faith Prayer Service at Bahai’i House of Worship, Lotus Temple, New Delhi. Leaders of different faiths would share teachings from their respective faiths that promote animal welfare and conservation. It is intended to bless the conference and mark an auspicious beginning to the week that follows. The conference would also have special documentary screenings, workshops and panel discussions on wide variety of issues related to non-human welfare.

“Animals have always shared the historical and contemporary live of Indians. The deep intellectual engagement with the animal world is a reflection of this close relationship. I am glad that a conference dedicated to the life and world of animals and animal-human relationships is being organised in Delhi,” said Prof Sudhir K Sopory, Vice-Chancellor, JNU.