The Asia for Animals podcast

Curious about the ongoing efforts to advocate for animal welfare in Indonesia? Want to learn more about impactful campaigns like 'Dog Meat Free Indonesia' and 'Go Cage-free'? In this episode, we catch up with Herdiana Putri Ayuningtyas and Monique van der Harst from Animal Friends Jogja to explore their comprehensive approach to policy advocacy and community engagement. Discover the challenges and successes they’ve faced, and gain insights into the strategies they employ to influence policy changes and improve animal protection in Indonesia. Join us to find out what the future holds for animal welfare in Indonesia and how you can get involved in supporting these crucial initiatives.

Join us for an inspiring journey through the Vegan India Conference! In this episode, we chat with passionate activists and dedicated professionals about the incredible progress and future of the vegan movement in India. From the importance of relationship building in volunteer engagement to insights on the funding landscape, we've got it all covered!

Have you heard about South Korea's recent announcement to ban the dog meat trade and want to learn more? Are you curious to understand the dog meat trade in Asia, and the situation across Asia in general? We caught up with Lola Webber from Humane Society International to provide you with an overall understanding of the dog meat trade in Asia, and what the recent ban announcement in South Korea entails. Join us to discover what the next few months and years will bring ahead for South Korea and Asia, and what organisations and members of the public can do to tackle this issue.

We dive deep into the world of development banks and their role in financing factory farming. Our special guest, Alessandro Ramazzotti from the International Accountability Project, sheds light on the intricate web of funding, the loopholes being exploited, and the vital work of the Stop Financing Factory Farming coalition (S3F). In this insightful conversation, Alessandro explains the mission and goals of the International Accountability Project and how development banks are fueling factory farming and why this is a global concern. He also discusses the Early Warning System (EWS) and its role in monitoring harmful projects, sharing success stories from the S3F coalition in stopping detrimental projects. Alessandro emphasizes how listeners can get involved and support sustainable, humane farming practices. Tune in to learn how development finance impacts our environment and communities, and discover ways to join the movement for a more sustainable future.

The illegal wildlife trade seems impossible to overcome, and is harming millions of animals and our ecosystems around the world. In this episode we ask the question - is it possible to stop illegal trade of wild animals? Joining us today is Karmele Llano Sanchez, from Yayasan International Animal Rescue Indonesia. Karmele will be sharing with us how they managed to dramatically slow, and almost stop the illegal trade of Asia’s mysterious slow loris.

Join long time AfA Coalition core member organization Born Free Foundation (BFF) to discover the challenges faced by a vast number of wild animals being kept and traded as pets. Dr. Mark Jones and Chris Lewis of BFF take us deep into this global issue, as well as their multi-pronged approach to find solutions.

To celebrate International Turtle Day, delve into the fascinating world of turtles! Learn more about these amazing animals in this episode, from their shells, to their navigation skills and parental care, you'll also learn about the threats that they face and conservation initiatives that have helped save endangered populations! 

In this episode, we delve into the nuances of animal welfare advocacy in Latin America with Luis Sarmiento, Founder and Director of Proyecto ALA. With a rich background in animal welfare and protection, Luis shares his insights on the challenges and strategies employed in Latin America and discusses the parallels with Asian efforts in policy advocacy. The conversation explores the importance of global policy forums, effective strategies for engaging national governments, and the benefits of collaboration between Latin American and Asian animal welfare advocates. Join us to gain a deeper understanding of cross-regional efforts and how they can inform and strengthen our advocacy work.

To round up International Macaque Week 2024, we explore the vital work of Social Media Animal Cruelty Coalition (SMACC) member organizations Lady Freethinker and Action for Primates in combating the exploitation of macaques in online cruelty content. We discuss the global reach of this issue and the challenges faced by animal advocates in getting social media platforms to take down abusive content. Find out more about our guest organizations at https://ladyfreethinker.org/ and https://actionforprimates.org/

In celebration of International Macaque Day, we're featuring quick macaque tales from a variety of macaque people - a new, personal story each day! Today we hear from Dr. Lisa Jones-Engel, Senior Science Advisor, PETA. Learn more at www.macaquecoalition.com/international-macaque-week