Sentientism

Jeff Sebo is Clinical Assoc. Prof. of Environmental Studies, Affiliated Professor of Bioethics, Medical Ethics, & Philosophy, & Director of the Animal Studies M.A. Program at New York University. He is on the executive committee at the NYU Center for Environmental & Animal Protection & the advisory board for the Animals in Context series at NYU Press. He is a board member at Animal Charity Evaluators, a board member at Minding Animals International, an Exec. Cttee. member at the Animals & Society Institute, and a Senior Fellow at Sentient Media. Full show notes are here https://sentientism.info/change-is-possible-but-hard-jeff-sebo-author-activist-academic-new-sentientist-conversation In these Sentientist Conversations we talk about the two most important questions: “what’s real?” & “what matters?” Sentientism is “evidence, commitment & compassion for all sentient beings.” The audio will also be on our Podcast – subscribe on Apple here & most other platforms via Anchor. We discuss: Jeff’s background in moral & political philosophy & his shift to focus on animal & environmental ethics Multi-disciplinary approaches Using academia to drive real change Growing up in a Christian household & connecting with religious community (e.g. leading youth groups) Considering going into ministry College at Texas Christian University (liberal arts focus, but many conservative Christian students) Facing a wave of challenges to religious beliefs & having a major faith crisis “I never really believed the Christian stuff in the first place as much as I thought I did… in fact, I was just invested in the community.” A reactionary atheism phase: “God is dead, life is absurd!” Re-constructing a more generous interpretation of religious & scientific beliefs Deep humility re: the fundamental nature of reality The limits to empirical testing. There might be truths beyond those limits “Use evidence & reason to study what we can but recognise that they will not be able to grasp everything of interest in the world” And much more... Follow Jeff at @jeffrsebo & find him at jeffsebo.net Sentientism is “Evidence, reason & compassion for all sentient beings.” More at https://sentientism.info/. Join our “wall” using this simple form. Everyone interested, Sentientist or not, is welcome in our groups. Our biggest (~90 countries so far) is here on FaceBook. Thanks to Graham for his post-prod work. Follow him: @cgbessellieu.

Claudia Hirtenfelder is a PhD Candidate in Geography at Queen’s University in Ontario, Canada. She is host of The Animal Turn Podcast (Subscribe!) In these Sentientist Conversations we talk about the two most important questions: “what’s real?” & “what matters?” Sentientism is “evidence, commitment & compassion for all sentient beings.” The video of our conversation is here on YouTube. Full show notes are here: https://sentientism.info/imagining-a-better-future-through-our-everyday-decisions-podcaster-and-academic-claudia-hirtenfelder-new-sentientist-conversation We discuss: Doing The Animal Turn podcast as a way of learning about animal studies Growing up non-religious but in a Christian context in South Africa (school, society) Loving confirmation camp & the church community Enjoying the easy answers of star signs Asking questions of the church and challenging religion. “Why do bad things happen?”… “Mysterious ways!” Eventually identifying as an atheist Gravitating towards being more anti-theist “If there is a god, why is he so shitty?”, while still respecting people who are religious Rejecting religion because of ethics & evidence/reason Hesitating about whether reason is “everything” (vs. significance of emotion) Emotions can cause problems, but so can being too calculating… Social realities How is the idea of rational thought operationalised. It’s not perfect or free of context Supposedly “rational” thinking has been used to cause terrible harms The need for humility and scepticism, even of our own rationality Different types of evidence, including personal lived experience Subjective experiences as part of one objective reality Awe, wonder & connectedness even within a naturalistic world view Luna the puppy (no longer really a puppy) comments on our discussion And much more here You can find Claudia at @ClaudiaFTowne & The Animal Turn here. Sentientism is “Evidence, reason & compassion for all sentient beings.” More at https://sentientism.info/. Join our “wall” using this simple “I’m a Sentientist” form. Everyone interested, Sentientist or not, is welcome to join our groups. Our main one is here on FaceBook. Thanks to Graham Bessellieu for his post-prod work. Give him a follow!

Mikko is a tech start-up founder and CEO (now https://candle.to/). He founded & is now board chair of Sentient Media - an organisation dedicated to making the world a better place for all sentient beings through journalism. Full show notes are here: https://sentientism.info/breeding-into-suffering-is-the-root-of-the-problem-sentient-media-founder-mikko-jarvenpaa-new-sentientist-conversation In these Sentientist Conversations, we talk about the two most important questions: “what’s real?” & “what matters?”. Sentientism is "evidence, commitment & compassion for all sentient beings." The video of our conversation is here on YouTube. We discuss: Growing up in a political family (father a Finnish Member of Parliament) Early experiences with animals on the family hobby farm Founding Sentient Media & how farmed animal perspectives are neglected in normal media Studying philosophy of social change at the LSE The default state Lutheran religion in Finland, including religious education Learning science, evolution, astronomy as a child Finding religions fascinating & getting perfect marks in religious classes (great stories!) Learning to read from Dungeons & Dragons manuals The relief of formally resigning from the church as a teenager (w/ cooling off period) Evidence & ethics as triggers for challenging religion Reading Nietzsche at 16 Trying on different religions. What would it feel like to believe? Is picking a religion arbitrary, like picking a sports team? Being overwhelmed by the idea of solipsism at ~10 yrs old Morality as something fundamentally social Utilitarianism. Measurement, probability, individualism, rationalism as “western”? Sentientism’s neutrality re: moral systems Early utilitarians often did consider non-human sentience Utility grounded in sentience “My best friends, as a kid, were the sheep.” Making assumptions about sheep. Then being accepted as part of the herd. Deepening understanding of “sheepness” And much more. Sentientism is “Evidence, reason & compassion for all sentient beings.” More at sentientism.info. Join our “wall” using this simple form. Everyone interested, Sentientist or not, is welcome to join our groups. Our biggest is here on FaceBook. Thanks to Graham Bessellieu for his post-prod work on this video. Follow him at @cgbessellieu.

This is a bonus cross-post episode from the Two for Tea podcast where I (Jamie) was interviewed about Sentientism. Two for Tea is a podcast about politics, culture and society by Iona Italia and Helen Pluckrose. Make sure you subscribe to their podcast as well as mine! They host thoughtful conversations with a fascinating range of guests. Sentientism is “Evidence, reason & compassion for all sentient beings.” You can find out more at Sentientism.info. Why not join our “wall” using our simple “I’m a Sentientist” form? Everyone interested, Sentientist or not, is welcome to join our community groups. Our main group is here on FaceBook. We have a fascinating range of compassionate, rational people there from around 90 countries so far!

Jasmin Singer is the author of “The VegNews Guide to Being a Fabulous Vegan” and the memoir “Always Too Much and Never Enough“. She’s the co-founder & co-host of the award-winning Our Hen House podcast & nonprofit (now in its eleventh year), the Director of Editorial for Kinder Beauty, & the editor of the Encompass Essays: “Pursuing Racial Equity in Animal Advocacy”. Jasmin was named a “40 Under 40” by The Advocate Magazine, a top “Eco-Preneur” by Go Magazine & can be seen in documentaries including “Vegucated” & “The Ghosts In Our Machine”. Full show notes are here: https://sentientism.info/a-fabulous-vegan-future-jasmin-singer-new-sentientist-conversation The video version of our conversation is here on YouTube. In these Sentientist Conversations (subscribe!), we talk about the two most important questions: “what’s real?” & “what matters?”. Sentientism is “evidence, commitment & compassion for all sentient beings.” We discuss: Jasmin’s activist journey & roles (& books) Gaslighting re: animal agriculture 1980’s milk & meat marketing Atheism, naturalism, comparative religion Compassion in religion, but also serious ethical problems Growing up as a reform Jew, celebrating Christmas & Hannukah The mental gymnastics more “moderate” religions (like reform Judaism) have to do to move away from the harmful ethics at the core of many religions Humanism’s focus on the human species Do kids start out naturalistic and then get taught fabrications? And much more... You can find Jasmin at @jasmin_singer & jasminsinger.com. Subscribe to Our Hen House as well as to the Sentientism podcast! Sentientism is “Evidence, reason & compassion for all sentient beings.” More at sentientism.info. Join our “wall” using this simple form. Everyone interested, Sentientist or not, is welcome to join our groups. Our main one is here on FaceBook. Thanks to @cgbessellieu for his post-prod work.

Randall is an author and environmental, animal, climate and constitutional law professor at Monmouth University in New Jersey. His books include “What Can Animal Law Learn From Environmental Law?” and “Climate Change and the Voiceless: Protecting Future Generations, Wildlife, and Natural Resources”. In these Sentientist Conversations (subscribe!), we talk about the two most important questions: “what’s real?” & “what matters?”. Sentientism is “evidence, commitment & compassion for all sentient beings.” Full show notes here: https://sentientism.info/how-can-i-have-been-morally-asleep-for-so-long-prof-randall-abate-new-sentientist-conversation Watch the video here.  We discuss: Academic silos between animal/environmental/constitutional law and between law, philosophy and advocacy The disconnect between environmental and animal ethics and law Growing up in a Catholic household, more social than spiritual Appreciating religion as a topic of study, not as something to practice Exploring Eastern religions and spirituality Feeling deeply spiritual without religion Compassion as a theme in many religions Remaining open-minded about religious ideas Agnosticism and atheism Awe, wonder and connectedness within a naturalistic worldview and their commonality with supernatural/spiritual emotions Freedom of belief, but not freedom to use supernatural beliefs to harm others Compassion for all living things & respect for nature, but not realising the link to animal product consumption (even as an environmental law professor) until teaching animal law “How can I have been morally asleep for so long?” The brain-washing of animal product consumption: health, normality Not knowing any v*gans The difficult social process of giving up animal products How much easier going v*gan is now Is the ethical argument re: animal farming over? Anthropocentrism & human supremacy Biocentrism & ecocentrism. Does Sentientism go far enough? Instrumental vs. intrinsic value Christian dominion & stewardship And more... (see here) You can find Randall here at Monmouth. Sentientism is “Evidence, reason & compassion for all sentient beings.” More at sentientism.info. Join our “wall” using this simple form. Everyone interested, Sentientist or not, is welcome to join our groups. Our main one is here on FaceBook. Thanks to Graham Bessellieu for his post-prod work on this video. Follow him at @cgbessellieu.

Josh Gellers is an associate professor at the University of North Florida. His work spans animal, environmental and artificial intelligence ethics and law. He is a research fellow with the Earth System Governance Project and is a Fulbright scholar. He is Author of “Rights for Robots: Artificial Intelligence, Animal and Environmental Law” (open access!). Full show notes are here: https://sentientism.info/de-centring-the-human-new-sentientist-conversation-with-josh-gellers-also-happy-new-year In these Sentientist Conversations (subscribe!), we talk about the two most important questions: “what’s real?” & “what matters?”. Sentientism is “evidence, commitment & compassion for all sentient beings.” Our conversation is also here on YouTube. We discuss: Seeing the impact of climate first hand in South Florida Spanning “hard” and social sciences, rights, ethics and law, animal, environmental and artificial intelligence… inter-disciplinary Sophia the robot and non-human entity rights Growing up in a culturally Jewish household, with a mix of conservative religious and more secular liberal perspectives Doubting religion from an early age How could there be an omnipotent, omniscient, all-loving god when there is so much suffering? Seeing examples of sexism and societal shaming within orthodox religion Kosher laws as historic public health recommendations Exposure to Buddhist animal ethics in Sri Lanka (living with spiders) “Other ways of knowing and worlding” and pluralism Wanting to say there are certain universals, but hesitating to say “I have the right way” Guilt and consciousness about how to be in the world Learning, respecting, humility, open-mindedness, compassion Doing the above without slipping into a relativism that allows the powerful to oppress others Critical environmental ethic with underlying pillars: Compassionate, resilience, sensitivity to the needs of others – ground rules as a safety net vs. relativism Needlessly causing harm isn’t compassionate, whatever your cultural norms People who care about people they know and people who care about people they don’t know And more... Full show notes are here: https://sentientism.info/de-centring-the-human-new-sentientist-conversation-with-josh-gellers-also-happy-new-year Josh is @JoshGellers and his home page is at joshgellers.com. Sentientism is “Evidence, reason & compassion for all sentient beings.” More at sentientism.info. Join our “wall” using this simple form. Everyone interested, Sentientist or not, is welcome to join our groups. Our main one is here on FaceBook.

Full show notes at: https://sentientism.info/diverse-sentients-could-live-in-mutual-symbiosis-graham-bessellieu-new-sentientist-conversation. The video is here on the Sentientism YouTube channel. Graham is an artist, a photographer and a video/audio content producer. In these Sentientist Conversations, we talk about the two most important questions: “what’s real?” & “what matters?”. Sentientism is “evidence, commitment & compassion for all sentient beings.” We discuss: Being raised Christian Going from a soprano to a bass during a church choir tour Love and compassion as central to Christian ethics Eternal torture in hell maybe isn’t ethical – a trigger for re-thinking Comparative religion, logical contradictions The weakness of theodicies (explanations for evil) New Atheism, Dennett, Harris and naturalism Are most religious people more moral than their religions? A naturalistic grounding for ethics Peter Singer’s “Animal Liberation”. Developing ethics through evidence and reason Upton Sinclair’s “The Jungle” and factory farming Earthlings, the documentary How ethical conviction helped Graham work through the practical and social challenges of giving up animal products How some of the most fundamental philosophical challenges have the simplest answers, but social norms get in the way Is animal farming a “necessary evil”? Our non-human animal friends make a cameo appearance The amazing ethical gymnastics people do to try and justify continuing to consume animal products (toddler farming anyone?) Normalising rationality and sentiocentrism. Getting them to be mainstream Why people should adopt Sentientism quickly while it’s still edgy and cool Clean meat and plant-based meats Ending animal farming and exploitation and using sanctuaries as part of transition Zoonotic disease risks The common ground, even a political majority, re: ending factory farming: Sentience Politics, Cory Bookers’ farm bill Extending legal personhood to non-humans Mitigating wild animal suffering (see Animal Ethics and Wild Animal Initiative orgs) Difficult problems and uncertain solutions don’t justify excluding sentient beings from moral consideration Effective Altruism – how to do the most good David Deutsch & “The Beginning of Infinity”… Getting to better problems Steven Pinker & “Enlightenment Now” ...and more... Full show notes here Sentientism is “Evidence, reason & compassion for all sentient beings.” You can find out more at Sentientism.info. Join hundreds of others on our “wall” using this simple form. Everyone interested, Sentientist or not, is welcome to join our community groups. Our main group is here on FaceBook. Thanks to Graham Bessellieu for his post-prod work on this video. Follow him at @cgbessellieu.

Gill is an author, coach & counsellor. She was a UK parliamentary candidate for the Green Party. She focuses on helping people live in balance with themselves & the rest of the living world. Her books include “The Trembling Warrior”, “Hearing our Calling” & “The Game”. In these Sentientist Conversations, we talk about the two most important questions: “what’s real?” & “what matters?”. Sentientism is “evidence, commitment & compassion for all sentient beings.” Full show notes are at https://sentientism.info/being-in-balance-with-ourselves-and-the-biosphere-author-gill-coombs-new-sentientist-conversation. The video of our conversation is here on the Sentientism YouTube. You can find Gill at gillcoombs.co.uk and on Twitter at @CoombsGill. Sentientism is “Evidence, reason & compassion for all sentient beings.” You can find out more at Sentientism.info. Join hundreds of others on our “wall” using this simple form. Everyone interested, Sentientist or not, is welcome to join our community groups. Our main group is here on FaceBook. Thanks to Graham Bessellieu for his post-prod work on this video. Follow him at @cgbessellieu.

This episode is a cross-post from the Future Based Podcast where Annika van den Born interviewed me (Jamie) about Sentientism. The podcast is part of the Future Based initiative that aims to facilitate inter-disciplinary discussions and collaborations about our collective future. Annika and I discuss how naturalism and sentiocentrism come together in Sentientism. We talk about the risks of environmental movements extending their moral circles too far (biocentrism, ecocentrism or holism) while ignoring sentient non-human animals. We also talk about what a Sentientist utopia might look and how we might move towards it. Sentientism is “Evidence, reason & compassion for all sentient beings.” You can find out more at Sentientism.info. Why not join our “wall” using our simple “I’m a Sentientist” form? Everyone interested, Sentientist or not, is welcome to join our community groups. Our main group is here on FaceBook. We have a fascinating range of compassionate, rational people there from around 90 countries so far!