Animal Welfare
Engage in the animal welfare sector and find out how your efforts can make a significant difference in reducing animal suffering and enhance their quality of life.
Introduction to Animal Welfare
Why it matters?
Every year, 50 billion animals are raised and slaughtered in highly intensive food production, factory farming. Many of them experience great suffering. Their cages and stalls can be so cramped that they can barely move, and they are bred for rapid growth and live in substandard conditions, causing stress, injury and disease.
Even if non-human animals don’t morally matter as much as humans, there’s good evidence that they are conscious, and that they feel pain — and as a result, the poor conditions in factory farms are likely causing animals to experience severe suffering. In some places, practices that cause intense pain, such as castrating pigs or docking (cutting off) their tails without anesthesia, are also allowed.
Despite the scale of the problem, it is relatively overlooked. Around 3,000 professionals work on the issue and 300 million dollars are spent annually to reduce suffering. Potential solutions include strategic advocacy to reduce demand for the products we get from animals, working for legislation that improves their conditions, and developing plant-based alternatives to animal foods. This page is designed to provide a comprehensive understanding of the problem and guide on how you can contribute to making a meaningful difference in the lives of animals.
Source: Our World in Data
Career in Animal Welfare
Pursuing a career in animal welfare allows you to influence the compassion and dignity animals are treated with, through research, campaigns, ethical legislations, or changing the food system to become more plant-based.
Advocacy & Policy Roles
Advocacy & Policy Roles
Campaign Manager
Grassroots Organizer
Legal Advocate
Alternative Proteins
Alternative Proteins
Food Scientist
Food Law Specialist
Any role at a alternative protein company
Research Roles
Research Roles
Social / Behavioural Scientist
Sentience Researcher
Wild Animal Welfare Researcher
Leading organizations
Globally
Good Food Institute
A nonprofit think tank and international network of organizations working to accelerate alternative protein innovation.
ProVeg International
A food awareness organization working to transform the global food system.
The Humane League
A nonprofit organization that works to end the abuse of animals raised for food through corporate, media and community outreach.
Faunalytics
Conducts research and shares knowledge to help advocates help animals effectively.
PETA
Exposes animals suffering in laboratories, in the food industry, in the clothing trade, and in the entertainment industry.
Impossible Foods
Develops plant-based substitutes for meat products.
Sweden
Djurens Rätt
Strives for a world where animals are respected as sentient individuals with the right to their own lives/
Oatly
Produces alternatives to dairy products from oats.
Djurrättsalliansen
Working for a society that shows consideration, respect and empathy for all animals.
Växtbaserat Sverige
A trade association for companies promoting the production and consumption of plant-based foods.
From Vision to Transformation: Stories of Impact
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Emil Wasteson Wallén
Plant-Based Protein Entrepreneur
Emil’s background is in entrepreneurship, and his last venture Hooked Foods applied EA principles to reduce overfishing and factory farming of fish – a subset in the animal kingdom whose welfare is highly neglected. He is since 2023 the Executive Director of EA Sweden, using his experience to amplify the impact of others.
Emil Wasteson Wallén
Plant-Based Protein Entrepreneur
Simon Eckerström Liedholm
Wild Animal Welfare Researcher
Simon is a Researcher at Wild Animal Initiative, where he uses his knowledge from his PhD in evolutionary biology, and his aptitude for research, to improve the lives of wild animals – a highly neglected field.
Simon Eckerström Liedholm
Wild Animal Welfare Researcher
#TAKE ACTION
Where to start?
Create a tailored career plan
Explore EA Sweden’s free career guide, helping you create a robust plan on how to contribute to a better life for animals.
Skill up with GFI
Increase your skills through Good Food Institute’s self-paced online course The science behind alternative proteins.
Apply for individual coaching
Get input on your career plan, or on a specific career decision, through individual coaching with EA Sweden. It’s free of charge.
Additional resources and learning
Job board
Find open positions
Use Tälist’s job board to find open roles in the space of alternative protein.
Cause area profile
Learn more about Animal Welfare
Explore 80,000 Hours’ extensive analysis of a career in Animal Welfare.
Animal Charities
Explore effective charities
Animal Charity Evaluators uses evidence and reason to identify the animal organizations and initiatives that will help the most animals with your donations.
Animal Advocacy
Explore a career in advocacy
Animal Advocacy Careers provides resources and courses for people interested in a career focusing on using advocacy to reduce unnecessary animal suffering.
Wild Animal Welfare
Learn about wild animal welfare
Wild Animal Initiative conducts research to advance our understanding of the well-being of wild animals.
Community
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