Now You Know with Kathryn and Gen

Now You Know with Kathryn and Gen

By Now You KnowSociety & CultureEducationPets & Animals
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Now You Know with Kathryn and Gen episodes

  • Still Wearing Animals? Why We Should Be Kinder To Our Kin, with PETA founder and Animalkind author, Ingrid Newkirk
    Did you know that sheep are far from mindless creatures? In fact, they have  remarkable memory and recognition skills – they can recognize over twenty other human beings and other sheep from photographs. Have you heard how sheep in Asia have learnt through observation to operate water pumps using their horns? But have you also heard that humans have bred sheep to grow thicker wool, and that this unnatural overload of wool causes many sheep to suffer unnecessarily, often enduring extremely cruel conditions, all in the name of profit? 
    Listen as NYK host, Kathryn, and Ingrid Newkirk – British animal rights activist and the president of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), the world’s largest animal rights organization – reflect on the history and future of  veganism, discuss the scale of animals killed for food and products, and speak passionately about the intelligence, sentience and complex behaviours of animals. 
    Over the last few decades, Newkirk’s contribution to improving animal welfare and protection has been nothing short of remarkable, and has been an inspiration to animal lovers the world over. Newkirk has spoken out on animal rights issues fearlessly, victoriously leading the charge to, among other achievements, end the auto industry’s use of animals in crash tests, securing the first felony convictions of factory farm workers, convincing businesses to stop practices such as near-drowning of test animals, and just recently convincing over one hundred airports to ban the use of glue traps.  Newkirk is the subject of the HBO documentary  I am an Animal, and is the recipient of numerous awards including the Peter Singer Prize for Strategies to Reduce the Suffering of Animals (2016), the Ahimsa Award (2014) and the Shining World Compassion Award (2007). Her latest book,  Animalkind is now available online and in stores, in multiple languages. 
    Listen as Kathryn and Newkirk reflect on how veganism has entered the mainstream in recent years, making headway not only in the food industry, but as an all-inclusive lifestyle. Newkirk describes the progress that has been achieved since the early days of soymilk in powder form to the present where there are seemingly countless delicious nut milk products readily available in stores, and addresses how this availability has now started to extend to industries beyond that of food, including fashion, furniture, hardware and car interiors. 
    Newkirk explains the cruelty involved in farming sheep for wool, even in those places that appear to be idyllic. Kathryn points out that life in the English countryside is not representative of the living conditions of the vast majority of sheep bred for the wool industry. Newkirk elucidates this reality by describing what her investigative teams have uncovered: abusive  conditions and mistreatment due to the fast-paced nature of the industry driven to produce, above all, slating animal welfare far below the need to make a profit.
    Next, Kathryn questions Newkirk about PETA’s choice to use sensational campaigns to get their messages across to the public. Newkirk explains that such campaigns are by design: a necessary tactic and effective political strategy that has successfully exposed crucial issues of animal abuse to the general public and has resulted in an immeasurable reduction in animal suffering on a global scale. PETA’s campaigns deliberately serve to disrupt and shake the very foundations of industries and governments that continue to turn a blind eye to unethical treatment of animals. In fact, Newkirk points out, it is the result of such tactics that led to PETA’s groundbreaking accomplishment of ending the use of animals in crash tests in the car industry. 
    Next, Kathryn shifts the conversation to the current problem of the industry’s mass use of leather in vehicle interiors. Newkirk opens our eyes to the fact that it can take up to eight cows to create a single leather interior. There is, however, lots of
    28 min
  • Episode 1: Exploring the ethics of Whale and Dolphin Captivity with marine biologist Dr. Naomi Rose
    In this episode, Kathryn Sussman discusses welfare issues related to whale and dolphin captivity with Dr. Naomi Rose, marine mammal scientist at the Animal Welfare Institute and member of the International Whaling Commission Scientific Committee.
    Dr. Rose sheds light on the multifaceted natural behaviors of these majestic mammals and their need for expansive living space that is difficult to provide in captivity. She also explains cetacean exhibits’ adverse effect on visitors’ education and support for conservation initiatives, directing us instead to better ways to help.
    “These animals spend the vast majority of their lives below the surface, out of our view, and of course when we have them in captivity the whole point is to be able to see them, so we take that away from them. We are seeking to control the very thing that attracts us to them in the first place, which is this free spirit that exists in the ocean, below the surface.” – Dr. Naomi Rose.
    Dr. Rose’s insight inspires Kathryn and Gen to follow-up with a discussion on the incredible intelligence of marine mammals and their complex social structures undermined by traditional captivity practices.
    “Nothing can justify the continuation of this activity – not scientific research, human entertainment, nor education.” – Kathryn Sussman, in a presentation to the Canadian Senate Committee in support of Bill S-203, a long-standing effort to end the captivity of whales and dolphins in Canada (June 2017).
    Our message of change: Express your displeasure with facilities that house whales and dolphins! Now you know!
    25 min
  • Episode 1: Canada Goose: Trying to Reach Celeb Laurent Duvernay-Tardif

    In this episode, we call out Canada Goose for their misleading and arguably illegal claims about their humane treatment of coyotes and geese used in the making of their winter coat products. Listen as powerhouse animal rights lawyer Camille Labchuk of Animal Justice describes the horrific and unacceptable conditions these animals are forced to endure, all under the brand that is marketed to be distinctly Canadian. Canadians have had enough of this! Next come with us on our journey to reach Montreal native celebrity football player and medical school graduate, Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, to ask for his help in spreading the message that we all need to think about what’s inside our winter coats, and to buy animal friendly alternatives to fur and feathers. Want to go a step farther? Write to Canada Goose and let them know as a consumer you demand that they move out of the fur and feathers business and instead begin using synthetic alternatives. If you already own one of their coats, why not make a home-made patch to cover their label that says: Now We Know to voice your resistance and let others know if you had known the truth about their treatment of animals, you would have made a different choice. Our message for Laurent to spread: Choose cruelty free alternatives to fur and feathers when you buy your winter coat!

    20 min

About Now You Know with Kathryn and Gen

From the publisher's feed

Did you know that schools are bringing on hi-tech animal-friendly alternatives to science class dissections? Are you aware of the impact of captivity on whale & dolphin social networks and behavior? What is “framing” and what’s new at zoos that could change practices worldwide?