Please save the date for the Bernie Rollin Memorial Lecture in Animal Ethics with visiting scholar Dr. Lori Gruen. Dr. Gruen’s lecture, “Animal Dignity,” will be held at 4 pm in the Longs Peak Room (LSC 302) on March 6, 2025.

There is growing attention to the harm and suffering that animals experience in human environments, including laboratories, factory farms, zoos, and aquaria. Yet, there has been very little discussion focused on respecting other animals. Going beyond the fact that animals suffer, Dr. Lori Gruen develops a view about animal dignity that focuses on what it would mean to be in a relationship of respect with them. In this lecture, Gruen explores what it means to think and act on the notion that animals have dignity and worth.

Lori Gruen is the William Griffin Professor of Philosophy and Professor of Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies and Science in Society at Wesleyan University where she also coordinates Wesleyan Animal Studies. Her work lies at the intersection of ethical and political theory and practice, with a particular focus on issues that impact those often overlooked in traditional ethical investigations, e.g. women, people of color, incarcerated people, and non-human animals.