We discuss the biggest questions: "what's real?", "who matters?" and "how to make a better world?" with scientists, celebrities, activists, writers and philosophers. The Sentientism worldview is "evidence, reason and compassion for all sentient beings." It's a simple, yet radical, philosophy that's grounded in reality (naturalistic epistemology) and has compassion for all sentient beings (mostly human and non-human animals). Naturalism & sentiocentrism combined.
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Dr Iyan Offor is a Senior Lecturer in Law at Birmingham City University conducting interdisciplinary, theoretical research focusing on global animal law, environmental justice, intersectionality, posthumanism and law in the Anthropocene. Iyan is passionate about delivering legal education and research that will lead to the improvement of protections for animals and the environment in law. Iyan teaches international environmental law and human rights, legal theory, legal research, and constitutional law. He will also be creating a new course on animals in environmental law. His new book, “Global Animal Law From The Margins“, is published by Routledge.
In Sentientist Conversations we talk about the two most important questions: “what’s real?” & “who matters?”
Sentientism is “evidence, reason & compassion for all sentient beings.” The video of our conversation is here on YouTube.
We discuss:
00:00 Clips
01:22 Welcome
– Josh Gellers (previous Sentientism guest)
03:00 Iyan’s Intro
– Socio-legal scholar. Animals, nature and the law – and how those interact with society
– Improving educational options re: animal law: PhDs, masters projects, programmes, talks
– “…that appetite for learning about animals, the environment and the law that’s already there – [but] in many places there’s not space”
– Research: “How law can be used as a tool to try and improve animals lives… the core of what I’m trying to do”
– New book: “Global Animal Law From The Margins“
– Globallaw’s multi-scale focus vs. #internationallaw (just the international level)
– Feminist, queer & postcolonial perspectives on the animal question
– “It ends up being a bit wacky… the international trading system… taking this forward-looking ethical approach… not the most natural bed-fellows but I think in the end it works”
06:58 What’s Real?
– An #atheist household in a very religious community (highlands of Scotland) and wider family
– #bornagain #christian grand-parents “a healthy dose of trying to convert us… my parents weren’t to thrilled about that but we were well prepared.”
– “I couldn’t bring my #harrypotter books into the house because magic was seen as sinful and against god’s will… it didn’t make a lot of sense to me.”
– Christian cartoons and religion at school “There was a feeling of it being forced on us”
– “I can see as quite problematic the ways in which children at school were expected to engage in Christian custom”
– Exchange year in Singapore, multiculturalism, secularism re: separation of state and religion
– Coming to understand grand-parents’ turn to religion “they needed their faith”
– “I identify as part of the queer community… growing up in that very small, rural and christian environment… growing up closeted… has been interesting”
– Parents “gave us the information & gave us the freedom to make our own choice… that’s an incredible privilege to have that freedom…”
– “I don’t practice or follow a religion… it’s never felt like a gap in my life”
34:18 What and Who Matters?
01:11:39 A Better World?
01:28:19 Follow Iyan
– https://twitter.com/IyanOffor
– https://www.linkedin.com/in/iyan-offor/
– https://www.bcu.ac.uk/law/about-us/meet-our-staff/iyan-offor
– Global Animal Law From The Margins “the e-book is reasonably priced”
…and much more. Full show notes at Sentientism.info.
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