Welcome to SHILO & PATCH, a space for exploring the complex and often messy ways in which humans are interconnected with those beyond our own species.
In 23 days it will be a new year, and like most people the realization as to the passing of time has drawn me into some self reflection lately. In fact, the course of change has been at the forefront of my mind this past year. Our connections with the world and those in it can shift from unquestionable and self-assured one minute, to unbalanced and untenable the next. Nothing highlights this better than the growing awareness of our entanglement with organisms and natural processes leading to the plight of the planet and even our own existence.
It's in moments like this that I try to sit back and reflect on two small things. The first: what can I do to help in the face of these problems? The second: what can I do to help my own well-being in order to psychologically cope with the monumental issues facing our planet?
And so, this year I am setting myself several New Years resolutions, in order to (hopefully) address the two points I just mentioned.
Stop smoking for good (I'm on week 6 so far... go me),
Completely commit to a plant-based diet (for the love of Brie!),
Practice yoga every day (preferably without looking like a drunkard as I do now),
Reduce my carbon footprint,
Write a blog (ta da!),
Dedicate more time to friends and to the outdoors.
I have to do the last one, as I have already purchased new hiking boots which goes against my second hand charity shop resolution from last year. See, already bending my own ethics- alas, I am only human.
What is it to be human? Maybe it is the ability to contemplate ethics whilst simultaneously convincing ourselves that "just this once won't hurt".
I decided to quit smoking because it turns out it's not great for you, the environment, the people who produce it, and (contradictory to my 15 year old self) it doesn't make me look cool. As for practicing yoga, at 30 I thought I really should be able to touch my toes. It is also an incentive to unwind and disconnect from the mania of teaching.
Campaigns by Greta Thunburg's Fridays for Future and the Extinction Rebellion, combined with "What the Health", "Extinction: The Facts" and "The Game-Changers" documentaries can all be credited with my dietary and reduced emissions resolutions. I've had an interesting relationship with animals as food and friends throughout my life, but that is a post for another time. My point is, as you can probably guess... this blog is very much focused around humans and our relationship with the planet (and vice versa). I wanted to write a blog because, in part, I find reflection on my own experiences helpful when studying. This year I began a PhD in Anthrozoology at the University of Exeter. I study part time alongside my day job as an Animal Management Lecturer, because apparently I didn't feel like I had enough to do?
So what is Anthrozoology? Well, it is sometimes referred to as Human-Animal Studies (HAS), Human-Animal Interactions (HAI) or Post-Humanities, depending on where you look. Essentially, without going into a long winded unnecessary debate about the importance of a name, I study the relationships between humans and non-human animals.
Is a name important? Why do we disguise pig as pork and cow as beef? Yet whether bleating or bleeding, a lamb is always lamb.
I also wanted to share the stories of the people who have shaped my views and lead me to my career and studies in Anthrozoology. They've done this by offering such meaningful insight into their world and the ways in which we are all connected. And by people, I of course mean animals. This space is intended to highlight the importance of understanding the complex and often messy ways in which humans and animals collide, interact, assist, love, hate, share and eat each other.
"Dylan is a person name, not a dog name". This seemed like a moot point to me, how is he not a person?
So in short, welcome to SHILO & PATCH, a blog dedicated to exploring the connections between humans and non-human animals. Please feel free to leave a comment, or a polite argument below each post if you would like to join in discussions and debates. All that I ask (or at least hope) is that you come away from this humble blog with a little reflection on your own human-animal (and human-plant!) interactions. Until next time, I leave you with a question:
If animals are "good to think", what are humans good for?
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