Doctoral Programme of Law and Animals at University of Basel

posted in 06 Jun 2012

Call for Applications: “Law and Animals: Ethics at Crossroads” – Doctoral Programme at the Law School of the University of Basel, 2012-2015

“Law and animals”: Cutting-Edge Legal Research

The law school launches the doctoral programme “Law and Animals: Ethics at Crossroads”. “Law and animals” is a novel field of legal research which examines how human society deals with ani-mals and how such treatment is reflected in the law.

The programme’s starting date is September 2012, with a first cycle of studies running until 2015. The programme comprises ten doctoral student positions. Scholarships (at least in form of seed money) will most likely be available. The doctoral programme will be advertised internationally. It is addressed to jurists from all over the world who aspire to obtain a PhD degree in law, in the field of “law and animals”. The bi-lingual programme (English and German) is carried out in Basel.

The application process opens now and closes 15 June 2012 for the autumn semester 2012, late applications can be accepted for the spring semester 2013.

The evaluation of application files starts 15 June 2012.

Please find all information, especially regarding selection criteria and the application procedure, on https://ius.unibas.ch/fakultaet/projekte/life-sciences-recht/law-and-animals/

For additional information please contact the coordination office – animals-ius@unibas.ch

News - More News

posted in 12 Nov 2024

Chimpanzees’ Task Performance Changes When Observed by Humans

A new study finds that chimpanzees, like humans, are affected by being watched: their performance on computer tasks improved on difficult tasks with larger human audiences but declined on simpler ones. This phenomenon, the “audience effect,” was previously thought to be unique to humans.

posted in 30 Oct 2024

Spain seeks ground-breaking law for great apes

A chimpanzee is pictured at the Pridadomus recovering centre, founded by Dutch association AAP, in Villena, near Alicante. (Jose Jordan / AFP)

For decades Achille, 50, lived alone in wretched conditions in a cramped circus cage. But better days could lie ahead for the chimpanzee and almost 150 great apes in Spain, who stand to benefit from a pioneering bill that would strengthen laws safeguarding their well-being.

posted in 12 Sep 2024

Demand Sanctuary for Alamogordo Chimps

26 chimpanzees remain imprisoned at the Alamogordo Primate Facility, where they endured years of cruel experimentation. Though the National Institutes of Health ended invasive research on chimps almost a decade ago, these survivors have yet to experience the peace and sanctuary they deserve.

posted in 13 Aug 2024

Chimpanzees converse like humans, new study finds

The study, which is the result of analyzing conversations of various groups of chimpanzees in the wild in Africa for over 15 years, confirms that our evolutionary relatives also engage in rapid turn-taking in their conversations, mainly involving gestures.

posted in 31 Jul 2024

Peter Singer announces support for the Great Apes Law in Spain

Philosopher Peter Singer, one of the founders of the Great Ape Project, announced his support for the Law. "The Great Ape Project Spain has been working for many years to improve the legal situation of great apes in Spain, and is supporting this legislation as the best achievable."

Residents' Stories

posted in 24 Apr 2024

Katai and Sansão: orangutans in captivity in Brazil

Female orangutan Katai is the only resident of the species in a sanctuary in Brazil. Sansão lives alone in the São Paulo zoo for years. A lawsuit requests Sansão to be transferred to the sanctuary, aiming to improve both orangutan’s…

Katai

Orangutan

Meet the beautiful Katai! The female orangutan was born in 1985 in a German zoo and is a Sumatra/Borneo hybrid. Since 2010, she has been one of the residents of the Anami Institute's Great Apes Sanctuary, in Paraná.

Date of birth: 02/07/1985
Origin: Germany
Sanctuary: São José dos Pinhais, Paraná/Brazil

posted in 03 Apr 2024

Children snatched away by the circus

Throughout her life in the circus, Lucy gave birth to several children, but had no chance of becoming a mother. The babies were snatched from her on the day they were born, probably to be sold.

Lucy

Chimpanzee

Lucy is a docile female and very zealous with her children. During her life in the circus, she had several puppies, but no opportunity to raise them, as they were taken from her the same day they were born. With her arrival at Anami, this reality changed. Lucy can raise Noel, her youngest son.

Date of birth: 1981
Origin: Circus
Sanctuary: São José dos Pinhais, Paraná/Brazil

posted in 29 Nov 2023

In memory of Johny - 05/20/2000 - 11/29/2014

"Johny was the beginning of everything, of a struggle that will never die." The Starostik couple took care of a baby chimp rejected at birth in a zoo and created a suitable place for welfare in captivity.

in memoriam

Johny