See the World Through Their Eyes: Animal welfare realities across African livestock systems.
The Agribridge World Animal Day Dialogue is a two-day virtual learning and conversation event exploring animal welfare realities across African livestock systems, inspired by the 2026 World Animal Day theme, “See the World Through Their Eyes.”
The event will bring together farmers, veterinarians, animal scientists, researchers, animal welfare advocates, students, livestock professionals and members of the public to examine how animals experience their environments and how human decisions shape their everyday lives.
The programme will move from understanding animals' perspectives to examining what that understanding means in practice.
Day 1: Through Their Senses will introduce participants to animal perception and perspective through an engaging virtual experience exploring vision, smell, taste, space and movement. Rather than relying solely on presentations, participants will be invited to observe images, videos and farm scenarios, make their own interpretations, and then compare them with scientific explanations of how livestock may perceive and respond to their environments.
Day 2: From Perspective to Practice will explore animal behaviour and welfare within the realities of livestock production. Following a session on understanding behaviour as a form of communication, a multidisciplinary panel involving a farmer, veterinarian and animal welfare advocate will examine the practical realities of housing, handling, production, climate, transportation, animal health, livelihoods and the wider food system.
Through the event, Agribridge hopes to challenge human-centred assumptions about livestock, strengthen understanding of animal behaviour and welfare, create meaningful dialogue between research, practice and lived experience, and encourage practical actions that can improve the way animals are managed and cared for.
The event is designed to be accessible, interactive and context-sensitive, recognising the diversity of livestock systems and the realities faced by farmers across Nigeria and Africa. Rather than presenting animal welfare as separate from livestock production, the dialogue seeks to explore how animal welfare, responsible production, animal health, human wellbeing and sustainable livestock systems can be considered together.
Ultimately, we hope participants leave not only with more knowledge about animals, but with a different question to carry into their work and everyday interactions:
“If we could see the world through their eyes, what would we do differently?”
Agribridge Initiative
Bridging Research. Practice. People.
- Contact Name: Akerele Abimbola
- Contact Number: +2347033889197
- Contact Email: abimbolacharity09@gmail.com
- Location: Nigeria
- Organised by: Agribridge Initiative