Epsilon Archive for Student Projects

Abstract

Agroecology as a sustainable alternative to our current food system has a strong accentuation on justice. While there is no widely recognized and coherent approach to animal ethics in agroecology, the inclusion of domesticated animals in the farming system is a prerequisite. From an Animal Rights Theory perspective there are hidden power imbalances and blind spots within the agroecological framework, which recreate and reinforce injustice and thereby weaken the agroecological framework. The goal of this thesis is to investigate if and how agroecology can be improved by integrating ‘domesticated animal citizens‘, a concept introduced by Donaldson and Kymlicka (2011), including its practical implications, into the agroecological framework.The concept of domesticated animal citizens outgrows moral hierarchy and, in that way, expands the ecological and welfarist approach present in the agroecological framework. The concept furthermore provides a coherent approach in respect of our moral responsibility towards domesticated animals, namely perceiving them as selves with inviolable rights and relational duties – within the agroecological framework domesticated animals tend to be objectified. Also, it entails dependent agency, which enables the agency of domesticated animals through trusted relationships with humans and elaborates on nine practical aspects. Applying the concept of domesticated animal citizens onto the agroecological framework does not entail the exclusion of domesticated animals from farming systems per se. Rather, it entails a different perspective on animals and a change in how they are integrated. Conclusively, the concept of domesticated animal citizens sheds light on agroecological blind spots, including moral hierarchy, objectification of animals, moral responsibility and the lacking approach to animal ethics, while being an enrichment for the agroecological framework, making it more coherent and its call for justice more consistent.