Who Will Go for Us?

Consider these developments in the United States, all since 2017: the Environmental Protection Agency is dismantling a range of regulations covering climate change and air and water quality; the Endangered Species Act is besieged by legislation, policy proposals, and amendments meant to weaken it; the Farm Bill before Congress aims to undo conservation gains made on farms and ranches; and the Department of Agriculture has deprioritized cruel and abusive practices under the mandates of the Animal Welfare Act. For many Americans this rogue’s roster constitutes a callous and concerted effort to derail decades of hard-earned progress.

What is to be done? Experts encourage us to make decisions consistent with our beliefs and values, and to take action only after we weigh our options. As for the options in environmentalism, Alex Steffen proposed “light” (alter lifestyle and consumer choices), “bright” (promote investments in new technologies and improved designs), and “dark” (transform political and economic systems). In terms of attitudes towards animals, Lisa Kemmerer identifies the categories of “denialist” (ignore exploitation and abuse), “welfarist” (acknowledge problems and support reforms), and “liberationist” (abolish all misuse and mistreatment).

The planet and its progeny cannot speak for themselves, thus how we respond in their time of need is all the more consequential, which brings me to a passage from the Book of Isaiah (6:8): “Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?’ And I said, ‘Here am I. Send me!’” My deepest hope is that courage and compassion will inspire each of us to step forward on behalf of the natural world and its vulnerable multitudes.