European Animal Rights Law Conference 2025

The Cambridge Centre for Animal Rights Law is delighted to announce the fifth European Animal Rights Law Conference 2025, which will take place from 4-6 September at Magdalene College, Cambridge.

The Conference is part of our Centre’s mission to promote research that explores and develops the key themes in animal rights law, and to make that research accessible to a broader audience.

This year's Conference is on the theme "Animal Rights in Legislation" and will feature political representatives, government officials, prominent academics, and lawyers. The event will bring together influential animal rights law experts from Ecuador, Finland, Panama, Spain, Switzerland, the UK, and the US.

The Conference will also feature two distinguished keynote speakers: Dr Visa Kurki (Associate Professor of Jurisprudence, University of Helsinki) and Dr Saskia Stucki (Director, Center for Animal Rights and the Environment [CARE], Zurich University of Applied Sciences)

Format and recording

The Conference is open to all and will be held in person at Magdalene College (Cripps Court Auditorium). It will be recorded, but not live-streamed. Recordings will be made available on our website after the Conference.

Ticket categories

Multiple ticket categories are available:

• Standard ticket with accommodation and formal dinner (includes Conference attendance, 3 nights B&B College accommodation, formal dinner on 4th September, reception, coffee & tea, and lunch each day)

• Standard ticket with formal dinner (includes Conference attendance, formal dinner on 4th September, reception, coffee & tea, and lunch each day)

• Standard ticket simple (includes Conference attendance, reception, coffee & tea, and lunch each day)
• Student ticket with formal dinner (includes Conference attendance, formal dinner on 4th September, reception, coffee & tea, and lunch each day)

• Student (includes Conference attendance, reception, coffee & tea, and lunch each day)
• Thursday ONLY ticket (includes Conference attendance for ONLY Thursday, coffee & tea, and lunch)

• Friday & Saturday ONLY ticket (includes Conference attendance for ONLY Friday and Saturday, drinks reception, coffee & tea, and lunch)

Refunds for tickets will be given for cancellations up to 30 days before the event. Please note that the Eventbrite ticketing fee is non-refundable.

Catering

All catering will be plant-based.

Conference Programme

Thursday, 4th September

8.30 – 9.00am

Registration

9.00 – 9.30am

Welcome and introduction

Dr Raffael Fasel (University of Cambridge)

1) Taking stock of current animal rights bills

9.30 – 10am

Herbie’s Law

Steve Race (MP, Labour Party, UK)

10 – 10.30am

Comment on bills to end animal experimentation

Dr Nico Müller (University of Basel)

10.30 – 10.45

Panel Q&A

10.45 – 11.15am

Coffee and biscuits

11.15 – 11.45am

Great ape rights and other animal rights bills in Spain

José Ramón Becerra (General Director of the Animal Rights Agency, Ministry of Social Rights and Agenda 2030, Government of Spain)

11.45 – 12.15pm

Comment on great ape rights bills

Professor Paula Casal (Pompeu Fabra University, Barcelona)

12.15 – 12.30pm

Panel Q&A

12.30 – 2pm

Lunch

2) Challenges before and after enactment

2 – 2.30pm

The Ecuadorian drafting process

Tatiana Rivadeneira (Ecuadorian lawyer, member of the National Animal Movement of Ecuador)

2.30 – 3pm

Reflections on the Ecuadorian drafting process

Dr Marina Lostal (University of Essex)

3 – 3.30pm

Panel Q&A

3.30 – 4pm

Coffee and biscuits

4 – 5.30pm

Keynote address

Dr Visa Kurki (Associate Professor of Jurisprudence, University of Helsinki)

7.30pm

Conference dinner (ticket required)

Friday, 5th September

3) Exploring enacted animal rights laws

9.00 – 10am

Elephants’ rights in Ojai, California

Leslie Rule (Council Member, Ojai, USA)

10 – 11am

Turtles’ rights in Panama

Gabriel Silva (former MP, “Vamos” Coalition, Panama)

11 – 11.30am

Coffee and biscuits

11.30am – 12.30pm

Q&A and discussion with Leslie Rule and Gabriel Silva

Moderated by Dr Raffael Fasel and Dr Sean Butler (University of Cambridge)

12.30 – 2pm

Lunch

4) Case study: constitutional animal rights in Finland

2 – 2.30pm

Mai Kivela (MP, Left Alliance Party, Finland)

2.30 – 3.00pm

Venla Mathlein (President of the Finnish Society for Animal Rights)

3 – 3.30pm

Panel Q&A

3.30 – 4pm

Coffee and biscuits

4 – 5.30pm

Keynote address

Dr Saskia Stucki (Director, Center for Animal Rights and the Environment [CARE], Zurich University of Applied Sciences)

5.30 – 6.30pm
Drinks reception

Saturday, 6th September

5) Past lessons and future prospects

9 – 10am

Perspectives from Ruud Tombrock (Humane Society International), Richard Ryder (psychologist and animal rights advocate), and David Bilchitz (Professor of Law, University of Johannesburg and University of Reading) – Part I.

Moderated by Dr Carolina Leiva Ilabaca and Dr Eva Bernet Kempers (Junior Research Associates at the Cambridge Centre for Animal Rights Law).

10 – 10.30am

Coffee and biscuits

10.30am – 11.30am

Perspectives from Ruud Tombrock (Humane Society International), Richard Ryder (psychologist and animal rights advocate), and David Bilchitz (Professor of Law, University of Johannesburg and University of Reading) – Part II.

Moderated by Dr Carolina Leiva Ilabaca and Dr Eva Bernet Kempers (Junior Research Associates at the Cambridge Centre for Animal Rights Law).

11.30am – 12.00pm

Reflections on the past, present, and future of animal rights legislation
Dr Sean Butler (University of Cambridge)

12.00 – 1.30pm

Lunch

End of conference

2-6pm

PhD Workshop (invitation only)

We want to thank the Coller Foundation, ISAR, and other donors for supporting the work of the Centre. Such support is vital to sustaining and expanding our work and reducing costs to Conference delegates.

For more information about the Cambridge Centre for Animal Rights Law and our Conferences see https://animalrightslaw.org/conferences.

Find recording of our previous Conferences on YouTube.