The traditional anthropocentric paradigm of philanthropy is impeding support for environmental and animal welfare causes

Years ago, I stood on Montreal’s famous Sainte-Catherine street holding a petition pad in one hand and a donation pad in the other, asking people to help end animal cruelty. A man spat at my feet: ‘How could you help animals when there are children suffering?’. Interactions like this still come to mind when I reflect on the sad state of non-human philanthropy, in Canada and globally. Is there space to defend animals and the environment within the very anthropocentric constraints of western philanthropy?

Can philanthropy be ‘non-human’?

According to its etymological roots, philanthropy is inherently anthropocentric. Yet, countless philanthropic actors and initiatives are fighting to defend non-human causes. Animal shelters rescue abandoned pets, conservation efforts protect natural habitats and animal species, and activists defend animal rights and our natural world.