The Shifting Lens: Viewing the Animal Experience Tiamat Warda Rebecca Madrid

For this episode we had the honour of hosting the wonderful poet, Gordon Meade. We were thrilled Gordon reached out to us for a collaboration! Gordon is a Royal Literary Fund Writing Fellow and the author of numerous books, including Singing Seals, The Private Zoo, and most recently, Zoospeak which features the photography work of Canadian photojournalist and animal activist Jo-Anne McArthur. Gordon also delivers creative writing courses to vulnerable young people in a variety of settings.
We talk about Zoospeak, Gordon’s newest project called Exposed Animal Elegies, and how his life led him to speaking for animals through poetry. Gordon also kindly read three of the poems from Zoospeak, offering us the opportunity to hear them as they were meant to be heard.
3:46 Brown Bear, Germany, 2008 - p26
8:49 Macaque, Laos, 2011 - p52
18:48 Lynx, Denmark, 2016 - p94
We highly recommend viewing the video format for this episode so that you can experience the vivid imagery of Jo-Anne McArthur’s photographs alongside Gordon’s words. You can also find a link to the book *Zoospeak: Poems and Photography* below.
Meet the episode hosts:
Tiamat Warda - www.tiamatwarda.com | @TiamatWarda
Rebecca Madrid - www.rebecca-madrid.com | @RebeccaLMadrid  
https://www.scottishpoetrylibrary.org.uk/poet/gordon-meade
https://joannemcarthur.com
https://weanimalsmedia.org 
Gordon’s work:
- *Zoospeak: Poems and Photography* (Enthusiastic Press, 2020) ISBN 1916113044 https://www.enthusiasticpress.co.uk/post/zoospeak
- *The Private Zoo* (Arrowhead Press, 2008) ISBN 1904852106
- *The Singing Seals* (Chapman Publishing, 1991) ISBN 0906772338

In this two-part episode we welcome Melvin Chan to discuss his research reviewing the impact of including live morethanhuman animals in educational programs for children and youth. Specifically with a focus on the promotion of social and emotional competencies. We consider the ways in which these kinds of programs may exclude certain populations, how the inclusion of different species might affect outcomes, and the ways in which trainers and the animal workers themselves could be affected by these programs.

Episode hosts: Tiamat Warda - www.tiamatwarda.com | @TiamatWarda Rebecca Madrid - www.rebecca-madrid.com | @RebeccaLMadrid

Chan, Melvin Chin-Hao. 2021. A scoping review of outcome evaluations of universal programs that incorporate live animals to promote the social and emotional competencies of children and youth. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Library. https://doi.org/10.14288/1.0401253. http://hdl.handle.net/2429/79199

Chan, Melvin Chin-Hao. 2017. Speech, Language and Sleep Problems in Children with Down Syndrome : A Role for Speech-Language Pathologists? Vancouver: University of British Columbia Library. https://doi.org/10.14288/1.0354469

Durlak, J.A., Weissberg, R.P., Dymnicki, A.B., Taylor, R.D. and Schellinger, K.B. (2011), The Impact of Enhancing Students’ Social and Emotional Learning: A Meta-Analysis of School-Based Universal Interventions. Child Development, 82: 405-432. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2010.01564.x

Durlak, J.A., DuPre, E.P. Implementation Matters: A Review of Research on the Influence of Implementation on Program Outcomes and the Factors Affecting Implementation. Am J Community Psychol 41, 327 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10464-008-9165-0

Nation, M., Crusto, C., Wandersman, A., Kumpfer, K. L., Seybolt, D., Morrissey-Kane, E., & Davino, K. (2003). What works in prevention: Principles of effective prevention programs. American Psychologist, 58(6-7), 449–456. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.58.6-7.449

Payton, J.W., Wardlaw, D.M., Graczyk, P.A., Bloodworth, M.R., Tompsett, C.J. and Weissberg, R.P. (2000), Social and Emotional Learning: A Framework for Promoting Mental Health and Reducing Risk Behavior in Children and Youth. Journal of School Health, 70: 179-185. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1746-1561.2000.tb06468.x

Harvard University Graduate School of Education, EASEL Lab Kernels: https://easel.gse.harvard.edu/news-and-resources/kernels

In this two-part episode we welcome Melvin Chan to discuss his research reviewing the impact of including live morethanhuman animals in educational programs for children and youth. Specifically with a focus on the promotion of social and emotional competencies. We consider the ways in which these kinds of programs may exclude certain populations, how the inclusion of different species might affect outcomes, and the ways in which trainers and the animal workers themselves could be affected by these programs.

Episode hosts: Tiamat Warda - www.tiamatwarda.com | @TiamatWarda Rebecca Madrid - www.rebecca-madrid.com | @RebeccaLMadrid

Chan, Melvin Chin-Hao. 2021. A scoping review of outcome evaluations of universal programs that incorporate live animals to promote the social and emotional competencies of children and youth. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Library. https://doi.org/10.14288/1.0401253. http://hdl.handle.net/2429/79199

Chan, Melvin Chin-Hao. 2017. Speech, Language and Sleep Problems in Children with Down Syndrome : A Role for Speech-Language Pathologists? Vancouver: University of British Columbia Library. https://doi.org/10.14288/1.0354469

Durlak, J.A., Weissberg, R.P., Dymnicki, A.B., Taylor, R.D. and Schellinger, K.B. (2011), The Impact of Enhancing Students’ Social and Emotional Learning: A Meta-Analysis of School-Based Universal Interventions. Child Development, 82: 405-432. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2010.01564.x

Durlak, J.A., DuPre, E.P. Implementation Matters: A Review of Research on the Influence of Implementation on Program Outcomes and the Factors Affecting Implementation. Am J Community Psychol 41, 327 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10464-008-9165-0

Nation, M., Crusto, C., Wandersman, A., Kumpfer, K. L., Seybolt, D., Morrissey-Kane, E., & Davino, K. (2003). What works in prevention: Principles of effective prevention programs. American Psychologist, 58(6-7), 449–456. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.58.6-7.449

Payton, J.W., Wardlaw, D.M., Graczyk, P.A., Bloodworth, M.R., Tompsett, C.J. and Weissberg, R.P. (2000), Social and Emotional Learning: A Framework for Promoting Mental Health and Reducing Risk Behavior in Children and Youth. Journal of School Health, 70: 179-185. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1746-1561.2000.tb06468.x

Harvard University Graduate School of Education, EASEL Lab Kernels: https://easel.gse.harvard.edu/news-and-resources/kernels

For episode 1 of season 2 of the Shifting Lens podcast, it was a delight to have Angela Lacinak talk about her research on the perceptions that zoo visitors have of the emotions of other species, specifically elephants, living in zoos. The conversation also brought in discourse concerning the emotional lives of animals living in zoos, as well as how our understandings of this has shifted in recent years.

Find out more about Angela's work: University of Exeter doctoral research:
https://socialsciences.exeter.ac.uk/ease/people/angimillwoodlacinak/
Precision Behavior: https://www.precisionbehavior.com/

Meet the episode hosts:
Rebecca Madrid - www.rebecca-madrid.com | @RebeccaLMadrid
Tiamat Warda - www.tiamatwarda.com | @TiamatWarda

In this video we discuss the other than human companions of various political leaders with a focus on the role of dogs specifically in the political spotlight.  We also consider the more unorthodox residents of the White House, which historically includes large private collections of wild and exotic animals.

Meet the hosts:
Tiamat Warda - www.humanima.de/en | @TiamatWarda
Molly Sumridge - www.mollysumridge.com | @MollySumridge
Rebecca Madrid - www.rebecca-madrid.com | @RebeccaLMadrid  

References:
- FDR's Major's bites: https://www.presidentialpetmuseum.com/pets/fdr-german-shepherd-major/
- More FDR's Major's bites: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/major-fdr-biden-german-shepherd_n_6064b13cc5b6d5b7a695293a- All the lists of presidents and their pets: https://www.presidentialpetmuseum.com/
- Irish President Mr. Higgins and Misneach https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P0j5zBJrYOw
- Higgins and his dog, Misneach: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jplSVS9QVdw https://www.irishcentral.com/culture/craic/michael-d-higgins-dog
- "Trump, the first president in a century with no dog, explains why: ‘I don’t have any time'": https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2019/02/12/trump-first-president-century-with-no-dog-explains-why-i-dont-have-any-time/
- Finland's Boston Terrier: https://yle.fi/uutiset/osasto/news/debate_on_breeding_defects_muzzles_finlands_first_dog/11536363
- "Donald Trump hates dogs. Here's what that tells us about him": https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/politics/article/donald-trump-dogs

In this episode we are joined by Dr. Sargon Donabed to discuss the intersection of his research on Indigenous Middle Eastern cultures and Anthrozoology. Dr. Donabed is a Director of the Assyrian Studies Association (ASA) and holds a PhD in Near and Middle Eastern Civilizations and an MSc in Anthrozoology.

We discuss nonhuman animal populations that have been displaced and separated using the lens of human diaspora, arbitrarily drawn borders, and the concept of "home". Additionally, we consider the factors that lead us to focus on certain animal species or human populations over others, including assigned personhood and the optics of protective action.

Meet the hosts:
Tiamat Warda - www.humanima.de/en | @TiamatWarda
Molly Sumridge - www.mollysumridge.com | @MollySumridge
Rebecca Madrid - www.rebecca-madrid.com | @RebeccaLMadrid

ASA (Assyrian Studies Association) https://www.assyrianstudiesassociation.org/
*Reforging a forgotten history: Iraq and the Assyrians in the Twentieth Century: https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/reforging-a-forgotten-history/40E789C116E3485B9B774BE46569EBEA
*The Assyrian heritage: threads of continuity and influence: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/292782661_The_Assyrian_Heritage_Threads_of_Continuity_and_Influence
*Rethinking nationalism and an appellative conundrum: historiography and politics in Iraq: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/14608944.2011.646973?journalCode=cnid20
*Remnants of Heroes: The Assyrian Experience: the Continuity of the Assyrian Heritage from Kharput to New England: https://www.abebooks.com/9780974445076/Remnants-Heroes-Assyrian-Experience-Continuity-097444507X/plp