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The scarcity of trust in the age of AI
As AI creates an abundance of content, it simultaneously creates a scarcity of trust. Why human expertise anchors the Welfare Footprint.
Wladimir J. Alonso
The gift of clarity: making sense of animal welfare with the Welfare Footprint Framework
As the year winds down, many of us find ourselves reflecting on our ambitions. For Sarah (fictional), a veterinary student with big dreams, this reflection recently turned into a moment of uncertainty.
Wladimir J Alonso and Cynthia Schuck-Paim
What we learnt from our recruiting process
Our recent hiring process for a research position in shrimp welfare brought far more interest than we expected, and a challenge that is becoming common everywhere: AI now shapes how people apply for jobs.
The Welfare Footprint of the Egg
A milestone in animal welfare science: a full-day satellite workshop at the 58th ISAE Congress in Utrecht, centred on The Welfare Footprint of the Egg, to be published by CRC Press.
- 2025
Unexpected global response to WFF study on trout slaughter and welfare impact
In just three weeks since its publication on 5 June 2025, our latest study in Scientific Reports has drawn attention far beyond our expectations, with media coverage in multiple countries.
Using the Welfare Footprint Framework to document animal welfare in legal settings
Its structured approach to documenting pain intensity and duration makes the framework valuable for another application: providing courts with systematic, evidence-based documentation in cruelty cases.
- 2024
Our scientific director discusses WFP’s methodology on Hear This Idea
Our Scientific Director, Cynthia, joined Fin Moorhouse on Episode 81 of the Hear This Idea podcast to discuss our approach to quantifying animal welfare.
Bridging neuroscience and philosophy: exploring animal emotions and welfare with the Neurophilosopher GPT tool
Philosophy, an unexpected but powerful ally, offers a unique lens that complements and clarifies neuroscientific knowledge about where emotions arise in the brain.
Wladimir J Alonso and Cynthia Schuck-Paim
Can AI power the global mapping and quantification of animal pain and distress? The Pain Atlas project
How AI, particularly large language models, could soon make it possible to systematically map and quantify the main causes of pain and distress across humans and animals.
Wladimir J Alonso and Cynthia Schuck-Paim
Announcing our new virtual office hours program
A platform for discussions on any topic related to our work and its potential applications in animal welfare, open to anyone with a genuine interest. Meetings in English, Portuguese and Spanish.
Major gaps in poultry welfare research
Despite substantial progress over the last decades in the understanding of poultry welfare, critical research gaps still abound.
Cynthia Schuck-Paim and Wladimir J. Alonso
Welfare Footprint Project’s highlights from the European Symposium on Poultry Welfare 2023
The event, held in Prague, brought together 220 stakeholders from 32 countries to discuss and share research data and knowledge on poultry welfare.
Animal welfare science must look at time!
At the UFAW Online Animal Welfare Conference we shared our thoughts on a topic central to our work: the importance of the duration of affective states.
Cynthia Schuck-Paim and Wladimir J. Alonso
The broiler welfare book is now on Amazon
In 2021 we focused most of our work on the impact of welfare reforms for broiler chickens, particularly slower-growing breeds and alternative stunning methods. The outcomes are now on Amazon.
The Routledge Handbook of Animal Welfare is out!
The handbook, edited by Andrew Knight, Clive Phillips and Paula Sparks, explores the many topics in the growing field of animal welfare and law. We wrote Chapter 24, Human Health and Animal Welfare.
Call for papers: influence of farm animal welfare on epidemic and pandemic risks
We have opened a call for papers in the journal Animals. The issue will focus on the conditions and mechanisms by which compromised animal welfare can favor infectious disease risk.
Contrary to industry claims, mortality is not inherently higher in cage-free systems
This research was based on the largest to-date analysis of commercial data on egg-laying hen mortality and found that mortality in indoor cage-free housing systems decreases over time as management experience increases and knowledge accrues.
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