The final roundtable of the 'Bringing fish back to water during the elections’ project will take place today!

In the current food system, more than one trillion fish are killed every year. Fish are still widely overlooked in the debate by decision-makers, and policies and legislation being developed do not take into account the fact that fish are creatures capable of feeling pain. During the roundtable we will address the harms and realities of fish life on farms. We will talk about the needs of fish and what shocking practices are still used in farms. We will also point out the role that science plays in building laws that treat fish as subjects.

The 'Bringing fish back to water during the elections’ project consists of 4 roundtables. At each meeting we invite both the decision-making side and representation from the activist and expert side. In the discussions held, we want to broaden the public and political debate on fish rights and welfare and the impact of fisheries and aquaculture on biodiversity, health and climate. 
Experts, activists and decision-makers will participate in the debate: 

• Dr Robert Maślak – biologist, assistant professor in the Department of Evolutionary Biology and Vertebrate Conservation at the University of Wrocław, specialist in the behaviour and welfare of non-domesticated animals in captivity. Involved in nature conservation, climate and humane animal protection initiatives;

• Karolina Kuszlewicz – lawyer and founder of a law firm specialising in the protection of animal and nature rights. Lecturer at the University of Warsaw, author of books and specialist publications, including Commentary to the Law on Animal Protection. Member of the Prof. Zbigniew Hołda Association; 

• Karolina Kubacka – (Office of the MEP Dr. Sylwia Spurek) – 5th year law student at the University of Wrocław. She is interested in human rights, with a special focus on women’s rights and animal rights. In the European Parliament in Brussels, she monitors legislative processes in the EP Committees AGRI, ENVI, LIBE and FEMM;

• Katarzyna Niedźwiecka (Assistant to the Deputy Speaker of the Senate Gabriela Morawska-Stanecka) – graduate of the interdisciplinary studies in politics, psychology, law and economics (PPLE) at the University of Amsterdam with a specialisation in European and international law. She specialises in international refugee law and human rights, as well as in rule of law issues. 

• Dorota Sumińska – a veterinarian by education, an observer of life on earth by passion. For several decades she has been working to make people aware of the subjectivity of other species;

• Andrew Skowron – photographer, activist. In his work he documents the lives of animals, their suffering and exploitation. Every day he looks for shots that evoke empathy and human compassion, showing the reality of the lives of non-human animals.

The discussion will be moderated by Katarzyna Kolbuch of the Green REV Institute’s communications team.

Photo: WeAnimalsMedia

Translated with DeepL