Published in Animal Studies Journal

I am very happy to announce that my first article has been published in an academic journal. 

The Animal Studies Journal (ASJ) is from Wollongong University in Australia. According to its website, the journal "provides a forum for current research in human-animal Studies. ASJ publishes international cross-disciplinary content with a particular, but not exclusive, interest in Australian, New Zealand and Asia-Pacific scholarship." 

When I read that ASJ was planning a Sanctuary edition and had a call for entries, I felt compelled to submit an abstract. A few months later, about a million revisions later, the publication is out! The issue includes many fascinating articles, and can be viewed here. My specific article, "Money for Monkeys, and More: Ensuring Sanctuary Retirement of Nonhuman Primates" can be viewed in full here. 

"Jane" documentary Q&A

I had a great time at this week's screening of "Jane", the acclaimed National Geographic documentary about Jane Goodall, where I was the featured speaker for a post-film Q&A session. As I walked in and waited to check in at the ticket booth, I saw a copy of my book on display to advertise the event, which I took to be a good omen!

The event was sold out at 500 tickets, and the film was shown in three theaters concurrently. After it was over, there was a Q&A discussion in one of the theaters.

The audience had wonderful, thought-provoking questions about a number of topics presented in the film, including field research methodology, handling of primates in sanctuaries and in the field, conservation, primate social groupings and the complexity of their societies and cultures, and even some topics that were not directly in the film, such as the ethics of primate use in laboratory research. I was happy to discuss this and found the audience to be sympathetic to the issues surrounding primate welfare.

I spoke for about 45 minutes, after which some audience members approached me to continue the conversation.

I am so happy that this worked out for me to speak locally. The audience's reaction to the film and to my message inspired me to seek out more speaking engagements in the future. I am grateful for the South Bay Film Society granting me the opportunity to do what I love!

Upcoming: Q&A session after Jane Goodall film

I am excited to announce that I will be the featured speaker after a screening of "Jane," the new Jane Goodall documentary by National Geographic.

The film premiered earlier this month to high acclaim.  This particular screening will be in Torrance, CA on November 1st, and more information can be found here.

I look forward to hopefully sharing video of what promises to be a fun and enlightening evening!