Oxford University Animal Ethics Society
The Animal Ethics Society is an official Oxford University Society. It aims to provide a forum for the discussion of the moral status of animals. The Society works closely with the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics, which pioneers ethical perspectives on animals through academic research, teaching, and publication. Membership is free, and open to all members of Oxford University and Fellows of the Centre.
Officers of the Animal Ethics Society, 2025-2026
President: Elsie Balch (BA in Classics, Merton College)
Secretary: Zofia Winnicka (MBiol in Biology, Magdalen College)
Treasurer: Evelyn Byrne (BA in Mathematics and Computer Science, Jesus College)
Vice President: Rahmah Badran (MSc in Applied Digital Health, St. Catherine’s College)
Vice President: Marie (Mary) Beatrix Kruth (DPhil Musculoskeletal Sciences, St Peter’s College)
Vice President: Jonathan Mountford (BA in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics, Merton College)
Senior Member: Dr Matthew Kirkpatrick (Wycliffe Hall)
Emeritus Senior Member: Professor Andrew Linzey (Director, Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics)
Alumni Officer: Dr Jacob Brandler (Rothermere American Institute)
Organising Member: Clair Linzey (Wycliffe Hall)
Honorary Members:
Jenny Meszaros (St Hilda’s, 2004-8)
Sarah Harden (University College, 2006-2012)
Alastair Harden (Christ Church, 2006-2008)
Alan LeCras (Magdalen, 2006-2009)
Maximilian Padden Elder (Mansfield, 2011-2012)
Cyril Wohrer (Wolfson, 2011-2012)
Ionut Moise (Wolfson, 2012-2018)
Robert Lazo (Mansfield 2013-2014)
Justin Begley (University College, 2013-2017)
Rachel Wechsler (Green Templeton College, 2013-2019)
Juliane Beck (St Antony’s College, 2013-2015)
Adam Bridgen (Linacre College, 2013-2020)
Jennifer Clements (St John’s College, 2013-2016)
Kelsi Nagy (St Antony’s College, 2013-2020)
Grace Young (Somerville College, 2014-2018)
Harshmeena Sanghani (New College, 2014-2018)
Tobias Thornes (Oriel College, 2013-2018)
Katie Javanaud (Keble College, 2013-2019)
Jade Cormack (Merton College, 2015-2018)
Isabel Barber (The Queen’s College, 2016-2019)
Cristina Conde Tkatchenko (Merton College, 2015-2019)
Kaitlyn Abrams (St. Catherine’s College, 2017-2018)
Daniel Evans (Kellogg College, 2017-2018)
Felix Taylor (St. Hugh’s College, 2017-2021)
Sarah Robinson (Wadham College, 2018-)
Jan Steinebrunner (St John’s College, 2018-)
Rivers Gambrell (Kellogg College, 2015-2020)
Vincent Jordan (Christ Church, 2018-2021)
Ewan Lynch (Brasenose College, 2018-2021)
Natalie Hill (Balliol College, 2015-2022)
Katarzyna Jaroszewicz (Merton College, 2017-2021)
Emile Okada (Balliol College, 2018-2022)
Mary Whittingdale (Mansfield College, 2019-2022)
Dario Cowdery (Mansfield College, 2019-2022)
David Holroyd (Hertford College, 2019-2022)
Noah Wescombe (St Catherine’s College, 2019-2021)
Kajuli Claeys (Balliol College, 2019-2023)
Teresa Habib Meriggi (St Anne’s College, 2021-24)
Alexander Charters (Worcester College, 2019-2023)
Fionn Kennedy (Exeter College, 2020-2023)
Cassie Lloyd Watson (Pembroke College, 2021-25)
Lysander Mawby (St Edmund Hall, 2020-24)
Jacob Brandler (Linacre College, 2020-)
Antoni Mikocki (Worcester College, 2023-24)
Georgia Porter (Exeter College, 2021-24)
Susana Higueras Carrillo (Linacre College, 2022-23)
Theo Brodbeck (Lincoln College, 2023-)
Daisy Brown (Somerville College, 2021-24)
Gideon Futerman (St Edmund Hall, 2023-5)
Huw Roberts (Linacre College, 2023-)
Sheen Gahlaut (Lincoln College, 2023-)
Yusef Atta (Wycliffe Hall, 2021-24)
Ash Gibbins (Worcester College, 2020-24)
Emma Howes (Brasenose College, 2023-24)
Jonathan Howes (Merton College, 2021-25)
Alejandro Mantilla (St Hilda’s College, 2023-24)
The Society is running the Vegetarian Norrington Table. We are inviting members of the University, both students and staff, to rate colleges and halls, and to make comments on the quality of current vegetarian and vegan provision. Voting opens on the first day of 1st Week of Trinity Term, 2019, and closes at the end of 7th Week of Michaelmas Term 2019. The results of the voting will be published in 8th Week of Michaelmas Term, 2019. You can vote here.
The inaugural table took place in Michaelmas 2016. See the press release with the results here. Members of the University were invited to vote for the best and worst vegetarian and vegan food in University of Oxford colleges and halls. To see the full rankings, as well as anonymised comments, and responses from bursars see here.
Trinity Term 2026
Meetings are held at the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics
91 Iffley Road, Oxford (opposite the University Sports Centre)
Week 2: Monday 4 May: 8pm
Meeting
Presentation by Rahmah Badran (Vice President) on Mercy and Stewardship (Raḥmah wa Khilāfa): Animal Ethics in Islam
Week 4: Monday 18 May: 8pm
Meeting
Presentation by Harrison Beckett (The Queen’s College) and Oliver Ray (The Queen’s College) on The Ethics of Killing for Conservation
Week 6: Monday 1 June: 8pm
Meeting and AGM
Presentation by Elsie Balch (President) on Arthur Evans’ Animal Utopia in Bronze Age Crete
Week 8: 15-19 June
End of Year Dinner
TBC
Hilary Term 2026
Meetings are held at the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics
91 Iffley Road, Oxford (opposite the University Sports Centre)
Week 2: Monday 26 January: 8pm
Meeting
Presentation by Jonathan Mountford (President) on Theories of Dehumanisation and “Non-Human” Animals
Week 4: Monday 9 February: 8pm
Meeting
Presentation by Rohan Selva-Radov (Merton College) on From Animal Minds to Digital Minds: Animal Ethics and the Next Moral Frontier
Week 6: Monday 23 February: 8pm
Meeting and AGM
Presentation by Luke Liang (Merton College) on Culture, Race and Veganism: Developing Decolonial Strategies for Animal Rights Activism
Week 7: 2 March: 7pm
End of Term Dinner
The Gardeners Arms
Michaelmas Term 2025
Join us at Freshers’ Fair
Wednesday 8 – Thursday 9 October in the Examination Schools
Meetings are held at the Oxford Centre for Animal Ethics
91 Iffley Road, Oxford (opposite the University Sports Centre)
Week 2: Monday 20 October 2025: 8pm
Meeting
Presentation by Professor Andrew Linzey (Emeritus Senior Member) on Animal ethics: Vision and strategy
Week 4: Monday 3 November 2025: 8pm
Meeting
Presentation by Tanne van Kempen (Pembroke College) on What the commodification of donkeys teaches us about the politics of (animal) welfare
Week 6: Monday 17 November 2025: 8pm
Meeting
Presentation by Blake Baillache (Vice President) on Biodiversity and understanding free-living animal welfare
Week 7: Thursday 27 November 2025
End of Term Dinner
Wycliffe Hall, RSVP Required
Membership is free and open to all members of the University. For more information, please contact Clair Linzey at depdirector@oxfordanimalethics.com.
For information on previous years’ society meetings please see here.