1st Middle East Seminar on Alternatives

The 1st North Africa and Middle East Seminar on Alternatives to Animal Experiments in Education and Training, held in Cairo on 27th February 2010, was a success and led to a resolution calling for full replacement.

Organised by InterNICHE and the Egyptian Society of Animal Friends (ESAF), the initiative brought together teachers, students, researchers, veterinary professionals, campaigning organisations and others to promote and help implement replacement alternatives across North Africa and the Middle East.

Participants from 24 countries gathered in Egypt for the Seminar and the subsequent 2nd Middle East Network for Animal Welfare (MENAW) Conference.

The Resolution passed unanimously at the Seminar recognises the pedagogical, ethical, environmental and economic advantages of humane alternatives over harmful animal use in education and training, and calls for full replacement of harmful animal use.

It calls on North African and Middle Eastern governments and educational institutes to work towards removing harmful animal use from the life science syllabus, to develop and implement appropriate and effective laws, regulations and guidelines to bring about replacement, and to provide support for the implementation of alternatives.

Furthermore, it recognises that animals are sentient beings and that life in all its forms should be fully respected. And in an acknowledgement of the commonality between religions in the region, the Resolution also recognises the imperatives within Islam, Christianity, Judaism and secular ethical thought that support respect for life and the replacement of harmful animal use with alternatives.

The 2nd MENAW Conference endorsed the Seminar Resolution, with minor changes. Both Resolutions are copied in full below. Arabic versions of each are available from InterNICHE.

The Seminar is being followed by a series of alternative presentations and meetings between InterNICHE Co-ordinator Nick Jukes and Heads of Department and Deans from several Egyptian universities, and with government advisors and accreditation officials.

An InterNICHE workshop with Egyptian, Moroccan, Palestinian, Sudanese and US veterinarians will address humane training tools in clinical skills and surgery, and the potential of supervised clinical work with animal patients as an alternative to experimentation for students and trainees. It will also address the concept of caring as a clinical skill and why it should be placed at the core of veterinary training.

Distribution of resources to the Seminar and Conference participants, including freeware and other low-cost or no-cost alternatives, will accompany the building of partnerships and alliances with new contacts made across the region.

Read the initial news release here

Notes:

(1) The organisation of the Seminar was made possible thanks to the financial support of the Anti-Vivisection Union (South Australia) and the International Association Against Painful Experiments on Animals (IAAPEA) (UK), with further financial input from InterNICHE and the Middle East Network for Animal Welfare (MENAW).

(2) Countries represented at the Seminar and Conference included Egypt, Iran, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Malta, Morocco, Palestine, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Syria, as well as Australia, Austria, England, France, India, Italy, Kenya, the Philippines, Serbia, Singapore, Tanzania, and the USA. Israel was not represented at the Seminar, but both InterNICHE and other organisations are active concerning alternatives in education and training in the country. Networking will share the Seminar experience and resources to all countries in North Africa and the Middle East.

RESOLUTIONS:

1st NORTH AFRICA AND MIDDLE EAST SEMINAR ON ALTERNATIVES TO ANIMAL EXPERIMENTS IN EDUCATION AND TRAINING

Cairo, 27th February 2010

Resolution

We the participants:

1. Recognise that animals are sentient beings and that life in all its forms should be fully respected

2. Recognise the pedagogical, ethical, environmental and economic advantages of humane and innovative alternatives over harmful animal use (animal experimentation and the dissection of purpose-killed animals) in life science education and training

3. Recognise the imperatives within Islam, Christianity, Judaism and secular ethical thought that support respect for life and the replacement of harmful animal use with alternatives

4. Join the global movement for humane education and call for full replacement of harmful animal use with alternatives

5. Call on North African and Middle Eastern governments, academic councils and educational institutes to work towards removing harmful animal use from the life science syllabus, to develop and implement appropriate and effective laws, regulations and guidelines to bring about replacement, and to provide support for the implementation of alternatives

2nd MIDDLE EAST NETWORK ON ANIMAL WELFARE (MENAW) CONFERENCE

Cairo, 1-3rd March 2010

Resolution on alternatives to animal experiments in education and training

(Endorsing the Resolution passed unanimously by the 1st North Africa and Middle East Seminar on Alternatives to Animal Experiments in Education and Training, Cairo, 27th February 2010)

We the participants:

1. Recognise that animals are sentient beings and that life in all its forms should be fully respected

2. Recognise the pedagogical, ethical, environmental and economic advantages of humane and innovative alternatives over harmful animal use (animal experimentation and the dissection of purpose-killed animals) in life science education and training

3. Recognise the imperatives within all religions and belief systems, and within secular ethical thought, that support respect for life and the replacement of harmful animal use with alternatives

4. Join the global movement for humane education and call for full replacement of harmful animal use with alternatives

5. Call on North African and Middle Eastern governments and educational institutes to work towards removing harmful animal use from the life science syllabus, to develop and implement appropriate and effective laws, regulations and guidelines to bring about replacement, and to provide support for the implementation of alternatives

2009 Humane Education Award

InterNICHE announces a new grant program for replacement of harmful animal use in education and training. (18.12.09)

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 First Pan-African Seminar on Alternatives to Animal Experiments

23.9.2009.
A groundbreaking initiative to promote and implement replacement alternatives across Africa begins today in Nairobi, Kenya.

The First Pan-African Seminar on Alternatives to Animal Experiments in Education and Training is being held 23-24 September 2009 at the Kenya Institute of Education.

Co-organised by InterNICHE and its Partner organisation the Africa Network for Animal Welfare (ANAW), the 2-day Alternatives Seminar brings together 22 campaigning organisations from 12 African countries, InterNICHE experts from England, Mexico, India and Egypt, and over 100 Kenyan teachers, surgeons and government officials.

The Kenyan Minister for Wildlife and Forestry, Hon. Dr. Noah Wekesa, opened the animal protection workshop that is being held in advance of and in preparation of the Alternatives Seminar. In his presentation, Dr. Wekesa appreciated the importance of pan-African events, and acknowledged the potential of new technology and alternatives.

The Alternatives Seminar builds on the experience of InterNICHE outreach tours and alternatives demonstrations by dovetailing the organisation’s skills and resources with the initiatives and local knowledge of campaigners and teachers in the host country.

Previous outreach tours have included the training of over 400 teachers in 10 cities across India, and a 5-country tour of Latin America with over 30 seminars and meetings. The InterNICHE Multimedia Exhibition at the recent VII World Congress on Alternatives showcased a range of teaching and training tools from the InterNICHE Alternatives Loan System. This library is providing over 100 software alternatives, models, mannekins and simulators for demonstration at the event in Kenya.

Following an introduction and review of the Kenyan and African situation by ANAW Director Josphat Ngonyo and colleagues, international experts will provide lectures and demonstrations on humane education and the process of replacement. InterNICHE Co-ordinator Nick Jukes will introduce the range and quality of alternatives and explain the organisation’s commitment to the 1R of replacement to help guarantee ethical and effective acquisition of knowledge and skills.

India’s foremost campaigner for alternatives, Snehal Bhavsar, will describe her strategies for catalysing curricular change across the state of Gujarat in India, including her success in achieving 80% reduction of animal use in education. Sofia Ponce will present the vision and activities of the Center for Animal Alternatives in Education (CAAE) program at the University of Guadalajara in Mexico. Fawzy Elnady from the University of Cairo in Egypt will address information and communications technology in relation to alternatives, with a global and African overview.

Further presentations will include the rationale for seeing caring as an essential clinical skill which must be placed at the heart of veterinary and medical training; the use of the POP-trainer for live laparoscopic surgical training without animal experiments; and the use of the Biopac Student Lab for self-experimentation as an alternative in physiology practical classes.

InterNICHE works with teachers and producers of alternatives to encourage the freeing of learning tools from license restrictions and limited geographical availability. Demonstrations and hands-on experience of alternatives at the Alternatives Seminar will therefore be followed by distribution of resources to the participants, including freeware and other low-cost or no-cost alternatives whose impact can now be measured globally.

Discussion workshops will address the opportunities and challenges within Africa and allow for sharing of experience. The talks and diverse international perspectives will encourage the pan-African and Kenyan campaigners to reflect on culturally-appropriate strategies for the introduction of alternatives in their countries.

Josphat Ngonyo from ANAW said today: “We intend that the Alternatives Seminar will empower participants to be ambassadors for alternatives in their own countries. They will shortly have the information, resources and support from InterNICHE for this to be achieved. The impact on Kenya will be considerable, particularly now with government support for humane approaches and innovative technology in education and training.”

Nick Jukes from InterNICHE added, “We applaud the Kenyan government’s interest in humane education and are confident in the pedagogical, ethical and economic advantages of replacement alternatives. We hope that other countries will follow Kenya’s lead, and that the Alternatives Seminar will play a role in facilitating the process of change right across the continent.”

Notes:

(1) The organisation of the event has been made possible thanks to the generous support of the Anti-Vivisection Union (South Australia), the Doerenkamp-Zbinden Foundation (Switzerland), the Maria Norbury Foundation (USA), and an anonymous donor (USA).

Further thanks go to the International Association Against Painful Experiments on Animals (IAAPEA) (UK), the On Shore Foundation (USA), the New England Anti-Vivisection Society (NEAVS) (USA) and Hope Ferdowsian (USA).

(2) African countries represented include DR Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda and Zimbabwe.

(3) Kenyan government officials include Hon. Dr. Noah Wekesa, Minister for Wildlife and Forestry; Dr. Julius Kipng’etich, Director, Kenya Wildlife Service; Hon. Adan Duale, Asst. Minister of Livestock Development; Dr. Peter Ithondeka, Director, Department of Veterinary Services

 InterNICHE Multimedia Exhibition at WC7

InterNICHE is happy to announce that it will be providing a Multimedia Exhibition of Alternatives in Education and Training at the VII World Congress on Alternatives and Animal Use in the Life Sciences, being held in Rome from 30 August – 3 September 2009.

The InterNICHE Multimedia Exhibition will offer a program of demonstrations by InterNICHE trainers and some producers in selected exemplary replacement methods, as well as free access to all alternatives for delegates to trial at leisure during the Congress. A similar facility was organised by InterNICHE at the V World Congress, held in Berlin in 2005.

The alternatives provided are held in the InterNICHE Alternatives Loan System, a worldwide library that includes software, training mannekins and simulators. Over 100 alternatives will be available at workstations corresponding to different disciplines, including Anatomy, Anaesthesia & Critical Care, Clinical Skills & Surgery, Physiology and Pharmacology.

Alternatives include Critical Care Jerry, a canine mannekin with heart and breath sounds simulation, for veterinary clinical skills training; the POP-trainer (pulsating organ perfusion) for live laparoscopic surgery training using ethically sourced animal organs; advanced virtual reality (VR) software for surgical skills practice; the Biopac Student Lab for physiology self-experimentation; and a wide range of simulators and software alternatives. One workstation will allow delegates and producers to bring their own alternatives to demonstrate.

On-line access to databases of alternatives in education and training will also be provided.

Items from the Multimedia Exhibition can be reserved during the Congress, and subject to the signing of a Borrowers Agreement can be borrowed by delegates at the end of the event. A range of literature and freeware will also be available for reference and to take away.

Questions and comments on the Multimedia Exhibition should be directed to InterNICHE Co-ordinator Nick Jukes on coordinator@interniche.org.

Further information on WC7 can be found at http://www.aimgroup.eu/2009/WC7/index.html

 New National Contact and Partners for InterNICHE

New international alliances for alternatives in education and training have been built by InterNICHE, which announces a new National Contact and 3 new international Partners. All are involved in major collaborative projects for humane education and alternatives:

* Dmitry Leporsky, new National Contact and Committee Member for the Ukraine

* Educação Humanitária, new Partner organisation in Brazil

* The Center for Animal Alternatives in Education (CAAE), new Partner organisation in Mexico

* Animalia, new Partner organisation in Finland

InterNICHE has active National Contacts in a wide range of countries, and continues to collaborate with many other individuals, organisations and institutes.

The role of InterNICHE Partner has been developed to bring more individuals, organisations and institutes into close collaboration with InterNICHE and to recognise existing joint activity. Examples of the collaborative projects for Partners include national level information gathering and networking, distribution of resources, co-organisation of outreach and training, co-management of alternatives distribution projects, and translation of major alternatives texts.

The acceptance of the new Partners will positively impact on the implementation of alternatives both nationally and internationally. The new countries represented reflect the growth of humane education activity across the world and the potential of alliances that benefit all parties.
For contact details, click here.

Alternatives across Latin America: Catalysing change in the curriculum

 
News about this year’s ambitious series of alternatives seminars
and initiatives to replace animal experiments

New alternatives text now available in 100 languages

A new introductory text on alternatives to animal experiments in education and training (1) is launched today by InterNICHE in over 100 world languages, including Braille (2).

Available here, the text asks what animal experimentation teaches you. It questions how successful such a method is in terms of meeting teaching objectives in medicine, veterinary medicine and biological science (3). It addresses the hidden curriculum and its negative impact on skills acquisition, and looks at the skills and attitudes that can only be met through humane alternative tools and approaches.

Funded by the Marchig Animal Welfare Trust, the text is more widely translated than any other similar resource currently available. Its production aims to increase global awareness about humane education and alternatives, and therefore the potential for alliances and action to catalyse progressive change. One of the roles of InterNICHE is to support the development of multi-local humane education initiatives from teachers, students and campaigners that together form the transnational movement for replacement of harmful animal use.

The range of languages includes those of European Union new member states and many minority languages worldwide. The translations promote the concept of alternatives in regions where animal testing is translocating, such as into Asia, and they provide appropriate texts for the first time across Africa, China and the central Asian republics.

The translations directly support the on-going localised work of InterNICHE National Contacts and other collaborators. To support existing and future projects with InterNICHE Partners across India and neighbouring countries, the text has been translated into over 20 languages from the region. To support planned major outreach and other activity in Latin America (4), the text is available not only in Spanish and Portuguese but also in the indigenous Guaraní and Quechua languages (5).

The translation of the text sometimes required the use of neologisms, including the introduction into some languages of words that have been created for the very first time. For example, the cutting-edge technology of virtual reality (VR), employed for advanced training in surgical skills and procedures such as resection and endoscopy, has been translated into Guaraní as ‘real thing that does not exist.’ (6)

Nick Jukes, Co-ordinator of InterNICHE, said, “Enhancing the quality of education and training, and supporting humanity in science, are important for all countries and all cultures. The wide range of translations launched today reflects the InterNICHE commitment to internationalising alternatives for this purpose, whilst honouring linguistic and cultural diversity. The arguments for best practice are stronger than ever, and from today they are even more accessible.”

(1) What do you think animal experiments teach you? InterNICHE (2007). Available here

(2) Albanian, Arabic, Armenian, Assamese, Azerbaijani, Basque, Belarussian, Bengali, Breton, Bulgarian, Burmese, Buryat, Catalan, Chinese (Mandarin), Cornish, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dari, Dogri, Dutch, English, Estonian, Farsi, Finnish, Flemish, French, Georgian, German, Greek, Guaraní (Avañe'ẽ), Gujarati, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Icelandic, Indonesian, Irish Gaelic, Italian, Japanese, Kachin, Kalmyk-Oirat, Kalenjin, Kikamba, Kannada, Kashmiri, Kazakh, Khmer, Kikuyu, Kiswahili, Konkani, Korean, Kurdish, Kyrgyz, Lao, Latvian, Lithuanian, Luhya, Luo, Malay, Malayalam, Maltese, Maori, Marathi, Mongolian (Cyrillic), Mongolian (Uigur / Inner Mongolian), Nepali, Norwegian, Oriya, Pashto, Polish, Portuguese, Punjabi, Quechua, Rajasthani, Romanian, Romani, Russian, Scots Gaelic, Serbian, Sindhi, Sinhalese, Slovak, Slovenian, Sotho, Spanish, Swedish, Sylheti, Tagalog, Tajik, Tamil, Telugu, Thai, Tibetan, Tswana, Tulu, Turkish, Turkmen, Ukrainian, Urdu, Uzbek, Vietnamese, Welsh and Zulu. Further languages are to follow.

(3) Academic studies demonstrate that alternatives such as advanced software and training mannekins are at least as successful in terms of student and trainee performance. See for example Martinsen S, Jukes N. Towards a humane veterinary education. J Vet Med Educ 2005;32:454–460. See also Patronek GJ, Rauch A. Systematic review of comparative studies examining alternatives to the harmful use of animals in biomedical education. J Am Vet Med Assoc 2007;230:37–43

The impact of the hidden curriculum of practical classes involving animal experiments and the dissection of purposely killed animals must also be addressed when teaching objectives are assessed. This hidden curriculum teaches the acceptability of harmful and instrumental use of animals and can bring about desensitisation. This can work against the development of the clinical skill of caring – the root of the medical and veterinary medical professions – and can undermine the concept of biology as the study of life.

Harmful animal use may also preclude the meeting of teaching objectives that can only be gained through non-animal alternative tools and through animal-based alternative approaches such as ethical field studies and clinical work with animal patients. Such objectives may include a higher level of surgical competence, broader awareness of animal behaviour, and the development of care as a clinical skill.

Awareness of the hidden curriculum and of the potential of alternatives gives further weight to the InterNICHE argument that replacement alternatives are always superior to harmful animal use in terms of knowledge and skills acquisition, as well as ethics.

(4) The InterNICHE Latin American outreach is supported by the Doerenkamp-Zbinden Foundation and will involve presentations, alternatives demonstrations, alliance-building and support for humane education initiatives in Mexico, Bolivia, Peru, Argentina and Brazil.

(5) The interplay between biodiversity and linguistic and cultural diversity suggests that support for minority languages may also impact positively on animals. For example, many indigenous cultures have wide linguistically encoded knowledge about ecological relationships amongst plants and animals. See, for example, www.terralingua.org

(6) VR is used most widely for medical training in countries with widespread hi-tech medical facilities, but interactive internet technologies that involve virtual imaging, such as telesurgery, are suitable for use in remote locations such as the Amazon. The origin of animals captured and killed for practical classes may also include economically disadvantaged countries and regions. Awareness of humane education and alternatives can be increased, and success in replacement of harmful animal use enhanced, when efforts are globally networked and culturally inclusive.

InterNICHE announces new international Partners

InterNICHE today announces 16 new international Partners, all involved in major collaborative projects in humane education and alternatives.

The new role of InterNICHE Partner has been developed to bring more individuals, organisations and institutes into close collaboration with InterNICHE and to recognise existing joint activity.

The 14 organisations and 2 individuals accepted for the 2007-2008 academic year are:

* NOAH, from Norway
* VITA, from Russia
* Svoboda Zvirat (Animal Freedom), from the Czech Republic
* FAUNA Association, from Hungary
* The Gujarat Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (GSPCA), in India
* People for Animals (PfA) Chandigarh, in India
* Citizens for the Welfare and Protection of Animals, in India
* Unidos por los Animales (United for Animals), from Peru
* EcoUni, from Belarus
* Empatia (Empathy Association), from Poland
* ALIVE, from Japan
* Animal Friends Croatia
* Intimate with Nature Society, from Bulgaria
* Africa Network for Animal Welfare (ANAW), based in Kenya
* Goran Krummenacher, from Bosnia
* Victoria Meshcheryakova, from the US

Examples of the collaborative projects for Partners include national level information gathering and networking, distribution of resources, co-organisation of outreach and training, co-management of alternatives distribution projects, and translation of major alternatives texts.

A second round of Partners for 2007-2008 will be announced soon. The acceptance of the new Partners will positively impact on the implementation of alternatives both nationally and internationally. The many new countries represented reflect the growth of humane education activity across the world and the potential of alliances that benefit all parties.

InterNICHE also has active National Contacts in a wide range of countries, and continues to collaborate with many other individuals, organisations and institutes.

3000 animals replaced in Gujarat, India

The annual use of over 3000 animals has been replaced with alternatives at a higher education institute in the Indian state of Gujarat. InterNICHE Partners the Gujarat Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (GSPCA) confirmed this week that Bhavnager University has agreed to end the use of over 3000 mice, rats and rabbits for dissections and severe experiments in pharmacology, biochemistry, zoology and health science education.

The alternative that will replace the many pharmacology experiments is the CAL Pharmacology Compilation, produced by Dr R Raveendran. This software was produced with grant funding from the InterNICHE Humane Education Award, a program sponsored by Dutch anti-vivisection organisation Proefdiervrij. The Award has supported humane education initiatives from teachers and others internationally, facilitating direct replacement of animal experiments in education and training.

The CAL Pharmacology Compilation was launched as freeware, enabling it to be freely duplicated. Over 4000 copies have been distributed across India by InterNICHE and its collaborators, including the Indian Journal of Pharmacology, and many more copies have been made locally.

Snehal Bhavsar from the GSPCA, the prime mover in achieving the curricular transformation at Bhavnager University, has been encouraging colleges and universities across Gujarat to abandon experiments in education, with success rooted in her strategic and tactical skills. In her role as CPCSEA nominee across much of the state, she is able to place demands on universities, as well as on companies involved in research and testing on animals.

The CPCSEA is the Indian government agency that supervises animal experimentation. It is often described as inefficient and careless at the central level, but sometimes highly effective at the local and regional level, such as in Gujarat.

Changes in the requirements for education issued by the Indian government and applied by CPCSEA nominees have played a major role in changes away from animal experiments too. The CPCSEA Guidelines address dissection in zoology and other science courses.

Dissection and experiments at the basic level of bachelor degrees were made non-compulsory in 2006. However, curricular regulations from the ‘outside examiners’ working for the Indian government’s Department of Education still demanded dissection at this point of time, so a conflict had been created. Aware that the dissection was not truly necessary, and considering the cost and extra requirements for all work with animals, the teachers themselves co-operated to successfully lobby the Department to remove dissection from the curriculum for the whole country. The change had impact at university level but also in the last few remaining secondary schools that were still doing dissections (most dissections at secondary level had stopped by 2001).

As well as addressing basic education, the Guidelines promote the ‘4Rs’ of reduction, replacement, refinement and rehabilitation at MSc level and for research and testing. Requests in protocols sent to the CPCSEA in Gujarat for animal use by lower MSc students are now rejected.

Permission for most experiments at Karamsab AR Pharmacology College, for example, has been withdrawn: not only are the experiments effectively no longer allowed, but the college has insufficient space for an animal house of the ‘high’ standards now required. Only higher MSc animal use is allowed, and this is for ‘mild’ experiments only. The killing of healthy animals after experiments at all levels has now been severely curtailed, and their rehabilitation costs must now be paid for.

There is a growing number of private colleges with high numbers of animals used in their MSc courses, but many are not registered with the CPCSEA as they should be, and so do not have the same checks by nominees as government establishments do.

In another approach to achieving change, CPCSEA nominees demanded quarterly statistical reports about animals bred and used by pharmaceutical testing companies in Gujarat. Analysis of the data showed a discrepancy: companies were breeding so-called ‘excess’ animals who were not used and were instead donated free to colleges and universities. This practice was therefore stopped, thereby cutting the supply of free animals to educational establishments across the state.

At the same time, the cost of computers has been decreasing, so some educational establishments consider that if they would now have to pay for animals, and struggle to meet the strict requirements, it may be wise to invest in buying hardware and using alternatives instead.

By demanding that educational and research and testing establishments have their own animal house – and well-equipped with suitable maintenance, climate control and other conditions - the level of practical and ethical standards concerning animal breeding and use that must be met has also increased. As a result, some establishments no longer apply for clearance by the CPCSEA in the state, and the experiments are abandoned.

From 2004, animal use in education was already significantly and constantly decreasing across Gujarat. This was a direct result, according to Snehal Bhavsar, of the two-fold approach employed: information provision, outreach work and training in alternatives provided by InterNICHE, and her own sustained engagement with and pressure on establishments on the issue.

An InterNICHE speaking tour in 2003 took the message of full replacement and the evidence of superior student performance when using alternatives to 22 locations right across India. 1600 copies of the InterNICHE book and database ‘from Guinea Pig to Computer Mouse’ (2nd ed.) were distributed at the same time. Meetings were also held between InterNICHE and the academic councils and CPCSEA.

In 2004 over 400 university teachers were trained at events in 10 cities in India in the largest training event of its nature ever held worldwide.

The ‘Alternatives, Animal Welfare and the Curriculum’ series of seminars was organised by InterNICHE and the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) in conjunction with many committed local organisations across the country. The GSPCA was the local organiser in Gujarat.

Travel support was provided to senior university officials, heads of department and research students to attend the day-long seminars. Teams of teacher trainers self-trained and then demonstrated in detail a range of alternative tools chosen according to the Indian curricula for different disciplines. Many of the tools were provided by the InterNICHE Alternatives Loan System. Others, such as calf anatomy models, were Indian-made. Teachers and others have since been requesting of the GSPCA and InterNICHE further training in alternatives.

As Snehal Bhavsar continues to address humane education, complaints from students to her in her role as GSPCA representative and CPCSEA nominee about harmful animal use have guided efforts for a targeted increase of pressure at specific establishments.

Moreover, half of Gujarat’s population is Jain, a religion where the value of non-violence towards people and animals is specifically acknowledged, and this is impacting positively on the process of change. Historically, some Jain academics have advised followers not to enter medicine and related fields because of the dissection and vivisection that might be expected of students. As far as civil rights are concerned, those with religious or otherwise deeply held convictions concerning the integrity of life should be able to enter all fields of study. The issue illustrates the potential of alternatives to help make real the government pledges to make education fully inclusive and non-discriminatory.

The replacement of the 3000 animals at Bhavnager University is highly significant and a major success for campaigners. However, it is dwarfed by the changes in education across the whole of Gujarat, which comprise an 80% reduction of animal use in many courses over the past 12 months. This translates to replacement of over 10,000 animals, achieved in a state where animal use in research and testing is one of the highest in India.

Alternatives texts available in 3 more languages

Texts from the InterNICHE book from Guinea Pig to Computer Mouse (2nd ed.) are launched on-line today in Spanish, Japanese and Urdu.

The book promotes best practice teaching approaches and the full replacement of harmful animal use in practical classes. It is targeted at teachers and students of medicine, veterinary medicine and biology, and at ethics committees and animal protection groups. 

For the texts launched today, InterNICHE acknowledges the excellent work of the translators:

· Spanish version by Lillian Campbell and Maria Elena Vides Alfaro, with Lizbeth Elena Muñoz López and Ana Sofía Ponce Partida 

· Japanese version by Kenichi Lee with Masako Miyaji

· Urdu version by S. Ziaur Rahman

Click here to access the versions

For more information on the book, and for details of the launch of previous translations, please click here.

InterNICHE Humane Education Award invests in new alternatives worldwide

Eight exciting projects submitted to the InterNICHE Humane Education Award have now been chosen for their positive pedagogical and ethical impact on life science education.

The Award is an international grant program to support initiatives that can enhance veterinary, medical and biological science education by replacing harmful animal use with progressive alternative methods. 

Sponsored by Dutch anti-vivisection organisation Proefdiervrij, 20,000 Euro will now be shared between the following successful applicants to support their innovative projects:

· Dr. Fawzy Elnady from the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at Cairo University in Egypt, who will create the world's first camel anatomy software to enhance veterinary teaching and replace the killing of camels in north African, Middle Eastern and central Asian countries. In keeping with the InterNICHE Policy (1), the software will be created using the cadaver of a camel that has died naturally or been euthanised secondary to serious non-recoverable injury or terminal illness. 1000 copies of the Arabic/English software will be distributed. The new learning tool will also be freeware, thereby optimising the potential for widespread replacement. 

· Dr Dmitriy Slyusarenko from the Zooveterinary Institute in Kharkiv, Ukraine, whose project will directly replace surgery labs on live animals with an innovative cadaver-based alternative. Instead of catching and practicing on healthy stray dogs and cats which are then either killed or released with injuries, ethically sourced animal cadavers and Aboud's Method (2) of perfusing cadavers for 'live' surgery practice will be implemented. Students will be offered fully ethical learning opportunities that provide a greater degree of freedom to achieve genuine mastery in surgical training through repeated and highly realistic practice. Syrian neurosurgeon Dr Emad Aboud will advise on the establishment of the model.

· Dr Armen Vardapetyan from Yerevan State University in Armenia, who will implement software alternatives and new hardware to achieve replacement in zoology practical classes and establish a multimedia learning environment. The project will begin with frog anatomy alternatives but it is envisaged that the curricular transformation will lead to full replacement of all vertebrate use. This modernisation of the curriculum and teaching process locally will be complemented by promotion of alternatives and sharing of experience at other universities and ethics committees nationally. 

· Dr Lili Duda from the University of Pennsylvania in the USA, who will expand the existing but small-scale body donation program (Educational Memorial Program) for ethically sourced cadavers at the School of Veterinary Medicine. The expanded program will provide an alternative track in surgery practical classes for conscientiously objecting students. An investigation into better preservation and storage techniques, and distribution of informational brochures to educate clients of the teaching hospital and the wider faculty, will also be undertaken.

· Dr. Julia Maria Matera from the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of São Paulo in Brazil, who will investigate techniques for improving the preservation of cadavers used for surgery practice, with a special focus on tropical climates and chemical preservation of abdominal organs. The animal cadavers used in the project will be ethically sourced, as defined by the InterNICHE Policy (1), using a body donation program already established in the teaching hospital. Replacement of live animal use already achieved has been well received by students and has provided a better learning environment for surgical skills acquisition. 

· Dr Gabriel Cotor from the Veterinary Faculty in Bucuresti, Romania, who will introduce student self-experimentation using the advanced Biopac Student Lab. Following widespread replacement with software and a multimedia lab in recent years, the new apparatus will replace the majority of remaining invasive experiments within physiology teaching. A wide range of practicals are possible with the computer-linked apparatus, which has strong advantages over the animal labs for illustrating physiological principles. 

· Dr Marta Saloña-Bordas from Department of Zoology & Animal Cell Biology at the University of the Basque Country, who will develop a free-access on-line invertebrate anatomy resource in Spanish for replacement of zoology practical classes that use killed invertebrates. The project will dovetail with existing efforts for e-learning and for reduction of harmful animal use. The sourcing of the invertebrates will also be in keeping with the InterNICHE Policy, and will provide a humane alternative for students and teachers concerned about wild collection of invertebrates and maintaining the ecological balance.

· Dr Aleksander Ivanc from the Faculty of Natural Sciences and Mathematics at the University of Sarajevo in Bosnia & Herzegovina, who will introduce a range of physiology video and software alternatives to provide new tools for practical classes. Translation on paper will facilitate effective implementation of the alternatives, and appropriate testing and assessment of student performance with the new methods will also be undertaken. The project will replace the annual use of over 500 frogs, rats and snails, a significant reduction of harmful animal use.


(1) Policy on the Use of Animals and Alternatives in Education. In Jukes N., Chiuia M. From Guinea Pig to Computer Mouse: Alternative Methods for a Progressive, Humane Education, 2nd ed. Leicester, UK: InterNICHE, 2003. Updated Version 2b available at www.interniche.org/policy.htm 

(2) Aboud E. et al. New Alternative to Animal Models for Surgical Training. ATLA 32, Supplement 1, 501-507, 2004. See also Conference on-line. InterNICHE, 2005. www.interniche.org/2005conference/online.html 

The award-winning InterNICHE video ‘Alternatives in Education’ is now available for free download.

The 33-minute film features interviews with life science teachers and students, and samples classical experiments where conventional animal use has been replaced by a range of progressive, humane alternatives. From anatomy, clinical skills and surgery to physiology and pharmacology, the pedagogical, economic and ethical benefits of alternatives are clearly illustrated. A number of innovative learning tools that have been implemented at universities across the world, including multimedia computer simulation, self-experimentation apparatus and training mannekins, are demonstrated by the teachers.

Produced in 1999 but still fully relevant today, ‘Alternatives in Education’ is also available on video cassette and CD. There are 15 translated versions available, with new languages under production. Existing translations include Croatian, Czech, Estonian, French, German, Georgian, Hungarian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovenian, Spanish and Ukrainian, with text transcription available in Japanese. For more details, please contact InterNICHE.

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InterNICHE book now on-line

Free download of groundbreaking publication

The groundbreaking publication from Guinea Pig to Computer Mouse (2nd ed.) is now available for free download. First published in 2003, with minor updates made in February 2006, the 520-page book provides full details of over 500 alternatives, including description, specification and source. It also offers background information on the diversity of alternative tools and approaches, a review of published studies that assess alternatives through learning performance, and an exploration of curricular design. Seven case studies written by university heads of department who have fully replaced harmful animal use describe the experience of developing and implementing best practice teaching methods. The book also provides links to over 600 further resources.

To download the book you first need to register as a user. This is quick and easy: click here

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New Animal Use Policy now on-line

The InterNICHE Policy on the Use of Animals and Alternatives in Education is now on-line. This comprehensive document, in 10 sections, addresses all aspects of work with animals and alternatives in life science education. The Policy reflects the InterNICHE commitment to full replacement of harmful animal use whilst supporting effective acquisition of knowledge and skills.

Beginning with the InterNICHE Position Statement, a definition of alternatives in education and a definition of harm, it then presents individual policies on a range of issues including dissection, the sourcing of animal cadavers and tissue, work with live animals for clinical skills and surgery training, and ethical field studies. It also addresses the use of animals for the production of alternatives themselves.

While the ideal ‘replacement alternative’ is defined as ‘non-animal’ within the 3Rs philosophy of Russell and Burch (1959), the InterNICHE Policy highlights a shortcoming of the 3Rs approach with respect to education. Not only is there a requirement in some disciplines for students to work with and be familiar with animals, animal tissue and clinical procedures, but there is widespread evidence of the ability to fully meet such teaching objectives in ways that are neutral or beneficial to the well-being of individual animals and that do not involve laboratory animal experimentation or killing.

It is the full replacement of harmful animal use rather than of all work with animals which is the appropriate solution to many of the pedagogical, ethical and practical challenges facing teachers and students. Although the InterNICHE definition of harm is strict - the denial of an animal’s freedom to live and to express full natural behaviour are considered to be significant forms of harm, for example - the exacting demands of the Policy can indeed be met.

As well as non-animal learning tools like multimedia computer simulation and virtual reality, digital video, training models and mannekins, replacement alternatives can also include the use of ethically-sourced animal cadavers for dissection, clinical skills and surgery practice, and apprenticeship into all aspects of clinical practice within the healing context of work with animal patients. A definition of ‘ethically-sourced’, and guidelines on the educational opportunities associated with clinical work, are included in the Policy.

Nevertheless, as the majority of life science students will enter professions that do not involve work with animals, well-designed combinations of non-animal learning tools can successfully meet the diversity of teaching objectives in their practical courses. This leaves the privilege of working with animals to students of veterinary medicine, zoology and other fields where such experience is genuinely required, and where it can be achieved harmlessly or with real benefit to individual animals.

For medical students and some others, the performance of simple or computer-linked self-experimentation exercises, along with the use of problem-based learning and clinical work with human patients, can provide valuable learning opportunities with a much greater degree of relevance to their future careers than laboratory animal experimentation.

The InterNICHE Policy, first published in the book from Guinea Pig to Computer Mouse (2nd edition, 2003), presents comprehensive guidelines to ensure effective and fully ethical acquisition of knowledge and skills in all disciplines of life science education.

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