The Animals and Philosophy Exploration (APE) Collective is a group that was formed with the aim of exploring the relations between animals and philosophy. Often animals are neglected in the philosophical literature or bracketed off as a separate case. Philosophy is, for the most part,  anthropocentric. This not only leads to a lack of understanding regarding non-human animals leading to us viewing them as inferior to humans in many ways but also impovishes philosophy generally. By considering how creatures other than ourselves think, act or believe, why they matter and what their minds are like, we can gain a better understanding of ourselves.  The APE Collective attempts to remedy this through its activities.

 

The APE Collective is based at the University of Leeds. Currently we run a reading group that meets fortnightly to discuss texts involving animals and philosophy. We are also hosted a conference on animals and death in September 2016. Please see the events page for more information.