Epistemic status: Speculation from two decently informed advocates armed with anecdata.
Note on process: After having some version of this conversation several times and saying, “we should probably write about this publicly,” we took the less heroic route: we recorded one of our conversations, fed the transcript into an LLM, and then substantially revised the structure, substance, and framing ourselves. We will not be sharing the transcript, as it is in...
I want to start by noting that I am amazed and somewhat in awe of what's been accomplished by the EA animal welfare movement. I am enthusiastically supportive of all campaigns that make living and dying conditions less bad for farmed animals.
I worked on such campaigns for almost 20 years, and I'm proud of that work.
That said, I do think it's a strategic error that the EA animal movement has so thoroughly moved on from advocacy for animal liberation and diet change.&n...
Author: Grace Ryba (she/her), Executive Director
TL;DR:
* BluePerch is a new animal welfare grantmaker.
* Grant applications aren't open yet - we're aiming to open applications in roughly mid-2027.
* We welcome early expressions of interest from potential grantseekers so we can notify you when applications open - express your interest here or see further details below.
* We're also seeking boa...
“In Texas cattle country, ranchers brace for flesh-eating screwworms”
Second and third Reuters front-page articles I’ve seen on the issue in the last few months.
I suspect funding and openness to new solutions may increase in response to this growing problem, which could create opportunities for projects like Screwworm-Free Future.
https://www.reuters.com/world/texas-cattle-country-ranchers-brace-flesh-eating-screwworms-2025-08-15/
https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/mexican-ranchers-hit-by-flesh-eating-screwworm-want-action-cattle-smuggling-2025-08-15/
Updated with second article, which I didn’t originally notice.
And another today, this one an exclusive article about the first travel-associated human case in the U.S. connected to the outbreak. My impression is that it isn't realistically possible for these screwworms to cause a human outbreak in this context, but I think the human cases that will arise from this outbreak could be a compelling part of a broader narrative about its welfare costs and the urgency to control it.
https://www.reuters.com/business/environment/us-confirms-nations-first-travel-associated-human-screwworm-case-connected-2025-08-25/