Cross-Movement Collaboration For Farmed Animal Advocates In Southeast Asia

The goals of animal advocacy organizations have the potential to benefit animals, as well as public health, environmental outcomes, and livelihoods, leading many to believe that increased cooperation between social movements may increase their impact. For example, research has found that environmental supporters are more likely to take pro-animal actions than those unconcerned (Faunalytics, 2023). Southeast Asia, however, a critical region for farmed animal advocacy, lacks comparable research to support this kind of alignment. This scoping study explores social movements in six Southeast Asian countries — Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia, and Vietnam — selected for their large human and animal populations and economic significance. Through literature review, informal discussions with local researchers, social media content analysis, and interviews with senior staff at environmental and human development organizations, we present key findings for helping farmed animal advocates strategize future collaborations with other movements. Our findings give direction on how to approach other movements, and how their goals may overlap. Additionally, we provide a country-by-country analysis to give more specifically tailored advice, depending on the country of interest. This report will help support animal advocacy throughout the region as well as help researchers think of future research projects designed to make advocacy and collaboration in Southeast Asia easier.