Whales-online.org offers this podcast with Marc Bekoff, Professor Emeritus of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Colorado and Fellow of the Animal Behavior Society. The interviewer and Marc discuss his new book Animals Matter: A Biologist Explains Why We Should Treat Animals with Compassion and Respect. Marc’s book considers the full spectrum of topics relating to animals in the human world including animal sentience and animal emotions.

From the Whales-online.org site: “Marc explains that the difference between humans and non-humans animals are differences in degree, rather than difference in kind, and that it is good science to say that animals experience emotions. He shares some important insights about the need for human society to learn to co-exist with animals, and how we should learn to adapt our lives to theirs rather than always asking them to adapt their lives to ours.”

I have to give Cait credit for finding Whales-online.org through her interest in dolphins. The site has a great kids section and they offer weekly podcasts featuring news and inside interviews with experts in the field of whale, dolphin and porpoise protection. The interviews range from kid-friendly (informal and conversational) to in-depth discussions.