Nature for the rich

The good news is less farmland means more for rewilding. The bad news is, much of the natural world hasn’t survived. Luckily, we’ve created some beautiful nature retreats you can visit, but you have to be pretty rich to afford it.

We know that our connection to the natural world is important for our own wellbeing. It promotes happiness and leads to lower levels of poor mental health, such as anxiety and depression.

Healing power of nature

A 2021 report from the Mental Health Foundation found that 70% of UK adults agreed being close to nature improves their mood and 49% said it helped them cope with stress. However, access to nature isn’t equal now, with one in ten saying they found it difficult to access nature when they wanted to, with certain groups finding it more difficult than others.

Tech Farms

Food production is the number one priority, so we’ve built these huge multi-storey mega farms where we can keep thousands of animals, using much less land. Conditions are terrible, but we don’t have to see it.

Artificial intelligence means no human contact with the animals: food is delivered automatically, and sensors detect when they are sick and give them medicine or even cull them remotely. Gene editing means we can create super-sized cows and pigs, who produce huge amounts of meat for a fraction of the cost, but the animals struggle to stand.

Cheap meat

We already use gene selection to create fast-growing farmed animals, prioritising cheap meat over welfare. Over 90% of UK chickens grow so fast they struggle to stand. In 2023, the UK made it legal to gene edit animals but this risks unpredictable and unintended consequences for animals. Genetically modified salmon, pigs and beef cattle have already been approved in the USA.

Animals 2.0

Technology has come on a long way since the 2020s. Designer pets are hugely popular for those who can afford them. You can create whatever you want: Great Dane legs with a French bulldog face? Curly haired cat or a bald bunny? You imagine it, we can engineer it. It comes with quite a price tag, though, and it’s not great welfare for the animals.

But robot pets are also a cost-effective choice for anyone who is feeling lonely but cannot afford to buy, keep or feed a live one. People build deep bonds with these AI companions. And it’s hard to believe 25 years ago we were using millions of animals every year in laboratories. Now we have computer modelling which uses AI and we grow organs on microchips. Animals are only ever used as an absolute last resort.

Robopets already exist

Robotic pets have been shown to have benefits for people living with dementia. A study by the University of Plymouth gave care home residents robot cats and dogs and found it improved wellbeing. The study suggested the robotic animals had a calming effect, reduced anxiety, improved mood, reduced agitation and provided reassurance.

What happened?

Welcome to Tech-centric. Back in the 2020s, the impacts of climate change were becoming more and more obvious - crops were failing, and catastrophic floods and wildfires were becoming commonplace across the world. We realised in time that technology could help us find solutions to these challenges.

In this world, we’ve used technology to supercharge our food production, but it’s meant that we’ve had to make some tough choices. Sadly, nature and animals have had to come second place to human survival.

Come with me to find out a bit more.

Extinction

We’ve got used to seeing mass extinctions of species too who just can’t cope with the changing climate or whose habitat has been taken over by humans looking for somewhere bearable to live.

But in some areas, where people have been forced out, nature that can survive there is beginning to reclaim it. We’re even seeing bears and wolves roaming Europe again. So we don’t have much contact with animals these days - do you think you would miss it?

Wildlife on the brink

When we think of species threatened with extinction, exotic animals from far-flung places may come to mind. But a report from Natural England in 2023 revealed that since 1970, UK species have declined on average by about 19% and nearly one in six species in the UK are now threatened with extinction. These include hedgehogs, the hazel dormouse and long-eared bats.

Lost world

Climate change has accelerated rapidly, leading to extreme weather events, or unbearable conditions that drive millions of people from their homes. The land isn’t suitable for farming, and people are abandoning it leaving farmed animals behind to fend for themselves. Sadly most die in the unforgiving landscape.

Now animals are farmed in forbidding skyscrapers where they never see grass, living in terrible conditions that prioritise food production over animal welfare. We turn a blind eye to this suffering as we struggle for our own survival. Few can get hold of meat these days anyway, so most people have become vegetarian, but not through choice. Others turn to insects for protein, despite growing understanding these creatures are sentient - but what choice do we have?

Cattle climate crisis

The South Australia RSPCA saw reports of livestock welfare triple this year, due in part to record dry spells causing a lack of grazing. The charity reported seeing livestock left to die in the fields as farmers struggled to feed them. Other reports revealed hot weather and humidity in some parts of Australia in 2024 saw cattle dying in their dozens from heat stress. Elsewhere in Texas, thousands of cattle died in devastating wildfires this year, as well as loss of animals from extremes of heat and cold due to the climate crisis.

Prized pets

Do you remember in the 2020s when pets were so important to us? Well it’s still the case today - for those who can afford to keep them. Sadly, people move away when land becomes uninhabitable, and pets are being abandoned.

Pet ownership is frowned upon too - there are huge pressures on resources, from food to medicine, and we can’t afford to waste it on pets when humans are struggling. Those who have a pet find them a huge source of comfort in these uncertain times but animal cruelty is on the rise as we become more disconnected from the animals around us.

Abandoned animals soar

During challenging times, RSPCA statistics show that more pets are abandoned. The cost of living crisis has seen reports of abandoned animals increase by a third as people struggle to look after them. The RSPCA Kindness Index 2024 reported that one in five pet owners were worried about being able to afford their pets.

What happened?

Oh dear, you might not like what you see in this world. We ignored the warning signs about climate change back in the 2020s because it just seemed like too big a problem to solve. Unfortunately, we didn’t invest in technological solutions or change the way we live our lives and now we’re paying for it.

Climate change has made lots of land uninhabitable, for both people and animals, and we are all focused on our own struggles. This means animal welfare is pretty far down the priorities list and we are happy to exploit them for our own ends.

Brace yourself, it’s not a pretty picture.

Battle for land

There are huge pressures on land as most is still used for farming which means there isn’t much left for wildlife and nature. Rewilding groups even protest against farmed animals and pets like cats for their impact on wildlife.

The changing climate also means that new, invasive species emerge, threatening native wild animals.

Nature loss

The UK’s Natural History Museum, which produces the Biodiversity Intactness Indicator, said in 2020, that the UK had ‘led the world’ in destroying the natural environment. It stated that ‘centuries of farming, building and industry have made the UK one of the most nature-depleted countries in Europe’.

British is best?

We think British farmed animal welfare is the best in the world. But we haven’t significantly reduced the amount of animals we farm for food. Alternative proteins, like soya or lab-grown meat, are seen as suspicious fake foods and haven’t taken off.

Despite our pride in our standards, we can’t produce enough here to feed our population. There is also a black market for low welfare foods from overseas.

Fake or the future?

The UK has one of the biggest alternative protein markets in Europe and the RSPCA Kindness Index in 2024 found nearly a third of people (31%) had reduced their meat, dairy, and fish intake. But there are still barriers, as a 2022 consumer survey from the Food Standards Authority said two in five people said nothing could persuade them to try plant-based proteins or lab-grown meat, showing that there is still some persuading to do. Price is also an important issue, and in 2022, the Good Food Institute reported plant-based meat was 67% more expensive than animal meat.

Pets on top

In an uncertain world where people feel like they don’t have much control, pets are a huge source of comfort and are valued members of the family.

We see pet ownership and affection increase, but the problem is people don’t have the same love for wildlife and farmed animals.

Are all animals equal?

The reality is that we tolerate treatment and conditions for farmed animals, or even wildlife, that we would consider cruel and unacceptable for many of the pets we love. Could you imagine keeping a dog in a cage the size of an A4 piece of paper - the average size of a cage for a laying hen? We welcome dogs and cats into our homes, but treat wildlife around us, such as foxes, rats, mice and pigeons, as pests. Despite building on and encroaching in their habitats, we trap, cull, and poison animals who we think don’t belong.

What happened?

This world shows a mixed picture of what the future of animals could be like. We’ve made some attempts to address climate change and redesign our food system, but sadly we’ve not been nearly ambitious enough.

Things aren’t great globally, but here in Britain they’re not as bad as elsewhere. We’re proud of our own animal welfare, and we’ve come to look down on how animals are treated in the rest of the world. But the problem is, we’re not being very honest with ourselves about what is really happening to animals at home.

Take a closer look and find out for yourself.

Rewild

Farming now has a much lower footprint and former farmland is rewilded. Forests rejuvenate, rivers run clear and wildlife, once on the brink of extinction, flourishes again.

But not everyone is happy with how things are changing and there is tension over land use. Some traditional sheep farmers become figures of popular resistance as land is reclaimed for rewilding or carbon capture.

A controversial comeback

Rewilding projects have helped bring species back from the brink. Beavers have been successfully reintroduced to Britain after being hunted to extinction 400 years ago, and they were formally given legal protection in 2022, making it illegal to deliberately injure, capture or kill them or disturb or destroy their habitats. But rewildling can be controversial, such as the decision to reintroduce bears and wolves in areas of Italy and farmers in Wales opposed a rewildling project which they feared would drive them from the land. But farmers are also being encouraged to rewild their land with subsidies for nature recovery projects in the UK.

Lab meat

Government regulates farming to control the climate, making animal products more expensive. At the same time, it invests in alternative proteins, leading to high-quality, nutritious, affordable products, which people are happy to buy.

Alternative proteins become the key source of protein, but some higher welfare farming remains.

World-first cattle tax

Denmark announced it was to become the first country in the world to introduce emissions tax on agriculture in 2030, so farmers will have to pay for greenhouse gas emissions from their livestock. However, New Zealand scrapped similar plans in the face of resistance from farmers.

Alongside this, the UK has become the first European country to allow lab-grown meat to be sold in pet food, potentially opening the door to cultivated meat appearing on our supermarket shelves in future.

Pets ethics

Animal sentience is recognised in law and society and animals are given the respect they deserve.

Pets are treated well, but there are debates about the ethics of pet ownership and whether we should keep animals with their own feelings and emotions, as companions at all.

Positive for pets?

There is already a debate about whether every animal kept as a pet can lead a good life, particularly exotics like primates, reptiles and some birds. The UK government has recently passed legislation that restricts primates being kept as pets.

Countries like Belgium and the Netherlands already have ‘positive lists’ which outline which animals can be kept as pets, based on how easy it is to care for them, impacts on wildlife and risks to human health. Eurogroup for Animals said these lists have reduced the illegal trade in these animals and the number ending up in rescue centres.

What happened?

Things are looking up for animals in this world. We’ve managed to get to grips with the challenges of climate change and how to feed a growing population in a way that protects animal wellbeing and nature. Governments and people have realised that the future of humans, animals and the planet is interlinked and what is good for animals is good for us all.

Come and see.

Paws for laws

There is a better understanding about how the actions of humans impact on the lives and habitats of wildlife which leads to a more co-ordinated effort for a compassionate existence alongside each other, respecting their habitats and needs.

Children are not only taught about animals in school from a young age, they are able to communicate directly with them although they might not always like what they hear.

Consuming the world

The biggest drivers of loss of nature and wildlife is destroying forests and grassland to change land use - usually for food production, driving an estimated 30% of biodiversity decline globally. Exploiting nature and animals, such as overfishing, overhunting or overharvesting to provide food, medicines and resources is responsible for 20% of loss, with climate change and pollution accounting for 14%. Better understanding the impact of our choices and lifestyles on the world around us is crucial to protecting wildlife.

Cruelty-free food

Most people go vegan overnight. Sustainable and cruelty-free alternatives to meat, leather and animal products become the norm but it’s a big lifestyle change and some people aren’t happy.

In agriculture, animals become partners, helping to maintain the ecosystem, wildlife and soil health, rather than commodities being exploited.

Breaking the meat habit

Veganism is on the rise but just 2-3% of the UK population are estimated to be vegan, with the most common reason for becoming vegan being animal welfare, although environmental concerns and health are also factors, according to a 2022 YouGov poll. Nearly three-quarters (73%) describe themselves as meat eaters, suggesting that a huge behavioural shift is needed to reduce the number of animals farmed. But habits are changing in younger generations, with just 53% describing themselves as meat eaters.

Animals speak

A huge breakthrough in artificial intelligence means we can now speak to animals. That means that they can tell us what they like and what they don’t and how our actions affect them. Pet translations are used as testimony in court and animal abuse is punished as severely as crimes against humans. Animals’ voices join together with human campaigners to call for better rights for all animals.

We also learn some animals don’t enjoy being pets, and they can tell us when they’re suffering, from extreme breeding or their living conditions. Some people decide to stop keeping them as companions. But others question the accuracy of the technology, and don’t agree with the changes in our relationship with animals

Decoding clicks and grunts

Scientists are already doing clever things with AI to improve our communication with animals. Researchers at the University of Copenhagen have been using AI to interpret pig calls to help improve their welfare. Scientists studying sperm whales discovered they communicate with a complex systems of clicks - an alphabet of 143 different sounds. Now they are using AI to try to interpret those sounds and hope they may one day be able to communicate with whales. They compare it to trying to talk to an alien species!

What happened?

Something unprecedented has happened in this world. An unexpected event has completely changed our attitudes towards animals. Their welfare no longer takes second place to our own but becomes a primary concern. We have transformed the way we think, feel and act towards animals.

Come and see what has changed