Wolf recovery across Europe and North America requires landscape-scale thinking about coexistence that considers the welfare of both wolves and livestock, and the livelihoods of rural communities.
Wolf coexistence ethics involves balancing multiple legitimate welfare interests. Wolves killed in conflict situations die welfare-relevant deaths; livestock killed by wolves suffer real harm; farmers facing economic ruin experience genuine distress. Coexistence frameworks that reduce these conflicts through non-lethal deterrents, compensation schemes, and community engagement create conditions where wolves can recover without externalizing all the costs onto rural communities. Wolf welfare in this context is inseparable from the social and economic welfare of the humans sharing their landscape.