Introducing animal welfare education in secondary schools can build empathy, reduce future consumer harm and support career pathways in veterinary and animal welfare fields. Curriculum integration remains limited in most countries.
Education is a long-term lever for animal welfare improvement. Consumers who understand animal sentience and welfare needs make different purchasing decisions; professionals who received welfare education apply it in practice; policymakers who encountered welfare concepts in school are more receptive to evidence-based reform. Secondary education is the optimal window to introduce concepts of animal sentience, human responsibility toward animals and the welfare implications of consumer choices - before adult habits are entrenched. The challenge is integrating welfare content into curricula that are already crowded with mandatory requirements.