What is Humane Education?

Humane education is usually defined as the use of education to nurture compassion and respect for living things. In addition to a traditional focus on the treatment of non-human animals, humane education increasingly contains content related to the environment, the compassionate treatment of other people, and the interconnectedness of issues pertaining to people and the planet.

The Heart of Animal Protection

In this section of our website you'll find facts, stories, animal- and conservation-centered learning activities, presentations, videos, and a wealth of resources for your personal interest or to create stimulating multi-disciplinary learning environments.

Through our humane education programs, New England Primate Conservancy is committed to leaving a legacy of hope, and tools to create a better tomorrow for all of the Earth's citizens. What we do in our daily lives impacts the future. Every small change in the right direction carries hope.

The goal is responsible stewardship of our planet and her creatures because...education is the heart of animal protection. ​

A Legacy of Hope

Why so much emphasis on education?

​​Let's face it, no one animal welfare organization can save every animal that needs help. Each puts a dent in the problems facing animals and saves a few of the many. For those few animals, there is nothing more important than saving their lives and giving them happy homes. 

But for every animal that finds a safe haven, many more remain homeless, at risk, in squalid conditions, or they're killed. The sad fact remains that the greater majority of animals that need help will not receive it. That fact makes our jobs much bigger than providing safe haven for a few animals.

So here's the good news -- we always like to deliver good news! -- our greater mission is humane education, raising awareness and proposing viable solutions to the problems of animal neglect, abuse and homelessness. 

Helping animals requires a multidisciplinary approach. To that end, the Conservancy is a platform for education, an opportunity to explore the problems facing animal welfare, and a vehicle for action toward achievable goals and solutions.

The bottom line is that all life is precious. If we're kind to animals, we're more likely to be kind to our fellow humans as well. After all, animals teach us to be better people. It's all about kindness and having heart. That's why education is the heart of animal protection.

Here's Some of what you'll find

Lessons and Activities

Primates and Their Habitats

Primates and Their Habitats includes card games and activities that introduce the diversity of primate species and the habitats in which they live. Fun ways to occupy your kids without phones and tablets. You’ve never seen a card deck like this before! 36 beautiful printable cards represent 27 primate species and 7 habitats. Select from 4 game options based on players’ ages, interests, or just for fun. Want to learn more about “Who’s in the Cards?” Go back to the tablet, visit the website below, and one click or tap reveals each species’ profile. You might find a species you’ve never seen before. You might be surprised by their habitats. Best of all, IT’S FREE!

Life in Tropical Rainforests

Life in the World's Tropical Rainforest includes five activities based on the lessons in our self-guided slideshow of the same name. It incorporates great photos, rainforest sounds, and Fun Facts interspersed throughout. You'll learn about why the world's rainforests must be preserved and how we all, from thousands of miles away, can protect them in our daily lives. Play our Levels of the Rainforest matching game to learn more about who lives in what levels of the rainforest. Other activities guide you to learn why those levels are important to biodiversity. Each of the five unique learning activities allow you to have fun while learning about the world's tropical rainforests and the creatures that live in them. 

Primates At-a-Glance

View and Learn! Primates At-a-Glance is a media gallery of beautiful graphics that give you glimpses into the worlds of a variety of primate species -- apes, monkeys, and prosimians. ​​Species are listed in alphabetical order by common name. Click on any photo for the full species profile. 
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• African Primates At-a-Glance
• Asian Primates At-a-Glance
• Latin American Primates At-a-Glance

Understanding Conservation Statuses

A video simplifies what conservation statuses, like "Endangered," "Critically Endangered," and "Vulnerable" are really telling us about threats to wildlife, especially as they relate to nonhuman primates. ​Primates are a keystone indicator species. If we're losing nonhuman primates, their habitats are in danger. If their habitats are in danger, so too is every creature who lives there. The video outlines the causes of the threats to their viability, and proposes that everyone be part of the solution before it's too late. The accompanying lessons feature the primate species found in the video and suggest what each person can do to protect and preserve endangered species. Millions of people making small differences results in significant changes.

Where in the World Do Primates Live?

​A brief video takes you on a tour of the world to visit the continents on which primates naturally live. Human primates, of course, inhabit every continent. What about our primate cousins? Where do they come from? Just as importantly, where do they NOT come from? This question invites conversations about why monkeys and apes are living in parts of the world that are unnatural for them. With 5 distinct Lessons and Activities, learning goals and objectives are clearly outlined. This is a lesson and activity for understanding the need to preserve and protect natural habitats.

Our Book

People and Other Primates
​Thoughts and conversations about how we share the world with our fellow primates

In an easy storytelling format, fictional events among young people reveal what happens when human and nonhuman primates live with or near each other. The stories reveal that, even when they are not native to where we live, our choices and actions can impact the futures of all species. Each chapter includes an About section with facts about the primate species featured in the story. Rich with full-color illustrations, photos, maps, and more, the book's target audience is pre-teens, teens, and young adults, although it will surely be equally enjoyed by an older audience.

"People and Other Primates" provokes thoughts about conservation topics that may not otherwise be on your mind and illuminates the power that each of us has to positively impact serious conservation issues. It empowers the reader to help our fellow primates whose futures today’s youths hold in their hands. It seeks to stir thoughts about conservation, habitat preservation, the ethics behind how we treat our fellow primates, and the importance of allowing wild animals to fulfill their natural roles in their native habitats. New England Primate Conservancy’s quest is toward responsible stewardship of the Earth and her creatures.