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Jonathan Birch updates the Stanford Encyclopedia on "Animal Consciousness"

Tuesday 13 January 2026
Bird in sunset.

In January 2026, Professor Jonathan Birch, Director of the Jeremy Coller Centre for Animal Sentience, completed a substantial revision of the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy’s entry on Animal Consciousness. https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/consciousness-animal/

The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (SEP) is a widely used, open‑access, peer‑reviewed scholarly reference work published and maintained by Stanford University. Each entry is written and regularly updated by subject experts.

The latest revision broadens and deepens the entry to reflect developments in the field. The updated version now includes new material on:

  • Non‑Western perspectives, expanding the discussion beyond traditional Western frameworks
  • Methodological challenges in interpreting evidence across species
  • Evolutionary “big picture” questions, offering a wider view of how consciousness may have emerged and diversified

The result is a more inclusive and up‑to‑date resource for students, researchers and readers interested in the study of animal minds.