@Lydia Obrist @KLusignan
I agree with both points.
I would suggest adopting something like others have already suggested here:
@Roland Halpern ( #4): “Why not the ‘inherent worth and dignity of every being?’ Limiting it to ‘every person’ excludes thousands of species.”
@Gretchen Grimm ( #153) noted this formulation as part of the 1st Principle Project.
@Don Price ( #157):
“We acknowledge that animals are slaughtered and often forced to endure terrible pain and inhumane treatment mostly because people enjoy eating them.”
@Birgitta McAlevey ( #264): "Interdependence. We honor the sacred interdependent web of all existence.With humility we understand our place in the web. We covenant to care for and respect the earth and all beings by fostering relationships of mutuality. We work to repair the bonds we have broken.
Dependence. We try to understand our place in the web of life with humility and gratitude. We covenant to respect and care for the earth and all beings. We commit to our fellow beings to foster less harmful and more mutual relationships.
[…] Speciesism is the starting point in understanding that the earth is not ours to trash, humans are not ours to dehumanize, and animals are not ours to abuse."
@Cynthia Grzywinski ( #154): “We humans are mainly responsible for global warming and the infringement and destruction of whole species of animals. It is our duty and responsibility to be conscious of our complicity in this woeful outcome and strive to nurture, regrow and maintain this fragile web of life”
@Laurie MacGeorge ( #131): Include all “Sentient Beings” in the revision.
Personally, I think it could also work to simply make a small addition to the end of the Interdependence principle: “we acknowledge our place in the great web of life, and we work to repair harm and damaged relationships, animals, plants, habitats, and humans alike.”