Jeff Sebo

Jeff Sebo is an Associate Professor of Environmental Studies and Affiliated Professor of Bioethics, Medical Ethics, Philosophy, and Law at New York University. He directs the Center for Environmental and Animal Protection and the Center for Mind, Ethics, and Policy, and co-directs the Wild Animal Welfare Program. His research focuses on moral philosophy, legal philosophy, animal ethics, environmental ethics, AI ethics, and global priorities. He holds a Ph.D. in Philosophy from NYU (2011) and has held prior roles including Research Assistant Professor at UNC Chapel Hill and Postdoctoral Fellow at NIH.

Education: Ph.D. in Philosophy, NYU (2011); B.A. in Philosophy/Sociology, Texas Christian University (2005).

Research interests include animal minds, AI ethics, climate ethics, and global health policy. He has authored influential books like The Moral Circle (2025) and Saving Animals, Saving Ourselves (2022), and co-authored works such as Chimpanzee Rights (2018). His recent articles address topics like AI welfare, wild animal ethics, and policy frameworks for reducing industrial animal agriculture. He advises organizations such as Eleos AI and Minding Animals International, and contributes to interdisciplinary initiatives like the NYU Guarini Center on Environmental Law.

His work emphasizes expanding the moral circle to include nonhuman beings and addressing interconnected challenges of climate change, pandemics, and animal welfare through policy advocacy and ethical analysis.