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Home / Equine Research Bank / Animals (Basel) / Social Licence to Operate: What Can Equestrian Sports Learn ...
Animals : an open access journal from MDPI2022; 12(15); 1987; doi: 10.3390/ani12151987

Social Licence to Operate: What Can Equestrian Sports Learn from Other Industries?

Abstract: The concept of 'social licence to operate' (SLO) is relevant to all animal-use activities. An SLO is an intangible, implicit agreement between the public and an industry/group. Its existence allows that industry/group to pursue its activities with minimal formalised restrictions because such activities have widespread societal approval. In contrast, the imposition of legal restrictions-or even an outright ban-reflect qualified or lack of public support for an activity. This review discusses current threats to equestrianism's SLO and suggests actions that those across the equine sector need to take to justify the continuation of the SLO. The most important of these is earning the trust of all stakeholders, including the public. Trust requires transparency of operations, establishment and communication of shared values, and demonstration of competence. These attributes can only be gained by taking an ethics-based, proactive, progressive, and holistic approach to the protection of equine welfare. Animal-use activities that have faced challenges to their SLO have achieved variable success in re-establishing the approval of society, and equestrianism can learn from the experience of these groups as it maps its future. The associated effort and cost should be regarded as an investment in the future of the sport.
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Publication Date: 2022-08-05 PubMed ID: 35953977PubMed Central: PMC9367437DOI: 10.3390/ani12151987Google Scholar: Lookup
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Summary

This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.

The research article investigates the concept of ‘social licence to operate’ (SLO) in equestrian sports, discussing the threats to this and suggesting ways for the equine industry to justify its SLO. The paper emphasizes the importance of stakeholder trust, transparency, shared values, competence, and a proactive approach to equine welfare.

Understanding the Social Licence to Operate

  • The paper begins with exploring the concept of ‘social licence to operate’ (SLO). SLO is an informal agreement between the public and an industry or group that enables the latter to conduct its activities with less formal restrictions because they are societally approved.
  • Without this social approval, activities can face legal restrictions and even outright bans. This concept is particularly relevant to all animal-use activities, including equestrian sports.

Current Threats to Equestrianism’s SLO

  • The research also brings light to the current threats faced by equestrianism’s SLO. While these threats aren’t explicitly enumerated in the abstract, they likely pertain to issues of animal welfare and public perception surrounding it.

Key Actions to Secure SLO

  • The paper then delves into the measures the equine sector needs to take to safeguard its SLO. It identifies earning trust from all stakeholders as the most critical aspect, which includes transparency in operations, consensus on shared values, and demonstrations of competence.
  • This trust can only be built by ‘‘taking an ethics-based, proactive, progressive, and holistic approach to the protection of equine welfare’’. The discussion implies that a deep respect for animal welfare ethics and an inclination towards actions that demonstrate this concern is an effective way to ensure the sustainability of the industry.

Lessons from Other Sectors

  • The paper also looks at other animal-use activities that have faced threats to their SLO and how some have managed to regain societal approval. Key lessons from these experiences could be applied to the equestrian sector. This indicates a comparative industry analysis that gives a broader perspective to the concept of SLO.
  • The research concludes that the efforts and costs associated with these actions should be viewed as investments in the industry’s future, emphasizing the importance of long-term planning over short-term profits.

Cite This Article

APA
Douglas J, Owers R, Campbell MLH. (2022). Social Licence to Operate: What Can Equestrian Sports Learn from Other Industries? Animals (Basel), 12(15), 1987. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani12151987

Publication

Animals : an open access journal from MDPI
ISSN: 2076-2615
NlmUniqueID: 101635614
Country: Switzerland
Language: English
Volume: 12
Issue: 15
PII: 1987

Researcher Affiliations

Douglas, Janet
  • World Horse Welfare, Anne Colvin House, Snetterton, Norwich NR16 2LR, UK.
Owers, Roly
  • World Horse Welfare, Anne Colvin House, Snetterton, Norwich NR16 2LR, UK.
Campbell, Madeleine L H
  • School of Veterinary Medicine and Science, University of Nottingham, Sutton Bonington, Nottingham LE12 5RD, UK.

Conflict of Interest Statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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Citations

This article has been cited 3 times.
  1. Annan R, Trigg LE, Hockenhull J, Allen K, Butler D, Valenchon M, Mullan S. Racehorse welfare across a training season.. Front Vet Sci 2023;10:1208744.
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