NRP 79 – Animals, Research and Society

Project leader: Prof. Dr. Margot Michel

The National Research Program “Advancing 3 R – Animals, Research and Society” (NRP 79) launched by the Federal Council has outlined two overarching goals, which can be described as follows: On the one hand, from a bioscience technology perspective, methods and instruments will be devised and developed that will contribute significantly to the reduction of animal experiments and the number of animals used in research conducted by universities and the private-sector in Switzerland. On the other hand, the ethical, legal, social, historical and economic aspects of animal testing and the use of animals in science will be examined innovatively from a humanities and social science perspective. In doing so, the results and findings of NRP 79 will create a shared basis for discussion to promote societal discourse.

NRP 79

The widely recognized 3R principle is an expression of the recognition that animals, as sentient beings, should not be subjected to unnecessary suffering and that animal experiments should therefore be an exception requiring justification. Swiss law protects animals on the principle of ethical animal protection and recognizes their intrinsic value beyond their usefulness to humans. This is reflected in the anchoring of the dignity of creation in the Swiss Constitution (Art. 120 BV), the dignity of animals in the Animal Protection Act (Art. 1 TSchG) and the legal stipulation that animals are not “things” (Art. 641a ZGB). Nevertheless, the law still treats animals in a very contradictory way.  For example, animals do not enjoy protection of their lives and their bodies, and their functions can be instrumentalized for other purposes. This contradiction becomes especially explicit in animal experimentation.

The project “Implementation of the 3Rs in Swiss Law” under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Margot Michel is dedicated to the 3R principle from a jurisprudential perspective. Over the course of four years (2022-2026), it will be researched how the law regulates animal experimentation as well as what could and should change in the future.

The project pursues a two-track approach:

In a synthesis of the two parts, the most important findings and possible solutions will be summarized and presented to the relevant stakeholders for further development of the treatment of animals and their bodies at the legislative level.

The project aims to fortify conversation between science and practice. For this purpose, a close exchange with various relevant actors, such as members of federal and cantonal experimentation committees, researchers, institutions, and officials, is planned to be maintained throughout the project.

New sub-project since 01/2025: "Bringing Law to Life– Let the 3Rs talk.":

The new subproject, which is realised by Sara Faizee, aims to explain the 3Rs principle codified in animal welfare law to legal laypersons. This should help to remedy the fact that the relatively strict regulation that already exists in the Swiss Animal Welfare Act and that reflects the 3Rs principle is often not applied. We suspect that the legal situation sometimes is not well known to the various actors involved in the approval process for animal testing. We would like to use the science communication sub-project to make it easier for stakeholders in science and administration to act in accordance with the law, so that the legally enshrined protection of animals is taken into account. We are therefore developing an e-learning tool that provides information about the legal situation regarding animal testing and its background.

SNSF Data Portal

Publications:

• Accelerating Animal Replacement: How Universities Can Lead - Results of a One-Day Expert Workshop in Zurich, Switzerland, Alternatives to Laboratory Animals, 2025, 53(2), 106-118, dio:10.1177/02611929251317434. Workshop Report
• Katerina Stoykova, Towards Non-Animal Testing in European Regulatory Toxicology: An Introduction to the REACH Framework and Challenges in Implementing the 3Rs, in: EJRR 2025, 1 ff. EJRR
• Nicole Lüthi, Katerina Stoykova und Margot Michel, Animal Experimentation in Basic Research - Current Discussion and Implications of the Latest Jurisprudence, in: LEOH 2024, 99 ff. LEOH
• Nicole Lüthi, Christian Rodriguez Perez, Kirsten Persson, Bernice Simone Elger und David Shaw, Toward Transparency on Animal Experimentation in Switzerland: Seven Recommendations for the Provision of Public Information in Swiss Law, in: Animals 14/2024, 2154 ff. Animals
• Nicole Lüthi, Prüfungsbefugnis der Bewilligungsbehörden im Bereich Tierversuche - ein Vergleich der rechtlichen Vorgaben der EU und der Schweiz unter Berücksichtigung der jüngsten Rechtsprechung, in: Journal of Animal Law, Ethics and One Health (LEOH) 2023, S. 1 ff. LEOH

• Dr. theol. Christoph Ammann, President of the Working Group Church and Animals (AKUT)
• Dr. iur. Gieri Bolliger, LL.M., Executive Director Stiftung für das Tier im Recht (TIR)
• Samuel Camenzind, PhD, Postdoc at the Institute of Philosophy, University of Vienna and Member of the Swiss Federal Ethics Committee on Nonhuman Biotechnology (ECNH)
• Dr. iur. Barbara Felde, Deputy Chairwoman of the German Society for Animal Protection Law (DJGT)
• Dr. iur. Vanessa Gerritsen, Member of the Executive Board Stiftung für das Tier im Recht (TIR)
• Dr. iur. Lena Hehemann, Federal Data Protection and Information Commissioner
• Dr. iur. Christoph Maisack, Chairman of the German Society for Animal Protection Law (DJGT)
• Prof. Dr. phil. Angela Martin, SNF PRIMA Assistant Professor, Department of Philosophy, University of Basel; Member of the Ethics Committee for Animal Experiments of the Swiss Academy of Medical Sciences
• Lic. iur. Andreas Rüttimann, Stiftung für das Tier im Recht (TIR)