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What can your target audience do with this information to address these challenges? 

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What can your target audience do with this information to address these challenges? 

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My target audience can use this vital information to further educate themselves on the issue and go do more research on their own. They can also do their part to raise awareness by telling others about this global issue and donating to wildlife conservation organizations that would use those funds to further develop their support to wildlife rangers. The audience can also decline to buy products made from material that is directly related to poaching, such as ivory.

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intergovernmental organizations are mainly involved in community outreach and raising awareness. A lot of wildlife trafficking is due to false beliefs that certain animal parts hold medicinal properties, and these organizations help educate the public on the truth about that. Furthermore, organizations help support each other by sharing information about wildlife conservation, training methods and technological resources. These intergovernmental organizations form crucial alliances and help promote wildlife protection laws to be passed.

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What do the resources demonstrate about the constraints, challenges, and achievements of international law in addressing global challenges?

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What do the resources demonstrate about the constraints, challenges, and achievements of international law in addressing global challenges?

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My multitude of resources demonstrated that while it is possible to make noteworthy achievements in addressing global challenges, there are several constraints and restrictions that make it an uphill battle. A lack of jurisdiction and differing philosophies were common themes in my research. It was interesting to find that international law had both its benefits and shortcomings; while the communication between states helped increase the sharing of valuable data, the lack of enforcement made it difficult to truly stop poaching in its tracks. I think that the international aspect of this global challenge is a somewhat good thing because it encourages cooperation between countries and it's in everyone’s best interest to share information in order to protect the wildlife. These efforts can most certainly help develop relations between states and extend past just the issue of wildlife trafficking. It is certainly a challenge to be a united front against poaching because not all states will pass domestic laws fighting the issue, but participation in treaties and international organizations show a potential for future legislation.

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My knowledge about wildlife trafficking was admittedly very limited before I started this project. I have always thought of myself as environmentally conscious but I never knew about the extent of poaching. I learned very little about it in school, so I received a lot of new information when I started my research. I think this shows how international issues need to be emphasised more in public education and that these types of issues need to be implemented in the younger generations’ education plan. It sickened me to know that so many innocent animals die due to purely selfish human actions, and made me think about how much longer this will go on. It also made me think about how fragile ecosystems are and the potential for many species that we know to go extinct soon. It was nice to see that there wasn’t too much stagnation in anti-poaching efforts due to political resistance, but still more needs to be done.

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According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, "in the past decade, wildlife trafficking – the poaching or other taking of protected or managed species and the illegal trade in wildlife and their related parts and products – has escalated into an international crisis" (USFWS).
Also known as poaching, wildlife trafficking is an important crisis that needs to be addressed in the international stage since it affects all states. This problem is intensifying as pressure increases from both sides; poachers are trafficking at steadily increasing rates while animal rights advocates are clamoring for legal punishment as a form of discouragement. There have been some attempts at creating a united international front against this issue but like many international concerns it is hard to enforce preventive laws.
Currently, wildlife trafficking is exacerbating the danger of losing species that are already in threat of going extinct due to environmental problems like deforestation and climate change. If wildlife trafficking isn't properly addressed by international actors then the world will lose precious animal species forever.

https://www.fws.gov/international/wildlife-trafficking/

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World Wildlife Fund's Wildlife Crime Technology Project

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World Wildlife Fund's Wildlife Crime Technology Project

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The Wildlife Crime Technology Project is an effort by the World Wildlife Fund to "to innovate and test a number of innovative technologies, many of which have the potential to change the course of the global fight against wildlife crime". In order to combat an industry that annually makes over $10 billion in illegal trade, this project is slowly introducing technology to different countries' wildlife rangers to help them in their conservation efforts. The article explains that poaching is "taking a dangerous toll on rangers, threatening the livelihoods of communities, damaging ecosystems, and emptying them of wildlife", and this threat is magnified by the lack of technology the rangers have access to. Although many countries are either hesitant or don't have the means (i.e. cell towers) to use foreign technology, slowly implementing them on an international level is showing true promise. If this progress continues, the increased amount of technology could help counter aforementioned issues such as a lack of manpower.

https://www.worldwildlife.org/projects/wildlife-crime-technology-project

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In 2012-a year in which poachers killed at least 745 rhinos and 22,000 elephants in Africa alone-Google.org presented WWF with a $5 million Global Impact Award to "harness technological innovation to stop conservation crime." This visionary investment launched the WCTP, through which WWF and our partners seek solutions to end the global wildlife poaching epidemic. This scourge is taking a dangerous toll on rangers, threatening the livelihoods of communities, damaging ecosystems, and emptying them of wildlife-all to feed an illegal wildlife trade valued at more than an estimated $10 billion each year.

We set out to create an umbrella of technology tools to support rangers in their anti-poaching efforts, with an initial focus on piloting the use and integration of three specific technologies in Namibia: unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs, or drones), wildlife tracking tags, and SMART (Spatial Monitoring and Reporting Tool), a ranger patrol analysis software program. Following the conclusion of Phase 1 (October 2012-June 2014), it became clear that we needed to adapt our approach, since governments across Africa were banning the use of UAVs; cell coverage for tracking tags was poor in many of the continent's poaching hotspots; and governments were resistant to adopting the SMART software system. We realized that we needed to rapidly pivot from a top-down technology-driven approach to a bottom-up problem-driven approach if we were to make a meaningful impact on the poaching crises.

Building on the learning from Phase 1, we embraced Google's spirit of innovation and turned our focus to identifying technological solutions to several key challenges. First, because most poaching occurs at night, systems need to function in darkness. Second, since connectivity and real-time sharing of information and data was critical to success, we needed to explore other types of networks for our communications backbone. Third, harsh field conditions necessitated that we look beyond "off-the-shelf" technology, instead creating our own adapted solutions.

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Wildlife Crime Technology Project | Projects | WWF

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Over four and a half years, the Google.org-funded Wildlife Crime Technology Project (WCTP) provided WWF a platform to innovate and test a number of innovative technologies, many of which have the potential to change the course of the global fight against wildlife crime.

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AWF's Report on A Lack of Enforcement and a Linkage Between Socioeconomics and Poaching

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AWF's Report on A Lack of Enforcement and a Linkage Between Socioeconomics and Poaching

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This African Wildlife Fund report summarizes why poachers are prevailing over increasing international restrictions on wildlife trade. It attributes their continued success to five core reasons:
1. Not enough human presence for enforcement and protection of wildlife
2. Lack of economic opportunity in countries leads to young people turning to local poaching syndicates
3. Lack of domestic implementation for trade bans such as CITES
4. Ivory stockpile sales that drive supply and demand since it leads to increased availability
5. A lack of public education which leads to false medicinal beliefs and ignorance about the dangers of poaching
The article summarizes these findings by stating that many species are on the brink of extinction and encourages a collaborative effort between countries to formulate an international strategy that will raise public awareness.

https://www.awf.org/blog/why-do-poachers-still-thrive-5-key-hurdles-overcome-stop-slaughter

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About the Author

Emily Logan is Director of Acquisition and Retention at Care2, where her team works with member activists to spread the word about critical issues on ThePetitionSite, building campaigns into full-scale organizing efforts. In h ... More

More than 40 years have passed since the Convention on International Trades in Endangered Species (CITES) became law. Today, 181 countries and international bodies are treaty members, but despite a worldwide commitment to end poaching of Africa's iconic, threatened wildlife, many species still face an acute risk of extinction.

CITES experts found poaching reached record highs in 2012, and a 2014 analysis found that in just three years, poachers killed 100,000 African elephants.

These alarming statistics beg the question: how and why are poachers still so lethal?

Enforcement and Protection

Despite the global consensus condemning poaching, countries that are home to elephants, rhinos and other covered species play the most important role in protecting their fauna. They are, after all, the places where the endangered wildlife needs to thrive.

Consider Garamba National Park in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), an ecological paradise and home to some of the continent's most iconic species, including mountain gorillas, white rhinos and elephants. But at nearly 5,000 square kilometers, it's a huge area for any country to patrol, let alone one that has been wracked by civil war and unrest for decades. Under-resourced and often going up against organized crime syndicates, Garamba Park officials often can't keep up with poachers who use everything from chainsaws to grenades to hunt down elephants.

Eco guards receive training at AWF's Iyondji Community Bonobo Reserve in the DRC. Photo credit: Nakedi Maputla

Given their tough circumstances, it's not surprising that 68 elephants were killed in just two months at the park last summer. The slaughter was at such a large scale that the park director said in a statement that, "The park is under attack on all fronts."

AWF works in communities to recruit and train rangers, and equip them with technology to better track wildlife movements and provide more targeted protection. International bodies, including the United States, have provided troop support to beef up forces. Still, for the local rangers trying to protect their park, the mission is daunting.

Lack of Economic Opportunity

While it's tempting to see poachers as purely evil, it's critical to understand the context in which poaching flourishes. Sure, the cold-hearted are among the perpetrators. But for many, poaching is the best of a slate of bad options for supporting themselves and their families.

Many countries that are home to elephants, rhinos and other valuable wildlife are desperately poor. The per capita gross national product in the DRC is just $430, compared to $53,470 in the United States. A single pound of ivory can fetch $1,500 on the black market -more than three times the typical DRC annual income. The tusks of a single elephant can weigh up to 250 pounds, meaning the killing of just one elephant is a life-changing windfall for a family.

AWF's REDD+ projects aim to reduce community dependence on consumptive forestry activities by providing new and/or improved sources of livelihood. Photo credit: Amy Rizzotto

To stop poaching, we have to change that calculus. The international community has already made strides by banning the sale of ivory. But to make a dent in the black market, potential poachers need other ways to earn a living and support their families.

AWF and other groups work to help communities realize the economic benefits of conservation. Many areas participate in Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation ( REDD+) programs, in which companies pay communities to preserve and protect their forests to offset corporate carbon emissions. As of September 2014, the UN-REDD Programme had enlisted 53 partner countries covering more than one-third of the world's forests and more than $215 million was contributed to participating countries.

Trade Ban Enforcement

Any student or practitioner of public policy will tell you that implementation is everything. While the international community has made important commitments to conservation of endangered wildlife through trade bans, too often reality falls short of the promise. Between 2010 and 2014, the price of ivory in China skyrocketed from $750 to $2,100 per pound, fueling poaching activities, particularly in Nigeria and Angola, according to Time magazine.

A damning report from the Environmental Investigation Agency accused Chinese officials of fueling the ivory trade in their country, where the material has long been used in carvings and as a symbol of wealth and prosperity. So long as countries undermine their international commitments to wildlife protection, poaching will continue to thrive.

15 tonnes of ivory were destroyed in Kenya's Nairobi National Park in March, 2015. Photo credit: Peter Chira.

Ivory Stockpile Sales

In 2013, the United States crushed 5.4 tons of ivory in its possession, the equivalent of 1,000 elephants. The logic behind the action was simple: the availability of raw and carved ivory drives demand for the product, which then encourages poachers to continue slaughtering elephants for profit.

AWF encourages all countries with ivory stockpiles to follow this example. While many countries have signed on to the international ivory ban, many have the right to exercise the option to sell their existing stockpiles. Four African countries in 2014 commendably declined to exercise the option, but others have flooded the market with ivory, a move that conservationists worry undermines efforts to end the ivory trade.

Public Education

Underlying all poaching is the demand for animal products. Reduce the demand for ivory, horns, hides and other products, and you cut the heart out of the poaching industry. For many products, demand is driven by traditions, many of which don't stand up to the scrutiny of science and the realities of the modern world.

Zebras are hunted for their distinctive skin. Ivory is a favorite material for carved statues, jewelry and other trinkets. Rhino horns can fetch up to $300,000 on the black market because of their believed (but false) medicinal properties as hangover and cancer cures.

AWF and its partner WildAid are dedicated to educating people about the impact of poaching. Their "Say No" public awareness campaign targets audiences across Asia through videos and billboards, correcting misinformation in order to reduce demand and save countless animals from a grisly fate.

Chinese film icon Li Bingbing transforms into an elephant in this short film urging viewers to consider the realities of elephant poaching, part of AWF's "Say No" campaign with WildAid.

The world has taken many great strides to protect dwindling wildlife populations and save species on the brink of extinction, but poaching is a stubborn problem to root out. Recent actions do provide some hope. President Obama's executive order targeting wildlife trafficking has raised awareness and targeted enforcement of illegal markets. A new strategy by a coalition of African countries could result in a coordinated, cross-border effort.

Changing the system to address the ongoing problems isn't simple, but with a collaborative, supportive and forward-thinking international strategy to educate people about the consequences of poaching, to stop trade in wildlife parts and to provide a better life for people in poverty-stricken countries, we can save Africa's great fauna for generations to come.

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Why Do Poachers Still Thrive? 5 Key Hurdles to Overcome to Stop the Slaughter

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Emily Logan is Director of Acquisition and Retention at Care2, where her team works with member activists to spread the word about critical issues on ThePetitionSite, building campaigns into full-scale organizing efforts. In h ... More More than 40 years have passed since the Convention on International Trades in Endangered Species (CITES) became law.

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African Wildlife Foundation's Research Findings on Poaching Data in Africa and Asia

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African Wildlife Foundation's Research Findings on Poaching Data in Africa and Asia

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These data findings from the African Wildlife Fund serve to "raise the public’s awareness of the massive deaths these poachers bring about". The research found several concerning statistics:
1. between January 2005 and January 2017, nearly 2,000 elephants and roughly 6,300 rhinos had been slaughtered by poachers in South Africa and Kenya
2. elephants' poaching fatalities increased more than 100 percent in 2016.
3. East Africa, home to 20% of Africa's entire rhino population, had its elephant population decline by 50%
between 2006 and 2015
4. Tanzania's elephant population declined by 60% between 2006 and 2015
5. rhino horn is sold at rates between $15,000 and $30,000 a pound in Vietnam
According to the article, the data trends suggest that "rhino poaching will increase by about 356 percent between 2015 and 2030". These statistics demonstrate that at the current rate of poaching is unsustainable and demonstrate the urgency with which international agencies need to act. These statistics also show how this is an international issue because it regards both Africa and Asia; furthermore the transport of rhino horns from Africa to Vietnam make it international trade and thus within international jurisdiction.

https://campaign.awf.org/poaching-deaths-visualized/

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Across the globe, poaching is roundly reviled. Even legally sanctioned hunting of species has prompted an international outcry in recent years. Few understand the true scale of the problem, which persists despite escalating enforcement efforts.

In Africa alone, thousands of endangered animals die every year, killed by criminal syndicates eager to sell the spoils of their slaughter abroad. These groups strive to silence those who seek to expose their efforts, adding the assassination of conservationists to their lengthy list of crimes.

In this project, we've sought to explore the prevalence of poaching in statistical terms to raise the public's awareness of the massive deaths these poachers bring about. In doing so, we've studied poaching rates in East Africa, South Africa, and India. Our findings show the historical scope of these poaching crimes and the pressing need to oppose them in the present.

The Poaching Toll on Two Continents

When we consider the relative rates of poaching deaths in these select countries, we find significant differences reflecting each nation's wildlife population. Kenya is home to roughly 38,000 elephants according to recent estimates, which may account for its astronomically high rates of elephant poaching. Whereas India and South Africa are home to far fewer elephants, each boasts a relatively large - and vulnerable - species of its own. India is home to thousands of leopards, while South Africa is home to many rhinos.

In part because of its biodiversity, India has higher cumulative poaching totals than either African nation studied. When we consider the geographical scale of each country (India is larger than Kenya and South Africa combined), the intensity of the poaching problem on the African continent becomes bracingly clear. More troubling still: Many African countries have contended with poaching troubles for years.

The Death Toll of the Endangered

While the population of various endangered species varies widely across Africa, the total number of animals killed since 2005 threatens the biodiversity of the entire continent. Indeed, between January 2005 and January 2017, nearly 2,000 elephants and roughly 6,300 rhinos had been slaughtered at the hands of poachers in South Africa and Kenya alone.

While this video demonstrates steadily mounting death tolls, specific intervals saw a bloody acceleration in poaching activity. 2008 saw more than a threefold increase in rhinoceros poaching deaths over the year before, while elephant killings surged nearly 150 percent. 2010 was a similarly active poaching period, with a 238 percent uptick in rhino killings over the year prior. Sadly, elephants have been victimized more often recently, with poaching fatalities increasing more than 100 percent in 2016.

Slaughter in South Africa

South Africa's poaching history is emblematic of the problem's potential to accelerate dramatically in just a few years. While rates of elephant poaching have remained roughly consistent since 1980, the precipitous rise in rhino poaching is a shocking testament to poachers' focused efforts to sell their horns abroad. Often used in Asian medicine, rhino horn is sold at rates between $15,000 and $30,000 a pound in Vietnam, the biggest hub for rhino horn export, and elsewhere, according to experts.

Many conservationists take heart in the recent decline in rhino poaching, which they attribute to an increased emphasis on enforcement. South African officials arrested 680 poachers and traffickers in 2016, which may correlate with a significant drop in rhino deaths that year. However, others are concerned about the country's choice to re-legalize trade in rhino horns in 2017, which many say will serve to incentivize poachers in the years to come.

Endangered in the East

East Africa - home to roughly a fifth of the continent's elephant population - has seen its gentle giants imperiled like virtually no other region in recent years. According to a recent International Union for Conservation of Nature report, East Africa's elephant population declined by nearly half between 2006 and 2015, with Tanzania seeing a reduction of more than 60 percent during that period. While not all of these deaths are directly attributed to poaching, the region is home to particularly ruthless criminal syndicates. Anti-poaching activist Wayne Lotter was killed in Tanzania in 2017 after years spent actively opposing the country's poachers.

Rhino poaching has also risen in East Africa, though to a lesser extent than in South Africa. Interestingly, poachers may actually be responding to government efforts to increase the legal stakes of their crimes. In 2013, prompted by a surge in rhino and elephant poaching in prior years, the Kenyan government instated severe jail terms for convicted poachers. Poaching statistics for both species have declined since.

A Frightening Future

If some nations have seen modest improvements in poaching figures, the future of threatened species remains unfortunately grim. While estimates suggest elephant poaching will remain relatively stable through 2030, the fate of rhinos seems direr. Indeed, our data suggest rhino poaching will increase by about 356 percent between 2015 and 2030.

That's a terrifying prospect for already critically endangered species. Indeed, various types of rhinos have faced existential threats dating back centuries, from colonial-era hunting activities to the "First Rhino War," a period of massive slaughter in the latter half of the 20th century. Accordingly, conservationists have termed the current period of rhino endangerment the "Second Rhino War," and fear today's poaching climate may finally cause the species' eradication.

The Battle for Survival

If these figures reveal anything, it's just how prevalent and problematic poaching remains in Africa and across the world. Though illegal hunters continue to imperil some of the Earth's most beloved creatures, their crimes can be prevented through action. For all those shocked by the evils of poaching, there's a productive way to register your outrage.

At the African Wildlife Foundation, we strive every day to defend the continent's most vulnerable animals and natural resources. Our mission is to ensure the survival of these precious species in a modern Africa so that these beautiful creatures can be a part of the region's future. To learn more about our work and how you can help in the fight against poaching, visit us today.

Methodology

To produce this project's findings, we utilized data from poachingstats.com, citing figures from 1980 through the latest year available. Unless otherwise noted, our numbers refer to poaching in East and South Africa. Our projections of future poaching figures were produced with the help of the forecasting tool from Tableau, a data analysis platform.

Fair Use Statement

If you want to aid in the battle against poaching by using these graphics and figures for noncommercial purposes, we welcome your support. We ask that you simply attribute the African Wildlife Foundation appropriately with a link to this page.

Sources

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Across the globe, poaching is roundly reviled. Even legally sanctioned hunting of species has prompted an international outcry in recent years. Few understand the true scale of the problem, which persists despite escalating enforcement efforts. In Africa alone, thousands of endangered animals die every year, killed by criminal syndicates eager to sell the spoils of their slaughter abroad.

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The International Consortium on Combating Wildlife Crime (ICCWC) is a partnership between CITES, INTERPOL, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the World Bank and the World Customs Organization (WCO). The ICCWC has had arguably the most success in tracking down wildlife trafficking criminals by using "state of the art globally mandated databases and secure communication channels". The ICCWC also offers authorities "the tools, services and technical support they need to effectively combat wildlife and forest crime". This collaboration has shown repeated success at helping parties in receiving advanced training to combat poaching and protect endangered species from those who would exploit them. The ICCWC has helped raise awareness about wildlife crime and worked with law enforcement to ensure criminals face justice.

https://cites.org/eng/prog/iccwc_new.php

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NRDC Report on How Poachers are Selling Wildlife as Captive-Bred

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NRDC Report on How Poachers are Selling Wildlife as Captive-Bred

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This article published by the National Resources Defense Council explains how poachers take advantage of a loophole within the CITES international treaty. The treaty categorizes wildlife based on their conservation status and how close they are to extinction; the treaty allows for "Appendix II animals... can be bought and sold across borders". This is because the writers of the treaty didn't think that captive-bred animals would directly affect the wild population. However, as the article explains poachers use this rule to their advantage by "falsely labeling wild-caught animals as captive-bred". This has resulted in several factory-like environments where endangered species are kept within terrible conditions and then sold as captive bred. The article explains that to combat this issue, CITES needs to amended to allow for more frequent examinations of captive breeding facilities.

https://www.nrdc.org/onearth/poachers-international-loophole-captive-breeding

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The Global Initiative to End Wildlife Crime's Proposal for a New Protocol Within UNTOC

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The Global Initiative to End Wildlife Crime's Proposal for a New Protocol Within UNTOC

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This proposal is for wildlife trafficking to become the fourth protocol of the United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC), "the main international instrument in the fight against transnational crime". The proposal calls for the criminalization of "intentional illicit trafficking of specimens of wild fauna and flora... parties to the Protocol would be agreeing to adopt legislation establishing as a criminal offence the illicit trafficking". This proposal would be beneficial because CITES lacks jurisdiction over domestic trade and many parties don't have domestic poaching laws. The proposed protocol also suggests increasing the exchange of information, enhancing border controls, and increased training while taking measures to discourage demand. This would provide a much needed support system for anti-poaching efforts and further create the necessary united front against wildlife trafficking.

https://endwildlifecrime.org/untoc-wildlife-protocol/

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Form and content of a possible Protocol on the illicit trafficking of wildlife

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International Union for Conservation of Nature's Community Outreach

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International Union for Conservation of Nature's Community Outreach

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The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an intergovernmental organization that promotes nature conservation and conducts extensive research on threatened species. This community outreach report explains their collaboration with the United Nations Environment Programme in an effort to increase awareness among the local populations that share an ecosystem with the endangered species. The report found that "involving local people is critical to successful conservation... current approaches to wildlife management often fail to take into account the needs and rights of local communities, which are fundamental to success". Increasing awareness at a young age when people are most impressionable is a valuable tool in fighting poaching because it makes them less likely to join a poaching syndicate in their teenage years. Local community outreach is a better alternative to the authoritarian "boots on the ground" approach that "emphasizes fences... guns and boots" and leads to human rights violations.

1. https://www.iucn.org/commissions/commission-environmental-economic-and-social-policy/our-work/specialist-group-sustainable-use-and-livelihoods-suli/resources-and-publications/wild-life-wild-livelihoods-involving
2. https://wedocs.unep.org/bitstream/handle/20.500.11822/22864/WLWL_Report_web.pdf

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SULi, the IUCN Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Office and IIED have worked together on this UNEP-sponsored report to review decades of experience on how unsustainable and illegal use and trade of wildlife can be effectively reduced through supporting and engaging local communities. This report proposes more action and stronger community voice on approaches to involve indigenous peoples and local communities in the fight against wildlife crime, including the illegal wildlife trade.

New research shows that involving local people is critical to successful conservation. There has long been good evidence of the effectiveness of well-implemented community-based approaches, but there has been a widespread failure to do this, often due to a lack of political will to adopt them.

Current approaches to wildlife management often fail to take into account the needs and rights of local communities, which are fundamental to success.

Top-down protectionist approaches ('boots on the ground'), which have emerged in response to the militarization of poaching, are ineffective, can result in human rights abuses and can backfire.

The report outlines eight action points to improve the community-based approach, ranging from better incentives and developing a better understanding of local customs and traditions, to involving local leaders in decision-making.

It further outlines the opportunities and constraints for communities to participate in the various key international policy forums that influence wildlife management, and takes a critical look at the increasingly militarized top-down approach to combat illegal wildlife trade.

French and Spanish versions are coming soon!

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Wild Life, Wild Livelihoods: involving communities in sustainable wildlife management and combating illegal wildlife trade

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SULi, the IUCN Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Office and IIED have worked together on this UNEP-sponsored report to review decades of experience on how unsustainable and illegal use and trade of wildlife can be effectively reduced through supporting and engaging local communities.

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CITES- The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora

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CITES- The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora

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CITES is the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, one of the oldest international treaties designed to protect wildlife. According to the treaty website, CITES has been in force since 1975 and currently has 183 parties. The treaty aims to prevent international trade from negatively affecting animals and plants. It regulates trade in participating members' countries and is credited for holding its members accountable through both mandatory data reporting and annual conferences. Since its inception it has greatly expanded to address growing issues such as environmental exploitation and poaching. This treaty has also helped create more communication between states about wildlife movement and conservation efforts. CITES also advocates for its members to adopt their own domestic policies and has formed several branch organizations to further combat poaching.

https://cites.org/eng/disc/text.php

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Widespread information about the endangered status of many prominent species, such as the tiger and elephants, might make the need for such a convention seem obvious. But at the time when the ideas for CITES were first formed, in the 1960s, international discussion of the regulation of wildlife trade for conservation purposes was something relatively new. With hindsight, the need for CITES is clear. Annually, international wildlife trade is estimated to be worth billions of dollars and to include hundreds of millions of plant and animal specimens. The trade is diverse, ranging from live animals and plants to a vast array of wildlife products derived from them, including food products, exotic leather goods, wooden musical instruments, timber, tourist curios and medicines. Levels of exploitation of some animal and plant species are high and the trade in them, together with other factors, such as habitat loss, is capable of heavily depleting their populations and even bringing some species close to extinction. Many wildlife species in trade are not endangered, but the existence of an agreement to ensure the sustainability of the trade is important in order to safeguard these resources for the future.

Because the trade in wild animals and plants crosses borders between countries, the effort to regulate it requires international cooperation to safeguard certain species from over-exploitation. CITES was conceived in the spirit of such cooperation. Today, it accords varying degrees of protection to more than 37,000 species of animals and plants, whether they are traded as live specimens, fur coats or dried herbs.

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Widespread information about the endangered status of many prominent species, such as the tiger and elephants, might make the need for such a convention seem obvious. But at the time when the ideas for CITES were first formed, in the 1960s, international discussion of the regulation of wildlife trade for conservation purposes was something relatively new.

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1973 Agreement on the Conservation of Polar Bears

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1973 Agreement on the Conservation of Polar Bears

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The 1973 Agreement on the Conservation of Polar Bears is an international treaty signed by the five countries with the highest polar bear populations: United States, Denmark, Canada, Norway and Russia (the USSR at the time the treaty went in force). This is one of the oldest and most successful wildlife treaties that directly addresses poaching. The treaty "prohibits unregulated sport hunting of polar bears... the five nations must take appropriate action to protect the ecosystems of polar bears". The treaty has directly caused a distinct decrease in commercially-based killings of polar bears and resulted in valuable research data shared between parties.

https://www.polarbearscanada.ca/en/legislation/international/1973-agreement-conservation-polar-bears

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U.S. Fish and Wildlife's International Affairs

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U.S. Fish and Wildlife's International Affairs

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This government website discusses how the international section of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Department strives to stop illegal wildlife trade. It describes how the illegal business is an unsustainable practice that is harming animal populations and violently affecting local communities. The page details different efforts by the United States in foreign countries and how foreign aid is being used to try to curtail the illegal trade. Recently, the international branch known as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Wildlife Without Borders helped "und a cooperative training and joint poaching investigation by the Kenya Wildlife Service and Royal Thai Police officials" that resulted in the seizure of multiple mass ivory shipments. Furthermore, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Department's Division of International Conservation "oversees the implementation of several international grant programs, including the Rhinoceros and Tiger Conservation Fund, the African Elephant Conservation Fund, and the Asian Elephant Conservation Fund". These grants help finance counter-poaching measures in the foreign regions being directly affected.

https://www.fws.gov/international/travel-and-trade/illegal-wildlife-trade.html

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Illegal wildlife trade is estimated to be a multibillion-dollar business involving the unlawful harvest of and trade in live animals and plants or parts and products derived from them. Wildlife is traded as skins, leather goods or souvenirs; as food or traditional medicine; as pets, and in many other forms. Illegal wildlife trade runs the gamut from illegal logging of protected forests to supply the demand for exotic woods, to the illegal fishing of endangered marine life for food, and the poaching of elephants to supply the demand for ivory.

Illegal wildlife trade is also often unsustainable, harming wild populations of animals and plants and pushing endangered species toward extinction. Endangered animals and plants are often the target of wildlife crime because of their rarity and increased economic value. Furthermore, illegal trade negatively impacts a country's natural resources and local communities that might otherwise benefit from tourism or legal, sustainable trade.

Thousands of wildlife species are threatened by illegal and unsustainable wildlife trade. For example, in recent months significant media attention has gone to the plight of the world's rhinoceros species, which are facing increased poaching as demand for their horns increases in Asia. In some parts of Asia, rhino horn is considered to be a powerful traditional medicine, used to treat a variety of ailments. While there is little scientific evidence to support these claims, the dramatic rise in poaching to supply this demand is pushing rhinos toward the brink of extinction.

CITES and Illegal Wildlife Trade

The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora ( CITES) has brought together 179 nations to combat the illegal and unsustainable wildlife trade through a uniform regulatory regime and increased coordination on a global scale. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service's (Service) Division of Management Authority and Division of Scientific Authority, as well as the Office of Law Enforcement, are primarily responsible for implementing and enforcing CITES in the United States.

Recently, CITES founded the International Consortium on Combatting Wildlife Crime (ICCWC), a collaborative effort between the CITES Secretariat, INTERPOL, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the World Bank and the World Customs Organization (WCO). ICCWC was formed to increase prosecution and punishment for caught smugglers and poachers as well as increase law enforcement in developing nations. Visit the CITES website to learn more about ICCWC.

Efforts to Stop Illegal Wildlife Trade

In response to the increasing level of illegal wildlife trade over the last several decades, the Service has developed the most advanced and robust wildlife law enforcement program in the world. Stationing inspectors at ports across the country and providing enforcement training around the world, the United States is an international leader in combatting wildlife crime. In addition to enforcement efforts, the Service has also worked to increase consumer awareness through outreach to travelers going abroad and consumers of exotic wildlife domestically. To learn more about the Service's efforts to combat illegal wildlife trade, visit the Service's Office of Law Enforcement.

The Service's Division of International Conservation (DIC) oversees the implementation of several international grant programs, including the Rhinoceros and Tiger Conservation Fund, the African Elephant Conservation Fund, and the Asian Elephant Conservation Fund. A portion of the grants issued through these funds go toward programs aimed at combatting wildlife crime.

DIC also funds several regional programs to directly address wildlife conservation efforts, including combatting wildlife crime. You can read more about a few of these efforts below.

Law Enforcement Training Enables Illegal Ivory Seizures in East Africa
Elephant poaching is increasing throughout Africa and the amount of illegal ivory shipments destined for markets in Southeast Asia has surged dramatically over the last few years. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Wildlife Without Borders - African Elephant Conservation Fund is working together with the FREELAND Foundation to fund a cooperative training and joint poaching investigation by the Kenya Wildlife Service and Royal Thai Police officials, accompanied by the Lusaka Agreement Task Force. As a result of this law enforcement training and investigation effort, several large shipments of ivory have been detected and seized at Kenya's Jomo Kenyatta Airport prior to leaving the country. This project has enabled the coordination of Kenyan, Tanzanian, and Thai law enforcement authorities to trace ivory shipments recently seized in Bangkok back to the country of origin to identify international smuggling routes.

Mobile Tiger Patrols Help Curb Wildlife Crime in Sumatra, Indonesia
In Bukit Barisan Selatan National Park and Bukit Balai Renjang Landscape, tiger populations have been significantly decreasing over the last several years due to severe poaching and habitat fragmentation. With the support of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's Wildlife Without Borders - Rhino Tiger Conservation Fund, Wildlife Conservation Society and their Wildlife Crime Unit (WCU) and Wildlife Response Unit (WRU) are conducting human-wildlife conflict patrols, wildlife crime investigations (including legal aid for the prosecution of illegal poachers), and tiger conservation education events to help protect this charismatic species. Between 2006 and 2008, the WCU generated 63 reports of illegal hunting, trading, smuggling or possession, which led 35 arrest or confiscation operations. Monitoring for illegal wildlife trade has been expanded to other sites outside Lampung Province in Sumatra, where WCU has been working for the last 6 years, to include Palembang in South Sumatra and Jakarta, the capital of Sumatra. Both are important exit points for wildlife smuggling and also Indonesia's two largest wildlife markets, including markets for wild-caught tigers and tiger parts. Together with TRAFFIC, the WCU team and the national police raided a factory and seized 14 tons of frozen pangolins, worth 2.7 million dollars, and arrested three suspects. This was the biggest wildlife trafficking law enforcement seizure in Indonesian history.

To learn more about DIC's regional programs, click here.

How You Can Stop Illegal Wildlife Trade

While a majority of illegal wildlife trade is happening on a commercial scale, sometimes tourists participate in the trade by unknowingly buying or traveling with illegal items, often bought back as souvenirs or gifts purchased abroad. To ensure that you are following the law when importing or exporting wildlife and wildlife products, visit our Travel and Trade section and our Branch of Permits page.

Also visit our How You Can Help page for tips on how you can reduce the illegal trade of endangered and threatened species.

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Illegal wildlife trade is estimated to be a multibillion-dollar business involving the unlawful harvest of and trade in live animals and plants or parts and products derived from them.

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This is a report first published by the United Nations in 2016 and updated in 2020 on data found about wildlife trafficking crimes in member states. It is an extensive report on what animals are directly being affected and what products these animals are being trafficked for; examples include perfume, furniture and  fashion. The research findings clearly show that the data for "CITES-related seizures" is strongly increasing, which means that while more poachers are being caught there are also more species being poached. The report also addresses the limitations of the CITES treaty, such as the lack of jurisdiction over domestic black markets and how the treaty "is limited to regulating international trade, so the illegal harvesting of wildlife, such as the poaching of protected species, does not fall within its scope if the product is not transported internationally".

https://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/data-and-analysis/wildlife.html

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United Nations : Office on Drugs and Crime

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The trafficking of wildlife is increasingly recognized as both a specialized area of organized crime and a significant threat to many plant and animal species. The second edition of the World Wildlife Crime Report takes stock of the present wildlife crime situation with a focus on illicit trafficking of specific protected species of wild fauna and flora, and provides a broad assessment of the nature and extent of the problem at the global level. It includes a quantitative market assessment and a series of in-depth illicit trade case studies: rosewood, ivory and rhino horn, pangolin scales, live reptiles, big cats and eels. In addition, value chains and illicit financial flows from the trade in ivory and rhino horn is presented.

If the 2016 World Wildlife Crime Report represented UNODC's first global assessment of the state of wildlife crime, the 2020 edition of this report represents a first assessment of trends. In several instances, these trends have been dramatic. The poaching of both elephants and rhinoceroses has consistently declined since 2011, as have the prices paid for tusks and horns. But the amount of pangolin scales seized has increased 10-fold in just five years, and new markets, such as the trafficking of European glass eels, have emerged in the wake of strengthened controls. For the first time, a consistent pattern of large shipments of unrelated wildlife products - elephant ivory and pangolin scales - has emerged. In addition, organized criminal groups in broker countries, neither the source nor the destination of the wildlife, have consolidated control of multiple markets. The 2020 World Wildlife Crime Report tracks all these trends and more.

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The trafficking of wildlife is increasingly recognized as both a specialized area of organized crime and a significant threat to many plant and animal species. The second edition of the World Wildlife Crime Report takes stock of the present wildlife crime situation with a focus on illicit trafficking of specific protected species of wild fauna and flora, and provides a broad assessment of the nature and extent of the problem at the global level.