It has been a very busy year at the Wildlife Justice Commission! During the past 12 months, we have extended our outreach and the scope of our investigations, strengthened our partnerships with law enforcement agencies and key stakeholders and brought our message forward to governments and international bodies to urge them to make the fight against wildlife crime a priority.
Your support and help has been crucial to achieving so many wins!
The following short video shows some of this year’s highlights that you have made possible. Of course, due to the nature of our work, this is only a partial snapshot of what we have achieved.
All our efforts are focused on tracking the criminal networks and delivering the most up-to-date data and evidence to assist law enforcement and decision makers on their work to effectively tackle transnational organised wildlife crime.
This year, our undercover investigations have facilitated the arrest of 29 high level traffickers and the dismantling of 5 criminal networks operating across regions and continents. They are supported by our Intelligence Development Unit, which identifies emerging trends in the routes being used to smuggle ivory, pangolin scales, tiger parts and rhino horns as well as endangered live animals such as reptiles and baby primates. The work of our wildlife crime analysts, the largest team of its kind in the world, provides a crucial insight into the organisation of criminal networks, mapping the transnational supply chains and identifying how the systematic corruption of officials enables their criminal business.
During this year, we have strengthened our political work, urging governments to act against wildlife crime at the first Regional Illegal Wildlife Trade Conference in Lima (Peru), the International Seminar on Judicial Protection and Biodiversity (China) and at different conferences, seminars and convenings at UN level. We have also contributed to enhance the capacity of law enforcement agencies by delivering trainings and started new partnerships and enforced existing ones with the authorities of Vietnam, Malaysia, India, Mozambique and Lao PDR.
2020 will bring even bigger challenges but we know we can do more with your support!