Annual Review 2012 - (Page 14)

Overview Kill the traDe In August 2012, we launched our global conservation campaign against the illegal wildlife trade under the banner “kill the trade” The world’s wildlife is in crisis. Poaching has escalated dramatically, mainly to meet rising consumer demand in Asia, jeopardizing decades of conservation work. Illegal wildlife trade is now the greatest threat to many of WWF’s flagship species: • Rhino poaching in South Africa has risen more than 4,000 per cent since 2007. • Tens of thousands of elephants are killed each year for their ivory. • Only 3,200 tigers remain in the wild, yet poaching continues. >4000% inCrease in rhino poaChing in south afriCa, 2007-2012 And this deadly trade doesn’t just affect wildlife. With an estimated global value of around US$19 billion (including fish and timber), it’s one of the world’s most lucrative criminal activities. Illegal wildlife trade has ties to organized crime, including illicit arms, drugs, terrorism, human trafficking, corruption and money laundering. It destabilizes societies and funds violent conflicts. It kills people as well as animals. Yet illegal wildlife trade isn’t given the priority it deserves. Laws exist to prevent trade in endangered species, but they’re all too easily flouted. As long as governments lack the will to take action, wildlife criminals will continue to profit as species and societies suffer. Our campaign against the illegal wildlife trade aims to change this – fast. Along with our partner TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network, we’re calling for effective deterrents against poaching, smuggling and illegal sales, and prominent efforts to reduce demand for endangered species products. By raising public outcry, we can spur governments and international institutions to treat illegal wildlife trade like the serious crime it is. By July 2013, we want: • Heads of state of key countries where threatened animals are being killed or consumed to make public declarations of action to improve enforcement, increase prosecution rates, reduce demand and reform legislation; • Influential governments to state their own commitments to treating illegal wildlife trade as a serious crime, and hold other governments to account. PLAY VIDEO This year has already brought encouraging progress. The UN recognized wildlife trafficking as a form of transnational organized crime and a threat to the rule of law. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton emphasized that it was a major foreign policy and security issue and called for a “concerted global response”. Gabon publically burned its ivory stockpile and announced a policy of zero tolerance for wildlife crime. Russia closed legal loopholes that had allowed tiger poachers to escape with small fines. And we recognized the achievements of anti-wildlife crime activist Ofir Drori, whose tireless efforts have resulted in hundreds of arrests and prosecutions of wildlife criminals across West and Central Africa, by awarding him our top honour, the WWF Duke of Edinburgh Conservation Medal. We know we face a huge challenge. But we believe we can meet it. WWF-INT Annual Review 2012 page 14

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Annual Review 2012

Annual Review 2012
Contents
Foreword from Yolanda Kakabadse
A message from Jim Leape
Campaigning
Kill the trade
Saving special places
Harmony with nature
Public sector partnerships
Corporate partnerships
Our donors
WWF International accounts 2012
WWF International directors
WWF International board of trustees 2012
The WWF Network

Annual Review 2012