The illegal wildlife trade threatens biodiversity and security worldwide. Criminal networks pocket billions of dollars in illicit profits from stripping the world bare of endangered species and corrupting politicians and public officials in the process.
Yet there is very little empirical evidence on the role of both ordinary citizens and criminal networks in the illegal wildlife trade. Our research aims to fill this gap.
Can social norm and behaviour change approaches help to reduce corruption related to illegal wildlife trade (IWT)?
Very possibly. SNBC initiatives have been shown to help combat diverse corruption problems, although for those related to IWT and other areas of conservation and natural resource management, the evidence for doing so is sparse.
In February 2020, Uganda made a high-level political commitment to work with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and Eastern and Southern Africa Anti-Money Laundering Group (ESAAMLG) to strengthen the effectiveness of its anti-money laundering (AML) regime. Among other commitments, Uganda undertook to demonstrate that law enforcement agencies and judicial authorities apply the money laundering offence consistent with the identified risks.
Where are the weakest links in the illegal wildlife trade enforcement chain? Lessons from corruption risk assessments with agencies in three countries is a Practice Note developed for the Targeting Natural Resource Corruption (TNRC) project. It:
This Problem Analysis is a review of the efficacy and opportunities for using social norm and behaviour change (SNBC) approaches to combat illegal wildlife trade (IWT) and other natural resource-related corruption.
What role could tax investigations play in detecting, investigating and prosecuting cases of illegal wildlife trade? Potentially a large one, with the right coordination and capacity.
The article analyses drivers and determinants of illicit wildlife trade (IWT), targeting those factors that support the participation of individuals in poaching and transportation of wildlife goods.
The paper investigates the role of criminal networks in fostering illegal wildlife trade (IWT), and how these relational structures interact with transnational organized crime. The paper frames these topics within the debate around the opportunistic or organized nature of IWT. The aim is to understand how chaotic behaviors can transform into an ordered and organized strategy.
This collection of insights on corruption, the environment and illicit trade emerges from the monthly Corrupting the Environment webinar series between December 2020 and August 2021.
Behaviour change interventions aimed at reducing the social acceptability of wildlife trafficking are an important part of efforts to prevent wildlife crime. But how can practitioners craft messages that will be effective in changing attitudes and behaviours?
Our latest policy brief aims to support policymakers and practitioners seeking to improve conservation outcomes through behaviour change interventions.