Every day should be world wildlife day. Photo: Reference.com
The United Nations has declared yesterday, March 3rd, World Wildlife Day. How should we celebrate? Should we have a funny animal video marathon? Take a trip to the zoo this weekend? Take your dog for an extra long and exciting walk? Those are great ideas, but not exactly what these world leaders have in mind. On world wildlife day, the UN wants us to be aware of the devastating effects of poaching, trafficking, and the illicit wildlife trade. Organized wildlife crime is a surging black market industry. It’s the most lucrative illegal activity following only drugs, guns, and human trafficking. And on world wildlife day the UN hopes to raise awareness of this issue and motivate our leaders to come up with effective solutions. With so few citizens aware of the expanse of this growing illicit market, consider the role your community could serve.
Although few Californians are aware of it, LAX is a hotbed for animal trafficking. It is strategically located, in criminal terms, to receive illicit animal goods coming from Latin America and heading to the southeast Asian nations where they are distributed. LAX processes more than 1.9 million tons of national and international air cargo a year–about 1,000 cargo flights daily–making it the sixth busiest airport in the world. There are approximately ten wildlife inspectors, a supervisor, and a dog monitoring all this traffic and doing their best to catch illegal wildlife trafficking activity. Talk about understaffed. Advocates for the health and integrity of diverse life on earth owe them a debt of gratitude. We also owe them a greater degree of awareness, support, and maybe even our creativity. With word spreading that the current administration will cut non-security federal spending and a lack of popular awareness that animal trafficking exacerbates global insecurity, things seem to be leaning in the favor of the traffickers. It’s up to us to turn the tide.
“Strict enforcement of laws is important, but so too is awareness,” said UN Secretary-General António Guterres. “As consumers, we have the power to demand that all wildlife products come from sustainable sources. I particularly appeal to young people to protect their inheritance by becoming informed and acting to protect wild animals and plants from the threat of extinction.”
I’m proud to be among Inertia writers drawing much-needed attention to how the totoaba market is driving the vaquita to extinction and recent crackdowns on the trafficking of shark fins. Just this week, law enforcement officers recovered 38 sea turtles from an illegal fishing vessel in Indonesia, six of them dead. Wildlife crime is booming and it’s not exactly clear what the federal government is going to be doing about it. While you’re probably not the criminal, you might be surprised at how much good you can do by being aware and supporting the international fight.
Be empowered to connect with the various forms of life that share planet earth with us. Be empowered to do what you can to help slow their extinction and revitalize their habitats. Be empowered to fight for their future against criminals that are willing to conduct illegal activities to make a buck off of the planet’s amazing biodiversity.
