I engaged myself in the discussions emerging out of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) at Doha this week to sniff something that I have been meaning to write about for a while — the growing impact of internet and new Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) on the conservation of wild fauna and flora. Participating countries recongnised the exploitation of these media by criminals and the need to find ways to tackle this.
How the law enforcement community can use the same media to turn the tables on criminals was the question most sought answers to. The Internet also connects legitimate traders of wildlife to tech-savvy consumers and so the biggest challenge is to find ways to help these consumers determine if the goods are legal and sustainably traded. Why, an elephant conservation and advocacy group keenly following the talks reported that the pachyderms had done fairly for themselves at Doha. They claim to have over 4000 fans of Facebook — an illustration of using new media to spread the word around!
What made for good news for Asian countries was an amended CITES resolution on the region’s big cats that called for comprehensive legislation and enforcement controls to regulate trade in tiger and other Asian Big Cats’ parts and derivatives. The resolution called for increased regional cooperation among tiger range states, improved reporting, establishment of a tiger trade database and introduction of innovative enforcement methods to curb such trade.
Indeed a step forward in times when scientists report that prioritisation based on demographic, genetic, and ecological considerations can ensure species recovery and retention of evolutionary flexibility in the face of ongoing global changes.
Attendee representatives from more than 100 governments, including most of the tiger range countries, sought funds to stop illegal trade in specimens of Asian big cat species. Governments and intergovernmental organisations, international aid agencies, and nongovernmental organisations should come forward to heed to this call.
Or who knows if there will be even ‘1411 left’, as a popular corporate tiger conservation campaign in India claims.