Page 41 - Supplemento 2-2016 (ENG)

Tackling Environmental Crime throUgh standardized Methodologies

and trafficking in wildlife. This is a powerful expression of political determina-
tion to end the severe economic, social and environmental impacts of these
highly destructive crimes.

There are many reasons behind the illegal wildlife trade but today I want
to highlight those directly caused by a human beings. There are perhaps 3
human elements or traits that are driving illegal trade: greed; ignorance and
indifference.

Greed - the greed of transnational organized criminals who pursue profit
with no regard for people or wildlife. To effectively tackle this problem, these
individuals must feel the full force of the law - they must be arrested, prosecu-
ted, convicted, and jailed or adequately fined. This requires governments to
treat wildlife crime as a serious crime as per the UN Convention on TOC and
actively tackle corruption, something that is increasingly being recognized at
the global level. This is exemplified by recent statements by UNODC, which is
the custodian of UN CAC, and the CITES Secretariat highlighting the devasta-
ting impacts of corruption on the illegal wildlife trade.

Ignorance - not in a derogatory sense, but rather to describe the consumer
who is unaware of the true cost of their purchase of illegally traded wildlife
and its adverse effects on local people, communities and the economy and the
environment overall. Culturally appropriate awareness raising can help, and
civil society has a key role to play here.

Indifference - it can refer to the indifference towards wildlife crime,
towards livelihoods of local people or indifference of the general public. It is
possibly the hardest human trait to tackle and it is where leadership matters. An
enforcement officer will not take action if this is not backed by his hierarchy.
What political leaders say and do matters, and influences public opinion. They
need to continue to lead the change.

As you know, in recent years there has been a surge in illegal trade in wildlife
at the global level, and it is now well recognized that transnational organized
crime groups are often involved, particularly in high volume/value transactions.

Illegal trade in wildlife often includes a chain of criminality between the
source and the final destination. This sometimes stretches from forests and
rural villages, to large cities, across provincial and national borders, until the ille-

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