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TRAFFIC (Trade Records Analysis of Flora and Fauna in Commerce), also known as the Wildlife Trade Monitoring Network, is a global
non-governmental organization A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control, though it may get a significant percentage of its funding from government or corporate sources. NGOs often focus ...
monitoring the trade in wild plants and animals. TRAFFIC focuses on preserving biodiversity and sustainable legal wildlife trade while working against unsustainable illegal
wildlife Wildlife refers to domestication, undomesticated animals and uncultivated plant species which can exist in their natural habitat, but has come to include all organisms that grow or live wilderness, wild in an area without being species, introdu ...
trade. It was originally created in 1976 as a specialist group of the Species Survival Commission of the
International Union for Conservation of Nature The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the stat ...
(IUCN) and evolved into a strategic alliance of the
World Wide Fund for Nature The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) is a Swiss-based international non-governmental organization founded in 1961 that works in the field of wilderness preservation and the reduction of human impact on the environment. It was formerly named th ...
(WWF) and the IUCN.


History


1990s

TRAFFIC established 13 more offices worldwide in Europe (1990), East/Southern Africa (1991), and East Asia (1994). The organization focused on trade issues including
tiger The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is a large Felidae, cat and a member of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Asia. It has a powerful, muscular body with a large head and paws, a long tail and orange fur with black, mostly vertical stripes. It is ...
,
agarwood Agarwood, aloeswood, eaglewood, gharuwood or the Wood of Gods, commonly referred to as oud or oudh (from , ), is a fragrant, dark and resinous wood used in incense, perfume, and small Woodworking, hand carvings. It forms in the heartwood of ...
, and rhino, leading to the establishment of The Bad Ivory Database System (BIDS), the foundation for the ETIS (Elephant Trade Information System). TRAFFIC's first major initiative in Africa investigated the decline of the black rhino, which was facing serious threats from
poaching Poaching is the illegal hunting or capturing of wild animals, usually associated with land use rights. Poaching was once performed by impoverished peasants for subsistence purposes and to supplement meager diets. It was set against the huntin ...
and continued horn trafficking. In an effort to track all rhino horn in circulation, TRAFFIC established the Rhino Horn and Product Database. The database provided a valuable source of information for government and private sources to regulate
rhino horn A rhinoceros ( ; ; ; : rhinoceros or rhinoceroses), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates (perissodactyls) in the family Rhinocerotidae; it can also re ...
trade and has since been expanded to include data from 54 countries.


2000s

TRAFFIC expanded into what is now referred to the "green stream," an effort to promote sustainable wildlife trade rather than focusing only on unsustainable trade. In 2007, TRAFFIC, the WWF,
IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...
, and BfN launched the International Standard for Sustainable Wild Collection of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (ISSC-MAP) for sustainable wild collection of medicinal and aromatic plants.


2010s

TRAFFIC began to incorporate more social and economic responsibility into its work, empowering communities whilst promoting sustainable wildlife trade. In 2011 a project was launched with indigenous women in the Amazon to promote sustainable trade and provide alternative sources of income to the unsustainable harvest of bushmeat. A partnership was established between TRAFFIC, the Association of the Waorani Women of the Ecuadorian Amazon, and the chocolate company WAO Chocolate that won a
UNDP The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is a United Nations agency tasked with helping countries eliminate poverty and achieve sustainable economic growth and human development. The UNDP emphasizes on developing local capacity towar ...
award in June 2014. Post 2010, TRAFFIC began to embrace the concept of making wildlife trade sustainable through behavioral change. In 2014, TRAFFIC helped launch the Chi Initiative in Vietnam, one of the biggest consumers of rhino horn products, to preserve declining rhino populations.


Achievements


Bad Ivory Database (BIDS) and Elephant Trade Information System (ETIS), 1992

The Elephant Trade Information system (ETIS) is an information system that tracks illegal trade in ivory and other elephant products. Managed by TRAFFIC on behalf of
CITES CITES (shorter acronym for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, also known as the Washington Convention) is a multilateral treaty to protect endangered plants and animals from the threats of inte ...
, it contained nearly 20,000 records from around 100 countries by 2014. ETIS originated from TRAFFIC's BIDS, set up in 1992 to track law enforcement records from ivory seizures or confiscations around the world beginning in 1989.


EU-TWIX, 2005

TRAFFIC, the Belgian Federal Police, Belgian Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora Management Authority (CITES MA), and Belgian Customs set up and maintain a wildlife database and information exchange platform known as the EU Trade in Wildlife Information Exchange (EU-TWIX). Operational by 2005, it centralizes data on seizures submitted by EU enforcement agencies, by 2010 holding over 31,000 seizure records and having an active membership of over 500 law enforcement officers from all EU member states.


Current programs since 2017

TRAFFIC implemented the
USAID The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is an agency of the United States government that has been responsible for administering civilian United States foreign aid, foreign aid and development assistance. Established in 19 ...
funded Wildlife-TRAPS project that operates in Africa and Asia to combat illegal trade between the two continents. TRAFFIC provided training modules through the ROUTES Partnership.


Wildlife regulations


Drafting EU wildlife regulations

In 1992, TRAFFIC published "The wild plant trade in Europe: Results of a survey of European nurseries", a major study on plant trade that recommended harmonizing legislation within the EU. TRAFFIC used the study to initiate a project with WWF the following year to work on improving EU wildlife trade regulations, with the new regulations taking effect in 1997.


UN Resolution on Protecting Wildlife

In 2012, TRAFFIC and the WWF launched a joint global campaign encouraging governments to combat illegal wildlife trade and reduce demand for illicit products from endangered species. The campaign's momentum led to the unprecedented success of the first UN resolution on wildlife crime in 2015.


Standard for Sustainable Wild Collection of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (ISSC-MAP), 2007

Biodiversity around the globe is rapidly declining due to
overexploitation Overexploitation, also called overharvesting or ecological overshoot, refers to harvesting a renewable resource to the point of diminishing returns. Continued overexploitation can lead to the destruction of the resource, as it will be unable to ...
, habitat loss, and other threats. Since prehistoric times, the majority of the human population has relied on between 50,000 and 70,000 wild plants for
traditional medicine Traditional medicine (also known as indigenous medicine or folk medicine) refers to the knowledge, skills, and practices rooted in the cultural beliefs of various societies, especially Indigenous groups, used for maintaining health and treatin ...
. Today, most medicinal plants are still collected from the wild rather than captive grown, contributing to the crisis. WHO (
World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a list of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations which coordinates responses to international public health issues and emergencies. It is headquartered in Gen ...
), WWF,
IUCN The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natural resources. Founded in 1948, IUCN has become the global authority on the status ...
, and TRAFFIC all worked together to create an international wild plant collection standard for governments and businesses worldwide.


Bushmeat, 2000

TRAFFIC drew attention to the unsustainable use of
bushmeat Bushmeat is meat from wildlife species that are Hunting, hunted for human consumption. Bushmeat represents a primary source of animal protein and a cash-earning commodity in poor and rural communities of humid tropical forest regions of the worl ...
in its 2000 study "Food For Thought: the utilization of wild meat in eastern and southern Africa". Its findings, including the fact that the previously taboo species of zebra was being increasingly harvested, led to widespread publicity, including an IUCN report.


See also


References


External links

* {{Authority control Organizations established in 1976 Animal charities based in the United Kingdom Organisations based in Cambridge Nature conservation organisations based in the United Kingdom