The Art Of Conservation

We recap the vicuna vs rhino horn trade debate from episode 6.National Geographic cut all staff writers – and no-one is happy about it.Rhino stockpiles were raided in South Africa. Can't say we didn't see this coming... And again it's an inside job. New York DEC puts confiscated ivory on display, but is it a good idea?Conservation struggles in UK and Scotland, illustrating again that the challenge is indeed global.GEF launches new fund that raises hope, but will the funds get to those who need it most?

The trade in the South American vicūna is often used as an example of how lifting trade bans can help people and animals alike, but is it a fair comparison for the rhino horn trade debate? Namibia is planning a mass dehorning. Is the government of that country bolstering rhino horn stockpiles ahead of their next effort to open trade? A recent study answers the question of what impact does dehorning have on rhino behavior.  Rhino poaching gang sentenced to terms ranging from 16-20 years.  Two documentaries to watch out for: Rhinoman follows the story of what it is like to be a ranger on the front lines, and Blood Lions is now broadly available. Watch them! A report on convergence intelligence from Earth League International makes for good reading. Homeland Security in the USA launches dedicated unit to combats the illegal wildlife trade.

Poaching kingpin arrested.A recent report highlights the dynamic nature of global rhino horn seizures, with interesting results. With COVID having little impact on the size and frequency of seizures, we ask, yet again, why are we not inspecting and accounting for stockpiled rhino horn?Poached rhino horn transport is changing. Transit routes are evolving but what is influencing this?Yet another article about the claimed values of trophy hunting ignores the consistent fight to deregulate these industries, rather than supporting regulations that would hold the industry accountable and measurable in their social and environmental claims.More than half of the world’s rhinos are now in private hands. But could this finally expedite much needed integration of interdisciplinary business models and break the monotony of current conservation arguments in generating desperately needed conservation revenues? We hope so.And… ever wondered about a rhino’s fart…? Wonder no more…

A break through in the rhino poaching crisis with an arrest in South Africa’s eastern cape province. What will it mean to poaching activity in the area?Do new game fences work to slow poaching? We question the recent investments in new security fences to protect rhino. A recent and seemingly bizarre series of events has seen a dramatic intervention with the new proposed changes to TOPS (Threatened Or Protected Species) regulations. What actually happened and what does it mean for conservation efforts in Southern Africa?Is it right for the state to financially support captive lion breeders as they close their businesses? We debate the recent move to incentivise lion breeders to down tools.South African hunting stats are in. We discuss what was killed, who killed it, and how much they paid to do so.UK adds ivory from walrus, hippo, killer whales, narwhals, and sperm whales to the list of banned ivory.And finally, the business that promised to bring back the woolly mammoth from extinction gains further momentum and investment. But should we really be bringing them back? 

Episode 2 of this season attracted a lot of interest and comment, we answer your questions in this episode:The Platinum Rhino auction fails to solicit a successful bidder – what’s next for Hume and his rhino? We give the updates.Rhino Horn trade is unlikely, but the current revenue models are also flawed – what are the challenges in innovating a new approach where renewables, carbon markets, ESG investments and the like are combined? Why is trade so challenging, surely we can flood the market? We discuss the challenges in opening the rhino horn trade and why we should be skeptical of trade while there are so many unanswered questions. How much does it cost to implement and run an anti-poaching unit? Are we over-investing in the militarization of conservation? We discuss the different approaches and the costs experienced in creating, implementing, and operating an APU.

Munu the blind black rhino finds a new home.The team contemplates the “region beta paradox” as a reason why we don’t see sufficient urgency and how this influences donor expectations in conservation circles. Julian Rademeyr’s latest report showcases a grim reality of corruption and its influence on wildlife crime around Kruger National Park. In the weeks after the release, alleged kingpin, Chief Clyde Mnisi, is assassinated and shortly thereafter his wife is gunned down in her home. We explore this decentralization of poaching as a result of the disruptions to syndicates in Kruger and what it means for law enforcement elsewhere. Poaching in South Africa’s eastern cape province is on the rise but why is this perhaps more concerning than other areas? Convergence Intelligence is showing signs of real impact in the illegal wildlife trade. A recent conference hosted by Prince William’s United for Wildlife, showcased some extraordinary successes in the growing partnerships between the private and public sector, and intelligence agencies. India’s conservation successes could yield further evidence in the value of community-based responses to poaching and human wildlife conflict. Should we be de-militarizing our response to wildlife protection?

With the world’s largest rhino breeding facility up for auction, the team discusses the potential outfall of this huge event.Love him or hate him, John Hume plays an important role in rhino conservation. His often brash commitment to opening rhino horn trade has no doubt contributed to the divisiveness in rhino conservation., but one thing that cannot be denied is  his success in breeding rhino on an enormous scale. With public opinion divided as ever, it is important to understand how we got to this position, why the prior attempts at soliciting investment failed, and what we should learn from this watershed moment in rhino conservation.It is a big topic and we welcome comment and questions to broaden the discussion. Send your questions or comments to info@artofconservation.com or on social media.

Minister Barbara Creecy, South Africa’s minister of the Department of Environment Forest and Fisheries, recently released the much-anticipated white paper that addresses the “One Welfare” commitment she made over a year ago. And it is a big step forward. We unpack the white paper and what it means for conservation efforts as well as issues of sentience and socio-economic transformation. Research suggests that Botswana’s reintroduction of trophy hunting has not worked in its promise to offer sustainable economic opportunity for communities. A recent shark killing contest is attracting growing public criticism – and rightly so! We share insight into the corrupt individuals behind this Florida event. Please sign the petition to end these abhorrent events and email your legislators here.Meanwhile on the USA west coast, law makers pass a bill that will radically reduce plastic waste. And a revision of school food schemes to include plant-based options will also go a long way in improving human and ecological health of that region. Some big takeaways from the UN Ocean Conference give us cause for celebration.Jane Goodall gets turned into a Barbie. And she’s over the moon! But could Attenborough be the next Ken?What is the meta-verse teaching us about real world conservation?The Congo Basin plays host to a new carbon credit, marketed by Gabon.A new docu-series illustrates how brands can play a critical role in communicating powerful conservation stories. We tip our caps to Hills Pet Nutrition and their work showcasing the K-9 units operating on the front lines of conservation in South Africa. 

Peter struggles with Covid, Simon can’t remember where he is, and Shannon holds down the fort.5 African countries sign the Hwange declaration - a commitment to pressure CITES to open trade in ivory for one fire sale. The concept is fundamentally flawed and as usual, this for the trade wrap their arguments up in poorly researched or blatantly inaccurate data - we explain why.Deforestation accelerates in Brazil. We unpack the empty promises made at COP26 in Glasgow last year.Should you be able to buy a puppy from a commercial breeder in the USA? Huame Society’s latest paper suggests what we already believe. You can help by singing the petition.

Rob Barber from Golden Africa Safaris in Botswana. Rob gives us updates on travel trends after COVID. Join Rob in the Okavango Delta - Go on a one-of-a-kind safari in Botswana June 9-17, 2022 with Golden Africa Safaris! Our listeners get 10% off with the discount code “SEF”. Green Century Funds are holding Home Depot accountable for where they source their plywood. But are Home Depot’s shareholders supporting this proposal?Are K9s effective in the illegal wildlife trade? What about dog bots? Kilo9Academy is not only training and placing anti-poaching dogs in the field, but they can also train your personal dog. Their co-founder, Christjan Visser, is an incredible trainer and ranger who needs your help. Please support Christian and help him get the surgery he desperately needs.Remember India, the “pet” tiger in Texas that got out a year ago? We follow up on what has happened to India. Where is he now and how is he doing?Is India an example of why the Big Cat Public Safety Act is so important to pass?How important is convergence  intelligence in the illegal wildlife trade, or any other illegal trade for that matter?

Simon joins us from the US through modern technology.Poachers tranquilize rhino to remove horn in Orang National Park in AssamDespite the poaching attempt in India, can you believe that the Indian Rhino numbers could actually be up?This year there was an Indian Rhino census—guess what the total was?Is it okay to protect animals even at the expense of the surrounding communities?Would community intelligence officers work in South Africa the way they work in India?We discuss the need to clone Dr. Jana Pretorius and Petronel Nieuwoudt (Care for Wild).Who is the Kering Group? Do you wear any of their fashion lines? Should they disclose the suffering inflicted on the animal skins featured in their lines? Are they doing enough? Use your power and send a message straight to the Kering Group hereCould donkeys go extinct in our lifetime? How popular is donkey hide collagen?What responsibilities do companies have these days? Is it profit before planet, or planet before profit?Are companies leading by example or letting their customers lead them?Could slaughter-free collagen be in our future?Some updates on the Big Cat Public Safety Act.

Show Notes:S2 E19 – The Weekly News 05-12-2022 with Shannon Elizabeth, Peter Borchert & a special guest interview with Dr. Louise de Waal/Blood LionsSimon is in the USA, so Shannon and Peter are in charge. Peter is updating Rhino Review, while Shannon helped to take care of a 6-day-old baby rhino over the weekend. Peter talks about the evolution of rhinos across 55 million years. Do you know what the largest land mammal ever to have lived was?A story in Science Magazine notes that a research team believes they have found pieces of the asteroid that killed off the dinosaurs. Do you know how many millions of years ago that was?  During an archeological dig in Luzon in the Philippines, fossils of an “Ice Age” rhinoceros were found. Can you guess what they discovered about these bones dating back 700,000 years ago?We welcome Dr. Louise de Waal, the Director and Campaign Manager of Blood Lions, who tells us all about their new campaign #CancelCaptivity, why it is so important, and how you can help.Blood Lions launches a new campaign to urge the ministers in South Africa to implement protections for captive bred lions. Sign the Blood Lions petition.Peer-Reviewed Paper: Welfare concern associated with captive lions and the implications for commercial lion farms in South Africa.Wild Choices will help you make ethical choices about captive wildlife tourism facilities in South Africa. Bats buzz like hornets! Can you guess why?Four black rhinos were translocated to a private reserve in South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal province. Was this really the best thing for these rhinos? What group was behind the big move?

Trophy hunter kills Botswana’s largest elephant, and claims he is a hero. With just $50k paid for the hunt, the arguments in defense of this senseless past time of killing for fun are getting thinner and thinner. Simon calls out trophy hunters to engage in discussion in one final bid to understand the psychology in taking pleasure in killing and suffering.Canada’s seal clubbing season opens. With just 3% of kills being attributed to traditional use by the indigenous Innuits, we debate the claimed value of the fur industry. Canada is not a shining example of environmental leadership! Rhino have been relocated back into Mozambique’s Zinave National park, but is it a good thing? We debate the value of relocations as a measure of protecting rhino.Should we endorse mining industry heavyweights investing in conservation, or is it greenwashing?Is doomism more damaging than denialism? GEF celebrates a commitment of US$600m from the USA – but is it enough?Shannon launches her documentary about Munu, the blind black rhino adopted by her foundation. With Munu as a shareholder in the documentary, Shannon wants to innovate how content funds conservation.

As we focus on the ongoing poaching stats, it is important to quantify the good work being done. Peter shares some successes in prosecutions across Africa to India for poaching related crimes. We must support the people on the front lines more than ever.Care For Wild Rhino Sanctuary takes in another orphan. If you can support them, please do so. They do extraordinary work.Indonesia’s challenges with palm oil production continues as suspicion grows as the government is accused of collusion and price fixing. Palm oil usage in bio-diesel is also cause for concern. But we shouldn’t let this discourage the potential of bio-diesel.What is the best use of conservation dollars? Habitat Protection? consumer education? legislation? A new report suggests the more effective measures to protect wildlife, orang-utans in particular. The science of kindness. A recent study suggests that by doing good, we are literally happier. E.O. Wilson’s Biophilia, supports this growing theory.Four Paws is doing amazing work, rescuing many destitute animals in war torn Ukraine. Are zoos really contributors to conservation? A recent report suggests what we believe - with a few exceptions, the answer is not as much as they’d like us to believe… Zoos breed constantly under the banner of conservation and it is largely accepted. But why not sanctuaries? Are we not perpetuating a double standard?

A new scholarship that supports young African women entering the conservation economy, opens its applications for the 2023 academic year this Friday, 1 April. Peter’s editorial focuses on how do we address the issues of education, but also the major shortcomings in the funding of global conservation. Could subsidy reform at a government level play a role? 7 members of the African Parks Network team murdered by Islamic extremists in Benin sends chilling warning to conservation communities all over the continent. Is this a taste of things to come?Hippo ivory trade is on the rise with much of the trade heading to the USA. What on earth are these teeth being used for and how does it affect the illegal trade in hippo parts ?IMF prices its first rhino bond t, in part, protect endangered black rhino in Southern Africa.HSI-Africa succeeds in obtaining a high court interdict to halt the awarding of the controversial trophy hunting quotas in South Africa. Why do we dehorn rhinos? Here’s a great video explaining why and how…Bizarrely, CITES approves the trade of intensively bred totoaba, an endangered species. What impact could this have on conservation efforts in Mexico?India conducts a wildlife survey and the results are encouraging.And finally, a Sumatran rhino calf is born in Way Kambas!

Massive sink holes are appearing on the seabed of the Beaufort Sea in the Arctic with  melting permafrost to blame. Is this a sign of accelerated climate change? New research from 2 American universities suggests that the Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Act of 1937, which was instituted to tax hunters for unregulated hunting, is the reason why conservation claims by trophy hunters are so exaggerated. More evidence suggests that South Africa’s recent trophy hunting quotas offers little economic value. But again, are this divisive conversations not distracting us from the urgent work we actually need to be looking at for real and sustainable transformational value on the African continent? United for Wildlife, from Prince William’s Royal Foundation, recently hosted a conference in Botswana, exploring the role financial and transport industries can play in curbing the illegal wildlife trade. Simon shares his experience. Thank you to our friends at Zambesia and MackAir for their very kind hospitality! And poaching in India evolves as Anthrax poisoning is identified in the killing of two elephant in that country.

South Africa’s minister of the Department of Fisheries, Forest and the Environment recently announced South Africa’s commitment to trophy hunting by publicising the trophy hunting quota for the year ahead. Included in the heady mix of commercialised blood lust are 150 elephant, 10 leopard and shockingly, 10 critically endangered black rhino. Given the continued poaching crisis, the incompleteness of the commitment to end captive lion breeding and intense rhino breeding, the ministry seems to be backtracking, and we are suitably confused at the mixed messaging, the inconsistency in application of science, ethic and the inaccurate economic numbers used in the justification of these hunts. Peter and Simon take a deep look into the rationale behind these quotas and hope that the minister will too.The quotas are seemingly in stark contrast to the “One Welfare” policy adopted by Minister Barbara Creecy, and further evidence suggests that this allocation, almost exclusively for foreign white trophy hunters from America, is likely to do very little for conservation, reputation of the country and importantly, to promote authentic transformation in a sector that offers near zero representation of gender or racial transformation. 

No discussion about the state of our planet, most notably our oceans, is complete without the inclusion of Her Deepness, Dr Sylvia Earle. For more than half a century Sylvia has been one of the loudest and most articulate voices of reason and science in the pursuit to not only protect and correct the state of the ocean, but also in inspiring others to do the same.In this episode, Simon and Sylvia discuss her latest book, a collaboration with the National Geographic Society entitled “Ocean, A Global Odyssey”. The conversation also explores the great “Anthropause”, the state of our oceans, the advancement of women in ocean conservation, the power of conscious consumerism, what we can learn from indigenous communities - and what we can teach them, and why there is cause for great optimism. Sylvia’s Mission Blue organization remains on the up and is truly worth supporting, especially the identifying and protecting of the world’s Hope Spots.

Rob Barber from Golden Africa Safaris joins us in studio as we discuss our reaction to a poorly penned article that argues for trophy hunting as a suggested force for conservation. Debate rages as we explore this contentious issue. Is the value of trophy hunting overstated? Are local communities truly engaged with? What drive trophy hunting as conservation? Simon points out that arguing that anti hunters are the emotional ones, misses the point – are trophy hunters the overly emotional ones after all…? We think so and explain why… Rob explains his deep love and affection for the potential role of anthropology in tourism, specifically in Botswana. But how do we honor first nation people in tourism and conservation? Golden Africa Safaris have perhaps got it right…Jim Jeffries explains the hypocrisy and classism associated with trophy hunting. Crass, but he makes a good point.

The Anthropocene. What are the real implications and how quickly is it all happening? Does Leonardo di Caprio’s latest film, Don’t Look Up hit the mark?Is  poverty being reversed?Are our political  and economic systems fit for purpose to reverse the damage big business has caused on the planet?  If there were no conservation or environmental charities in the world, where would be?  Some big questions unpacked on this week’s show…