Responding to the COVID-19 Pandemic

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Responding to the COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic is spreading across the globe causing widespread physical, social, and economic disruption. This outbreak demonstrates that wildlife trade is not only a major threat to wildlife species and biodiversity, but also to global public health.

Learn About:

– COVID-19 and the Wildlife Trade

– How Born Free USA Fights Wildlife Trade

– Our COVID-19 Response

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COVID-19 and the Wildlife Trade

COVID-19 is an example of a zoonotic disease – an illness that can spread from animals to humans. This new strain of coronavirus is thought to have passed from animals to humans at an exotic animal market in Wuhan, China. Wildlife markets like the one in Wuhan exist across the globe and offer a variety of wild animals for sale both as living specimens and as carcasses. The animals trafficked to these markets include pangolin species, civets, snakes, bats, and baby crocodiles, among many others. The animals and their parts are consumed for food, as well as for traditional medicine.

The World Health Organization estimates that 60 percent of all human infectious diseases are zoonoses and around 75 percent of infectious diseases that have affected people over the past three decades originated from wild animals, including Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), Ebola, Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome (MERS), and HIV.

How Born Free USA Fights the Wildlife Trade

Over-exploitation of wildlife through international trade is of great concern to Born Free USA. Live animals, their body parts, and/or products made from them are shipped and sold across the world – for major profits. According to the Global Biodiversity Assessment published by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) in 2019, the decline of the natural world is “unprecedented in human history” with a million species at risk of extinction. The extraction of wild animals for the wildlife trade is a significant part of this decline and is identified as the second most important driver of biodiversity loss, behind changes in land and sea use.

The decline of the natural world is “unprecedented in human history” with a million species at risk of extinction.

Photo of wild animal parts from a market in Benin. — Illegal wildlife products found in a market during our threat assessment in Benin. Photo: Born Free USA.

We Fight Wildlife Trade through...

Enforcement Support

Born Free conducts trainings and workshops to educate authorities about wildlife trafficking issues in West and Central Africa. We train customs and enforcement officers, strengthen collaboration among authorities, and work to better understand and address the challenges faced by regional governments.

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Reports and Investigations

Born Free USA publishes reports and investigations to educate decision-makers and the public about wildlife trade and its impacts.

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Standing Up for Wildlife at International Conferences

To advocate for vulnerable species, Born Free participates in global-level conferences and meetings relevant to the protection of species heavily targeted by wildlife crime, such as those of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS). We advocate to secure stronger protection of key targeted species while supporting national authorities in the initiatives they lead to strengthen species protection and fight against wildlife crime.

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Raising Public Awareness

Support from the public is a vital component of the fight against wildlife crime. Born Free USA leads various initiatives to raise public awareness about the impact of wildlife trafficking, the species that are the most heavily affected by it, and the urgent need to enforce the laws protecting them.

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The Global Nature Recovery Investment Initiative

The COVID-19 pandemic is a brutal reminder that all living beings, including humans, share the same potential fate. Born Free launched The Global Nature Recovery Investment Initiative (GNRII) to bring about the changes needed to protect people and wildlife around the globe by encouraging international bodies and national governments to prioritize financial investment in nature recovery and protection.

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