ITS EDUCATION ASIA ARTICLE

CITES 50th

By Danny Harrington, MD ITS Education Asia

Fifty years ago, on 3 March the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) was signed to ensure that international trade in both wild animals and plants does not threaten the survival of those species. Ten years ago, the UN General Assembly chose the same day to declare World Wildlife Day. The observance of WWD is of course important to keep these issues in hand, but CITES is even more important as one of the world’s most powerful tools for wildlife conservation through that regulation of international trade – currently addressing over 36,000 species.

Since 1973, however, the human population has more than doubled from 3.9 billion people to 8 billion, and demand for natural resources as a source of food, fuel, medicine, housing, and clothing has soared as a result. This puts immense pressure on species who find themselves in competition with the world’s most ruthless consumer.

The combined effects of human activity and climate change mean that over a million wild species are threatened with extinction. Never has there been more need for effective wildlife conservation if we are to address the SDGs, attain the 2030 Agenda and of course, survive ourselves.