World Wildlife Fund Sustainability Works

To the business community: pay attention to this next statistic because it has critical ramifications for your company and livelihood.

According to WWF's latest Living Planet Report, we’ve seen a 73% decline in the average size of wildlife populations since 1970.

Sad, right? But what does wildlife have to do with you? You may be thinking that this is a problem for conservationists and scientists—fewer fish in Brazil won’t make a difference to your company one way or another. I’m sorry to tell you this, but that couldn’t be more wrong.

Every two years, WWF releases a state-of-the-planet report chronicling the health of our natural world, the drivers of biodiversity loss, and solutions. That shocking statistic—an average 73% decline in wildlife populations—is the canary in the coal mine. Biodiversity loss is inextricably linked with other aspects of planetary health, including our climate and availability of natural resources. In short, this is not just about animals; this is a human problem, and a problem for business. Take it as a warning sign about our planet’s ability to support life and provide the resources on which we depend. This is a red flag so big and bright you could see it from outer space.

Sharks are among the most majestic top predator species. They have outlived the dinosaurs and many other forms of life currently on earth, with fossil records dating back 400 million years. Our oceans are home to more than 500 different shark species worldwide, and they play an important role in marine ecosystems. Sharks are critical to maintaining the delicate balance of marine life and can help our oceans become more resilient in facing climate change.

However, these predators are in danger. Shark populations around the world are in decline due to overfishing, the demand for shark fins, and habitat loss. Since they reproduce so slowly, sharks cannot keep up with the rate at which they are caught. That is why WWF has made restoring shark populations a top conservation priority.

Recently, WWF partnered with Warner Bros. Discovery to raise awareness about the dangers facing these iconic ocean species. During their week of exclusive shark-focused TV programming, “Shark Week,” Warner Bros. Discovery helped raise awareness and save sharks globally by helping to protect critical ecosystems, including pupping and nursery habitats for baby hammerheads.

For anyone who has witnessed first-hand a large tusker elephant in its natural habitat, you know just how awe-inspiring this moment can be. We have both had the privilege of seeing these amazing creatures up close and personal in African game reserves. Unfortunately, the experience also serves as a reminder of just how rare this opportunity is becoming.

Live animals and products made from hundreds of different species like elephants, pangolins, and tigers are in demand around the world for uses ranging from ornaments and jewelry to alleged medicinal cures. The UN estimates that this illegal trade in wildlife has an annual value of over 20 billion USD and is one of the top five illicit markets in the world.

And like everything else, this trade has moved online.

WWF researchers can find endangered species products as well as live, exotic pets like primates, cheetah cubs, and threatened parrots for sale online in just seconds. Many of these are protected and illegal to trade, having been smuggled from the most remote corners of the world in horrible conditions.

But just as technology can enable such nefarious purposes, it can also serve as a tool that allows us to explore the world around us and help to protect it. Nowadays, anyone can have their own awe-inspiring moment from the comforts of their living room through tech innovations like virtual reality, transporting them directly to the African savanna. You can even help scientists sort through and label wildlife images to advance conservation. The proliferation of AI, in particular, has emerged as a game-changer. It is seemingly everywhere, and, if you believe the hype, it can do anything. One area that interests us is deploying AI to help save nature by identifying prohibited wildlife sales hidden across billions of social media posts.

It is no secret that the planet needs our help. Worldwide, species and their habitats are in jeopardy due to the effects of climate change. WWF’s Living Planet Report indicates that if we don’t address rising temperatures, climate change is likely to become the dominant cause of biodiversity loss in the coming decades. Thankfully, WWF, with the help of communities, governments, and companies, is working to better understand the link between climate change and biodiversity – to implement critical conservation programs.

Since 2015, WWF has partnered with Humble Bundle, a digital content marketplace that sells bundles of video games, ebooks, and software, with an added feature of donating a portion of proceeds to charity. Since Humble launched, they have raised over $258 million for thousands of charities, and over the course of our partnership, they’ve raised over $1 million for WWF.

In 2023, the Humble community raised over $75,000 to support WWF’s Shellbank project, a new database of turtle DNA that helps us trace, track and protect marine turtles from the illegal wildlife trade.

One of America’s most important and endangered rivers, the Rio Grande/Rio Bravo is home to more mammal species than Yellowstone National Park, more reptile species than the Sonoran Desert, more bird species than the Florida Everglades, and nearly 50% of all fish species found nowhere else in the world. This ecological treasure is teeming with biodiversity, but it is threatened by water scarcity – and without intervention, it may not be able to continue to support the millions of people and wildlife that rely on it.

That is why WWF is partnering with Finish to help protect and replenish the Rio Grande/Rio Bravo. Through this partnership, Finish is supporting WWF’s conservation work to help replenish the river alongside local organizations. Finish is also building awareness about the importance of water conservation by encouraging consumers to adopt simple, water-friendly habits in their homes, such as skipping the rinse when loading the dishwasher.

Among popular dance-off videos, viral memes, and virtual shopping carts, lies a complex web of illegal activity to buy, sell, and smuggle protected wildlife globally. Online platforms are now the dominant market for the trafficking of live wildlife for exotic pets and wildlife products, the second most significant threat to endangered species after habitat loss. World Wildlife Fund (WWF) was involved in two key events leading up to World Wildlife Day that highlighted the threats and solutions that can expose and deter organized crime networks trafficking wildlife online.

In celebration of the newest film in the action-comedy franchise, Kung Fu Panda 4, WWF has teamed up with DreamWorks Animation to raise awareness about the plight of wildlife. The film features animated versions of real animals like giant pandas, snow leopards, red pandas, and pangolins – all species that play a critical role in keeping ecosystems healthy.

Tracking, vaccinating, and returning a black-footed ferret to its burrow in complete darkness is no easy task. But for WWF’s Black-footed Ferret Restoration Manager Kristy Bly, it’s all in a night’s work. For over 20 years, Kristy has teamed up with numerous federal, Tribal, state, and private entities to recover and protect black-footed ferrets.

Black-footed ferrets – one of North America’s most endangered mammals – can only survive within the Great Plains’ prairie dog colonies. Currently there are about 390 ferrets in the wild, but they face mounting danger from habitat loss and sylvatic plague, a non-native disease that affects both ferrets and prairie dogs, their main source of prey. Ferrets not only rely on prairie dogs for food, but also use their burrows for shelter and raising young. Sylvatic plague, a fast-spreading bacterial disease, is threatening both species, making the need for vaccination and protection programs imperative.

Monitoring and protecting ferrets from plague is complex, tedious work. Because ferrets are elusive and nocturnal, scientists use high-intensity spotlights mounted to field trucks and advanced surveillance equipment like thermal cameras to locate them. Much of the field equipment requires battery power from field trucks that must remain noisily idling to charge the equipment, which often disrupts ferret behavior. The vet trailer, where ferrets receive sylvatic plague vaccinations, also runs on propane gas and loud gas-powered generators.

In the lead-up to Earth Day on April 22, WWF is celebrating Monarch Week to call attention to the dramatic decline of the migratory monarch butterfly population. The week-long campaign encourages millions of Americans to help stem the decline of the charismatic species by planting critical milkweed habitat needed along its annual migration route and supporting WWF’s global conservation efforts.

This year WWF is also partnering with world-renowned Chef José Andrés and his Washington, DC-based restaurant Oyamel. From April 17-23, Jose and WWF will be connecting with social media followers and restaurant patrons about the need to save the migratory monarch butterfly. Digital and in-restaurant materials will highlight the plight of the monarch butterfly, WWF’s work to conserve the species, and invite people to take action.

Today we commemorate not only World Wildlife Day, but also the 50^th anniversary of CITES, the global treaty regulating the trade in wildlife species. A lot has changed in the last half-century: for example, the original signatories to CITES could never have imagined a future in which tiger cubs appear for sale on social media feeds. This is just one of the many ways in which changing technology has created new challenges for those of us striving to disrupt and ultimately end the illegal wildlife trade.

A simple search of social media sites illustrates the volume of wildlife for sale online, both legal and illegal. In just three seconds, and with only one search term, I was able to find elephant ivory for sale on social media. A jump into one hashtag will reveal available listings for various species and products, such as live reptiles, songbirds, primates, tiger cubs and claws, pangolin scales, rhino horns, and shark fins.