WARN-funded programme Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia is a Southeast Asian country where WARN's planned work centres on the snare crisis in the Lower Mekong forests — funding de-snaring patrols, providing…
- Sun bear
- Asian elephant
- Sunda pangolin
Directory · Wildlife trade and trafficking
Organisations Working Against Wildlife Trafficking
The main organisations working on wildlife trafficking include TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network run as a strategic alliance of WWF and IUCN, and the Wildlife Conservation Society. Their work is monitoring, enforcement support and demand reduction rather than direct animal rescue — the illegal wildlife trade is estimated to be worth up to USD 23 billion a year.
How this list was assembled
Organisations verified before listing and selected for sustained work on the illegal wildlife trade at international scale. Not a ranking, not an endorsement, and not exhaustive — this facet is newer than the street dog one and will grow as further organisations are verified.
Our own interest: WARN funds the programmes marked “WARN-funded programme” below. We are not an impartial judge of those, and this page is not a ranking.
Wildlife trafficking is not primarily an animal rescue problem, which is why the organisations working on it look different from the ones running shelters. It is an organised crime problem with an enforcement gap, and the leverage sits in monitoring trade routes, supporting prosecutions and reducing the demand that funds the trade.
That means the most effective organisations in this space often never handle an animal. TRAFFIC produces the trade analysis that enforcement agencies act on. Others fund the rangers, the sniffer dogs and the court cases.
Rescue matters at the end of that chain — confiscated animals need somewhere to go — and it is where WARN's own funding sits.
7 organisations
WARN-funded programme Colombia
Colombia
Colombia is a South American country at the top of global biodiversity rankings; WARN's planned work focuses on parrot and macaw trafficking interdiction and…
- Scarlet macaw
- Spectacled (Andean) bear
- Jaguar
WARN-funded programme Malaysia
Malaysia
Malaysia is a Southeast Asian range state for Bornean orangutans (Sabah), sun bears, Sunda pangolins, clouded leopards and the Malayan tiger; it is a top-tier transit…
- Bornean orangutan
- Sun bear
- Sunda pangolin
WARN-funded programme Peru
Peru
Peru is a South American Amazon basin country where WARN's planned work centres on primate and macaw rescue from the illegal pet trade, sanctuary support in Madre de…
- Scarlet macaw
- Spectacled (Andean) bear
- Capuchin monkey (multiple species)
WARN-funded programme Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam is a Southeast Asian country where WARN's planned work focuses on three connected welfare problems: ending the moon-bear bile-farming industry in partnership…
- Moon bear (Asiatic black bear)
- Sun bear
- Sunda pangolin
Independent organisation United Kingdom, operating internationally
TRAFFIC
The wildlife trade monitoring network, a strategic alliance of WWF and IUCN. TRAFFIC investigates and analyses wildlife trade trends, supports government enforcement action and works on consumer demand reduction.
- Wildlife trade monitoring
- Enforcement support
- Demand reduction
Independent organisation United States, operating internationally
Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS)
A conservation organisation working across field sites worldwide, including on wildlife crime and trafficking alongside TRAFFIC, BirdLife International and Fauna & Flora International.
- Field conservation
- Wildlife crime
- Protected areas
Listing is not endorsement. WARN has no relationship with the independent organisations above, funds none of them, does not inspect them and receives nothing for listing them. They are here because someone asking this question needs real names, and WARN is not the only answer to it.
Organisations Working Against Wildlife Trafficking: frequently asked questions
Which charities work against wildlife trafficking?
TRAFFIC is the specialist wildlife trade monitoring network, operating as a strategic alliance of WWF and IUCN. The Wildlife Conservation Society works on wildlife crime alongside TRAFFIC, BirdLife International and Fauna & Flora International. WARN funds rescue and rehabilitation for confiscated animals at the receiving end of the trade.
How big is the illegal wildlife trade?
Estimated at up to USD 23 billion a year, which places it among the most profitable criminal activities worldwide. Almost every country plays some role in it, as a source, a transit route or a consumer market.
What actually reduces wildlife trafficking?
Three things in combination: enforcement that makes trafficking risky, trade monitoring that tells enforcement where to look, and demand reduction in consumer markets. Rescue of confiscated animals is necessary and humane but does not reduce the trade by itself.