Just as “it takes a village” to raise our children, so too does it take an educated global citizen — the entire world — to protect and preserve World Wildlife. World Wildlife Day is being celebrated on March 3, and UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon warns that “time is running out” for the iconic elephant which stands as the designated poster child/animal for this year’s theme. (See: “Marking World Wildlife Day, UN Calls for Global Actions to Save Planet’s Most Iconic Species.)
Poaching, deforestation, habitat loss, and illicit trafficking of wildlife have decimated the ranks of this noble species. CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) “is an international agreement between governments. Its aim is to ensure that international trade in specimens of wild animals and plants does not threaten their survival.” But, it takes more than setting targets.
Broadening and evolving our reasoning are novel organizations like the Nonhuman Rights Project whose “mission is to change the legal status of appropriate nonhuman animals from mere “things.” It takes an educated mindset to recognize that conservation, biodiversity, and sustainability are the life support systems of the entire planet.
Like the words of famous conservationist and painter, John James Audubon: “A true conservationist is a man who knows that the world is not given by his fathers but borrowed from his children.”
Favorite Diplomat Artist Blogs for World Wildlife Day, see: “Where have all the Pangolin gone on Endangered Species Day?” “Netflix Joins World Wildlife Fund” “Elephants Will disappear at current Poaching Rates” and “Do Animals Need a UN Ambassador?”
And, for more wildlife and environment stories, see Diplomat Artist Archives: Animal Welfare Ambassadors and Environment Ambassadors.
By, Susan Sacirbey
@DiplomaticallyX