The Town at the Heart of China’s Black Market in Ivory
Last year, in response to mounting criticism for its key role in the steep decline in the world’s elephant population, China...
The China Africa Project
10.04.17
North Korea’s Diplomats in Africa Are Making Big Money Selling Ivory to Chinese Consumers
The tightening of international sanctions against North Korea is helping to fuel the illicit ivory trade in Africa as the increasingly isolated country searches for new ways to generate revenue, according to...
Under Pressure: The Story behind China’s Ivory Ban
For years Chinese government officials were followed around the world, at every meeting, by a single issue: the scores of dead elephants across Africa, and the international community that blamed China for this “ivory “holocaust”.
Despite Ban, Rhino Horn Flooding Black Markets across China
The country is pledged to end the trade in elephant ivory this year, but will it take steps to help save rhinos?
Good News for Africa’s Elephants: China Is Losing Its Taste for Ivory
China will close 67 ivory carving factories and retail shops on Friday, roughly one-third of the total, as it moves to implement a pledge to end all domestic ivory sales by the end of the year.
Conversation
01.10.17
Can Beijing’s Ivory Ban Save the Elephants?
On New Year’s Eve, Beijing announced it will ban the ivory trade in China, potentially shutting down the world’s biggest ivory market. Why did Beijing decide to curb the ivory trade? Will it put enough muscle behind it to enforce the decision?...
China to Set Date to Close Ivory Factories
Preparation is under way in China to bring in a ban on their domestic ivory trade, following a promise made with the US earlier this year
The China Africa Project
12.09.16
Does One Man in China Control the Fate of Africa’s Elephants?
In the powerful new Netflix documentary The Ivory Game, Elephant Action League Executive Director ...
The China Africa Project
06.30.16
Namibia’s Chinese Ivory Smugglers
Namibia is the rare country in Africa that seems to be holding its own against ivory poachers. Whereas in most other southern African countries the elephant population is being decimated, in Namibia, according to the government, the number of...
The China Africa Project
02.19.16
Why Reducing Ivory Demand in China Will Not Curb Poaching in Africa
“When the buying stops, the killing can too,” reads the popular slogan that WildAid uses in its anti-ivory campaign to raise awareness in China. WildAid, along with most Western environmentalists, contend that curbing demand in...
Green Space
12.16.15
Ivory Price Has Halved, But No Celebration Yet
International NGOs such as Save the Elephants have shared the great news that the price of...
Conversation
11.24.15
The China Africa Relationship: Crossroads or Cliff?
As we approach the sixth Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) Summit in Johannesburg, we try better to understand the main issues that surely will arise when Chinese President Xi Jinping and South African President Jacob Zuma meet on...
Prince William to Give Ivory Trade Speech as China's President Xi Arrives
The Duke of Cambridge is to deliver a speech on the illegal ivory trade for broadcast on Chinese state TV.
The China Africa Project
09.15.15
Growing Demand in China for Africa’s Lion Bones
Traditional Chinese medicine—popular throughout Asia—long has prized the supposed medicinal value of tiger bones. Now, though, as the world’s wild tiger population is disappearing fast, even facing extinction, the Chinese medicine industry may...
The China Africa Project
06.10.15
China’s Proposed Ivory Ban: Breakthrough or B.S.?
China’s surprise announcement that it will phase out the trade and manufacturing of ivory came as a rare piece of good news for Africa’s...
The China Africa Project
04.02.15
The Politics of Banning Ivory in China
In February 2015, China announced a one-year ban on ivory imports. While many conservation groups such as the Environmental Investigation Agency denounced Beijing’s policy as “ineffective,” the San Francisco-based group WildAid said the ban is an...
The China Africa Project
12.23.14
China in Africa: 2014 Year in Review
Two thousand fourteen marked another landmark year in Sino-African relations as bilateral trade set new records while political, diplomatic, and military ties strengthened across the board. Yet despite the tangible progress made this year, this...
Prince William Attacks China over ‘Ignorant Craving’ for Ivory
According to excerpts of his speech released in advance, Prince William, who is due to go to China early next year, will say: “Some endangered species are now literally worth more than their weight in gold."
The China Africa Project
11.22.14
Report: Chinese Diplomats & Officials Tied to Ivory Trade in Africa
A recent report by the U.K.-based Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) alleges Chinese diplomats and officials have been directly involved in the ivory trade in Africa. Most damaging...
Can China Save Africa's Elephants?
Poaching has not only reduced elephant populations, but it has also become unsustainable. The problem, beyond how many elephants are being killed, is the lack of surviving males in their prime years.
‘White Gold’ In China
China is a large importer of illegally acquired ivory. This photo set focuses on the tradesmen who make their living off of carving the ivory, some of which have been doing so for generations.
Environment
03.02.13
China Criticized over Tiger Farms and Illegal Ivory
from chinadialogueChina is under pressure to regulate its rampant trade in illegal ivory and tiger parts ahead of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), opening this weekend in...
Yao Ming Uses His Star Image to Help Fight Elephants, Rhino Poaching
As a goodwill ambassador to WildAid, a nonprofit dedicated to ending illegal wildlife trading, ...
Elephants Dying in Epic Frenzy as Ivory Fuels Wars and Profits
The vast majority of the illegal ivory — experts say as much as 70 percent — is flowing to China, and though the Chinese have coveted ivory for centuries, never before have so many of them been able to afford it. China’s economic boom has created...