The United Nations, backed by A-list celebrities from across the globe, has launched an unprecedented campaign against illegal trade in wildlife, which is pushing species to the brink of extinction, robbing countries of their natural heritage and profiting international criminal networks.
“Each year, thousands of wild animals are illegally killed, often by organised criminal networks motivated by profit and greed,” said UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon. He urged governments and people everywhere to support the new UN campaign, Wild for Life, which aims to mobilise the world to end this destructive trade.
#WildforLife, launched at the second UN Environment Assembly in Nairobi, aims to mobilise millions of people to make commitments and take action to end the illegal trade.
The campaign is run by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), the UN Development Programme (UNDP), the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).  The Global Environment Facility (GEF) and World Bank are also on board as supporters.
UNEP Goodwill Ambassadors are lending their weight to the cause. These include Brazilian model Gisele Bundchen who is fighting for sea turtles; four-time African Footballer of the Year Yaya Touré who is backing elephants; and actor Ian Somerhalder who is rooting for pangolins.
They are being joined by major celebrities from China, India, Indonesia, Lebanon and Vietnam battling to conserve species such as orangutans, tigers, rhinos and helmeted hornbills and calling for citizen support to end the demand that is driving the illegal trade.
Between 2010 and 2012, 100,000 elephants were killed for their ivory in Africa. Three rhinos are killed every day, and the Western Black Rhino has already gone extinct. Pangolins – scaly anteaters – are the most illegally trafficked mammal in the world. Great apes are already locally extinct in several African nations.
The campaign asks participants to find their kindred species and use their own spheres of influence to end the illegal trade, however it touches or impacts them. Profits from the illegal wildlife trade sometimes go into the pockets of international criminal networks, threatening peace and security, and damaging the livelihoods of local communities who depend on tourism.   
Stopping this trade is also crucial to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), as it threatens countries’ biodiversity and people’s livelihoods, and disturbs peace. SDG 15, in particular, calls for the protection of wild fauna and flora as well as the ecosystems that they depend on – including targets on combatting and addressing the supply and demand of illegal wildlife products.
Steppenwolf’s lead singer, John Kay, donated the use of Born to Be Wild – one of the top three international music licences of all time for Universal Music – to the campaign.
Every individual should play a part in making the campaign a success, as preserving wildlife is crucial for the well-being of people and planet alike.