Impact
Countering wildlife trafficking and conserving biodiversity across Southeast Asia
Wildlife trafficking inflicts devastating economic, social, and environmental harm. Through locally led capacity strengthening, civil society in Southeast Asia can leverage social and behavior change communication for equitable and effective actions to counter wildlife crime, advance gender equality and social inclusion, and manage climate risk.
Objective of End Wildlife Crime (EWC)
USAID EWC aims to combat wildlife crime, protect biodiversity, foster good environmental governance, ensure critical conservation, build regional resilience, and take bold steps to address gender inclusion and climate change.
Approach to EWC in Asia
USAID EWC supports the goals of ending wildlife crime and fostering sustainable, locally led initiatives and environmental governance by taking a whole of society approach that:
- Builds partnerships with civil society organizations, the private sector, and diverse groups, including women, Indigenous Peoples, youth, communities of faith, and other underrepresented communities.
- Strengthens advocacy by civil society and underrepresented groups to combat wildlife trafficking (CWT).
- Ensures effective CWT efforts by building strong coordination among law enforcement, adjudication, and policymaking networks across the region.
- Improves coordination for regional CWT policies and collective actions across Southeast Asia.
EWC Activities
USAID EWC will strengthen regional capacity and collaboration to effectively reduce both the supply and demand for wildlife parts and products across three focus areas:
- Improving capacity of civil society actors to lead outreach in line with the SBCC pillars— advocacy, social mobilization, and behavior change communication—to reduce demand for illegal wildlife consumption.
- Developing a cohesive training and collaboration strategy, along with a toolkit containing best practice models and standardized regional approaches to enhance learning on CWT.
- Enhancing regional CWT policies and collective actions to build an inclusive coordinated network across Southeast Asia.
Learn more about our work and our experience in Asia.
