Counter Wildlife Trafficking Partnership Coordination Forum II

In 2021, USAID teamed up with Thailand's Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP) and other key partners, including the ASEAN Secretariat, World Wildlife Fund (WWF), Asian Development Bank (ADB), the World Bank, the Global Environment Facility (GEF), and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), to organize the first Regional Counter Wildlife Trafficking Partnership Forum in September 2021. The event culminated in the release of the “Development Partner Dialogue Highlights” which helped provide a concrete path towards improved regional collaboration.

The Counter Wildlife Trafficking Partnership Forum II aimed to build on the 2021 Forum and brought together CWT partners and stakeholders in Asia and beyond, including ADB, Asian Indigenous Peoples Pact (AIPP), Asian Indigenous Youth Platform (AIYP), Asia Young Indigenous Peoples Network (AYIPN), Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL), CITES Secretariat, Center for People and Forests (RECOFTC), DNP, Education for Nature Vietnam (ENV), Freeland, GlobeScan, International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), INTERPOL, Panthera, Solutions Lab, TRAFFIC, United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), United States Department of Justice (USDOJ), WildAid, Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), Wildlife Justice Commission (WJC), and WWF to continue strengthening collaboration, planning, and cooperation towards ending the trade in illegal wildlife and protecting biodiversity. The event was planned as a half-day webinar on Tuesday December 13, 2022, followed by a one-day, in-person meeting on Thursday, January 12, 2023 to further discuss the creation of a coordination platform/mechanism.

OBJECTIVES

  1. Strengthen political will and coordinated resource mobilization to counter wildlife trafficking efforts across Southeast Asia and beyond;
  2. Address challenges and opportunities for multi-stakeholder coordination and collective action to more effectively counter wildlife trafficking; and
  3. Expand and strengthen participation of civil society groups, indigenous peoples, forest-reliant communities, academia, youth and other marginalized groups in counter wildlife trafficking efforts.

SUMMARY AGENDA

Opening Session

Session 1: Taking Stock - The Evolving CWT Landscape: Global trends, changes and highlights, and the imperative for continued support to counter wildlife trafficking efforts globally.

Session 2: Applying Research Findings to CWT Programming - What’s the Research Saying and What Does it Mean: How can the findings support CWT programming and to streamline and amplify impact at national and regional levels?  

Session 3: Recent Advancements in the CWT Agenda - Recent Advancements in the CWT Agenda: How can the outcomes of recent events are positively shaping CWT responses and amplifying regional action? 

Session 4: Broadening Stakeholder Engagement - The challenges of engaging and strengthening the voices of civil society organizations, indigenous people, forest-reliant communities, youth and academia: Identifying options that support meaningful stakeholder engagement. 

Session 5: Tackling CWT Coordination and Cooperation - Overcoming the Challenges of Multi-Stakeholder Coordination and Information Sharing: Solutions to enhancing and broadening partnerships and coordinated action. 

View the agenda (PDF). 

Download the Counter Wildlife Trafficking Partnership Coordination Forum II Proceedings (PDF).