Yesterday we kicked off our celebration of heroes fighting to save animals facing extinction by applauding Mary Rice of the Environmental Investigation Agency.
The University of Washington is a leader in the fight to save animals facing extinction, which is why we are excited today to celebrate a local hero, Dr. Sam Wasser, Director of the Center for Conservation Biology at the University of Washington. We are a major port state in a country whose marketplace for illegal animal products is second only to China’s. That’s why it is so important that we have local heroes in the fight to close loopholes and create new penalties for those profiting from the poaching and trade of these majestic creatures.
As a pioneer in his field, Dr. Wasser’s lab has developed methods to determine the geographic origin of poached African elephant ivory. By tracking elephant DNA extracted from their scat throughout Africa, Dr. Wasser and his team can determine the origin of ivory by matching its genotype to their map of elephant DNA across the continent. This information is shared with the Interpol Working Group on Wildlife Crime to investigate the origins of all major ivory seizures in the recent past.
Dr. Wasser, a tireless advocate for I-1401 and a leader in the science of conservation, says of I-1401:
“The illegal wildlife trade has become the world’s fourth or fifth largest transnational organized criminal activity.The illegal ivory trade alone is worth $3 billion dollars annually. I-1401 is not just about stopping the illegal trade in Washington. It is about sending the right message to the rest of the country, and to the world, that this is a serious crime. Many people don’t realize how important Washington is — together, our ports in Seattle and Tacoma represent the third most heavily trafficked container port in the US. California and New York are already working towards ending illegal wildlife trade. We need to do the same, sending a collective message that environmental security and economic security must go hand in hand if we hope to live in a sustainable world.”
Dr. Wasser’s work to help track poachers based on elephant DNA has been featured in National Geographic and most recently covered by KUOW in a story about the growing momentum to pass Yes On 1401 this November.
Dr. Wasser has been doing incredible work both in the field and at home at the University of Washington. But no one person can alone save species facing extinction. So please join us in celebrating Dr. Wasser’s work to save animals facing extinction and remember that you too can make a difference this election by filling out your ballot in support of Yes On I-1401.
