The Nat Geo Wild film about our investigation into the trade in Icelandic fin whale in Japan aired in the US on Tuesday. The investigations we did in Iceland and Japan now feel like a distant memory; so much has happened since, although I believe as these things go the film was actually put together in record time
In this blog, our Senior Fundraiser, Steven Abbott, who has a strong scientific background, challenges the claim made by some that we are not scientists and therefore our investigative findings have no value. We do everything a scientist does, are as qualified and publish reports that change the world for the better
Our Intelligence Analyst, Charlotte Davies, discusses the valuable insights into criminal behaviour that can be gained from engaging illegal traders through covert operations. These insights need to be shared among enforcement agencies to help better understand and combat illegal wildlife trade in a changing world
I think the programme did a great job of explaining this huge problem and our responsibility as consumers to ensure that our old junk doesn’t end up poisoning children in developing countries. EIA was involved with the programme from its inception and I think it’s been a good example of successful collaboration
Being an undercover wildlife crime investigator can be stressful. Convincing the criminals you investigate that you are one of them while at the same time gathering evidence to incriminate them can be mentally exhausting. It’s like being Jekyll and Hyde. Knowing when to press and when to step back is key
This isn’t just a metaphor, but another way of looking at crime. For several years now, criminologists like Derek Cornish have been developing “crime scripts” which identify and isolate what criminal actors require to perfectly execute their parts –in terms of both tools and (spoken like a true thespian) “motivation”