Following its 25th Anniversary Celebration in NYC on March 31st, Tusk's Royal Patron, HRH The Duke of Cambridge, has written a personal article published in the organization’s annual report.
The Prince highlights today’s greatest conservation challenges and the reason he believes that Tusk is having an impact in Africa.
“I was initially drawn to Tusk by its innovative and holistic approach and its unwavering certainty that conservation is as much about people and community programs as it is about wildlife protection,” writes the Prince, whose commitment to highlighting the issue of the illegal wildlife trade has won him plaudits across the world.
The illegal wildlife trade, now the fourth most lucrative transnational crime, generates over $20 billion a year in illegal profits.
In the article, Prince William continues a theme he spoke passionately about in his speech to the World Bank in Washington in December.
“The cumulative effect of this insidious trade on our natural heritage is shocking. Over the last 100 years, the abundance of the world’s species has decreased by almost a third, pushing some of our most iconic creatures to the brink of extinction. But the illegal wildlife trade also has an unacceptable human cost for those who have lived for centuries in harmony with wildlife. It threatens to wipe out Africa’s natural heritage, satisfying the greed of international criminals while trapping others in a destructive cycle of poverty and conflict.”
For 25 years, Tusk has responded to these challenges by investing in agile and adaptable conservation projects that have the greatest impact on wildlife and communities in Africa.
Prince William concludes, “Despite facing some of the greatest conservation challenges to international conservation in history, Tusk continues to be a shining light in what are tragically dark times for Africa’s wildlife. In this, its 25th Anniversary Year, I am extremely proud of all the charity has achieved, what it stands for, and the hope it offers to Africa and the survival of its natural heritage. I am honoured to be its Royal Patron.”
To read the Prince’s article in full, click here.
