The Elephant In The Room
As many of you who have been following Breaking The Brand (and now Nature Needs More) know, I have previously expressed my concern about the lack of ability (or willingness) of the large conservation organisations to challenge the current, rhino horn pro-trade agenda.
Pro-trade advocates are happily stepping in to...
The Motivation To Contribute Research – Preliminary Results
While in the short-term demand reduction campaigns will be needed to change people’s motivations to consume illegal and endangered wildlife ‘products’, to ensure a long-term sustainable future we must provide alternative ways to engage with nature. This involves understanding how to re-direct desire in specific user groups, which is the...
Recent Spike In Rhino Poaching
Reading news reports recently, there appears to have been a step up in rhino poaching in South Africa in the last few months
Pro-trade groups are trying to attribute this to ‘poaching syndicates reacting to the threat of a potential legal trade in rhino horn’ (see red box). There is...
The Power of One
I often have people say to me “But what can one person achieve” or “What can I realistically do, I am only one person”. Well this weekend, I can give you two fantastic examples of The Power of One.
Nicholas Duncan, Co-Founder and President of the SAVE African Rhino Foundation...
Want To Know Why Conservation Is Failing? Read On….
In recent years, as I have been monitoring the rhino horn trade/no-trade debate, it has become apparent that conservation groups, large and small, have very little ability to deal with government, donors, agencies, organisations or individuals who have a (overt or, particularly, covert) pro-trade agenda. This inability to fight back...
A Load Of Bollocks
On 11 April 2017, the International Trade Centre published a paper titled: Demand in Viet Nam for rhinoceros horn used in traditional medicine.
The ITC paper focuses on Traditional Asian Medicine (TAM), not using rhino horn as a status symbol, which I will comment on later in the blog. It states...
Trade Legalisation – A Greedy Person Is The Poorest Person In The World.
No one should be surprised about the South African governments legislation to allow a domestic trade in rhino horn. It has been very clear from the beginning that trade in rhino horn is what they support and want.
What is troubling is how easy they got it, with little resistance...
“Honesty is a very expensive gift. Don’t expect it from cheap people.”
Save Our Logo – Global Business2Business Initiative
Is Mainstream Media Contributing To The Rhinos Demise?
Today I find myself reading yet another article supposedly exploring the case for a legal trade in rhino horn. Over the last 3 years I have lost count of how many of these I have read, with titles such as: Would a legal trade in rhino horn save the rhino?...
Empirical Evidence Shows The Way
Over the last couple of years, Breaking The Brand has fielded many questions about our adverts using negative messaging and emotions. Since the launch of our campaigns we have had people in the rhino conservation space tell us what we do is ‘too hard hitting’, ‘racist’ and ‘would offend our...
Reflections Leading in to CoP17
With one day to go before the start of CoP17, below is a reflection and comment on some of the articles and submissions I have read leading up to the CITES meeting.
While there is much in the Time Magazine article (featured on the left) to like – it is one...