Presented in partnership with the International Relations Council.
The illegal wildlife trade is decimating flora and fauna across the world. Some of the most charismatic animals, such as elephants and rhinos, as well as many lesser-known wildlife species are vulnerable to organized exploitation. Their populations are increasingly at great risk, which further undermines complex ecosystems already stressed by climate change and habitat loss.
The illegal trade in wildlife commodities also poses significant challenges to national security. Highly organized international criminal syndicates that are involved in wildlife trafficking are often also involved in drug trafficking, human smuggling, and other crimes.
In this program, acclaimed journalist Rachael Bale and a panel of experts will explore the scope of illegal wildlife trade and the international policies, advances in technology, and frontline enforcement actions that are part of a global effort to combat poaching, trafficking, and the demand for illegally traded wildlife and wildlife products.
In-Person attendance option
This program will be presented virtually via Zoom webinar. If you would prefer to attend this program in-person at the Linda Hall Library, please follow this link to register:
Rachael Bale is a journalist and editor known for her coverage of wildlife crime and exploitation. She is the co-founder of a new investigative journalism nonprofit called Wildlife Investigative Reporters and Editors (WIRE), dedicated to exposing environmental crimes that affect animals. Before that, she spent seven years at National Geographic, including as Executive Editor of the Animals team, where she oversaw the publication’s journalistic storytelling about animals and managed a team of investigative reporters focused on wildlife trafficking.
Her own investigations have included deep dives into cheetah cub trafficking in the Horn of Africa, the illegal trade in pangolin scales across Africa and Asia, and the rise of jaguar poaching and trafficking in South America. A California native, Bale has a bachelor’s degree in political science from Reed College and a master’s degree in journalism from American University. She lives in Denver, Colorado, with her husband, son, cat, and corgi.
Dr. Andrew Rhyne is Professor of Marine Biology at Roger Williams University and a Technical Expert with the Wildlife Detection Partnership. Dr. Rhyme is a leading expert on wildlife trafficking, working with the fish/aquarium sector. He played a leading role in developing the prototype software to scan shipment documents for the USAID Wildlife Crime Tech Challenge and also developed a robust database that is publicly accessible and easy to use.
Dr. Rhyne has published over 50 peer-reviewed articles and book chapters and is the recipient of numerous awards. Most recently he won a Grand Prize in the Wildlife Crime Technology Challenge. Dr. Rhyne received his B.S. from the University of North Carolina Wilmington, and his M.S. and Ph.D. from the Florida Institute of Technology in Melbourne, FL working with his mentor the late Dr. Junda Lin.
Vanda Felbab-Brown is a senior fellow in the Strobe Talbott Center for Security, Strategy, and Technology in the Foreign Policy program at the Brookings Institution. She is the author of “The Extinction Market: Wildlife Trafficking and How to Counter It” (Hurst, 2018) and her fieldwork and research have covered, among others, Afghanistan, South Asia, Burma, Indonesia, the Andean region, Mexico, Morocco, Somalia, Kenya, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Tanzania, Namibia, Niger, and Nigeria.
A frequent commentator in U.S. and international media, Dr. Felbab-Brown regularly provides congressional testimony on these issues and serves as an expert witness in court cases related to transnational crime and governance. She has also been the recipient of numerous awards in recognition of her scholarly and policy contributions. She received her doctorate in political science from MIT and her bachelor’s in government from Harvard University.
Chris Aldrich is the Special Agent in Charge (SAC) for the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS) Office of Law Enforcement (OLE) in the Midwest Region. He leads all law enforcement activities within eight states related to duties assigned to Special Agents and Wildlife Inspectors. Prior to his current position, Chris spent time as the Assistant Special Agent in Charge (ASAC) for the Midwest Region and the ASAC for the Pacific Region which covers California and Nevada. Chris was responsible for all operations within each region including budget, personnel management, and developing/managing all undercover operations. Several of these investigations included large, long-term, multi-agency wildlife trafficking investigations.
Previous to his ASAC roles, Chris was the Resident Agent in Charge (RAC) in Ann Arbor, MI, where he was the first line supervisor for Special Agents and Wildlife Inspectors in Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio. He oversaw numerous high priority wildlife trafficking investigations as well as managing all of the inspection activities at three international border ports.
Previous to that, Chris was the Special Agent in Marquette, Michigan, for 8 years. While there, he initiated a large, multi-agency undercover investigation into the illegal commercial fishing and wholesale activities in the Great Lakes basin - valued at more than $7 billion annually. The investigation resulted in 26 convictions and more than $3.9 million in total restitution being paid to the National Fish Hatchery System, as well as Tribal fish hatcheries.
