TRAFFIC tracks the systems behind illegal and unsustainable wildlife trade
- Editorial Team SDG15
- 3 days ago
- 4 min read
Published on 28 August 2026 at 03:12 GMT
By Editorial Team SDG15
Illegal and unsustainable wildlife trade crosses borders, digital platforms and supply chains, linking biodiversity loss with organised crime, public health concerns and livelihoods. TRAFFIC, a non-governmental organisation founded in 1976 by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), occupies a specialist position in this field. It researches trade in wild animals and plants, advises governments and international processes, and works with conservation groups, businesses, enforcement agencies and communities to improve the legality and sustainability of trade.
A problem larger than seizures
Wildlife trade includes far more than high-profile trafficking in ivory, rhinoceros horn or big cats. Legal commerce also moves timber, fish, medicinal plants, reptiles, birds and many other specimens or products. For communities and businesses, such trade can provide food, materials and income. The conservation question is therefore not simply whether trade exists, but whether harvesting and supply chains comply with law, remain within ecological limits and distribute benefits fairly.
The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) recorded more than 140,000 wildlife seizure records from 2015 to 2021 in the dataset underpinning its 2024 World Wildlife Crime Report. The agency cautioned that seizures represent an unknown share of actual trafficking. Reported seizures in 2020 and 2021 were about half the annual number in the preceding four years, but UNODC said the change could reflect disrupted reporting, reduced enforcement, a real fall in trafficking or shifts towards methods less likely to be detected. This uncertainty illustrates why seizure totals cannot be read as a complete measure of criminal markets.
How TRAFFIC works
TRAFFIC wildlife trade monitoring combines research, policy analysis and operational partnerships. Its published strategy describes five pathways: strengthening international frameworks, improving national policy and regulation, empowering communities, supporting responsible private-sector practices and influencing consumer behaviour. The organisation reports an international network of around 150 experts across Africa, Asia, the Pacific, Europe and the Americas. Its global office is based in Cambridge, United Kingdom.
That model can connect information collected at different points in a supply chain. Market studies and seizure records may identify commodities, routes and changes in demand. Training and identification tools can help customs or wildlife officers distinguish protected species. Engagement with transport, online-marketplace and financial-sector actors can address routes and services exploited by traffickers. Community and livelihood programmes examine whether legal trade can generate income without placing unsustainable pressure on species.
TRAFFIC’s 2024 annual review provides examples of this work. It reported work with Nepalese partners on sustainable harvesting of high-value medicinal plants, research on Tanzania’s regulated wild-meat supply chain, and freely available three-dimensional shark-fin models intended to help identify fins from species listed under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). These activities extend monitoring beyond documenting offences after they occur to include traceability, regulation, species identification and the design of legal supply chains.
Evidence, authority and accountability
TRAFFIC does not prosecute cases or replace national regulators. Governments retain responsibility for domestic wildlife laws, customs controls and criminal enforcement, while CITES provides the international legal framework for regulating cross-border trade in listed species. TRAFFIC’s influence rests on the quality of its evidence, access to partners and its ability to translate findings into tools or policy discussions. Its advisory role can support public authorities, but implementation remains with institutions that have different mandates, resources and political priorities.
Data gaps remain a structural constraint. Illegal activity is designed to avoid detection, countries vary in reporting capacity, and records may describe seizures in incompatible units. Legal trade data can reveal declared movements but do not automatically establish whether harvesting was ecologically sustainable or whether permits were obtained through reliable processes. Online markets add another layer, as sellers can change platforms, language and payment methods quickly. Monitoring consequently produces indicators and risk assessments rather than a complete census of wildlife trade.
The distinction between legality and sustainability also matters. A shipment may comply with documentary requirements while broader questions remain about population status, traceability or local benefits. Conversely, a blanket portrayal of wildlife use as criminal can obscure long-standing subsistence practices and lawful trade. TRAFFIC’s stated mission treats legal and sustainable trade as a potential source of conservation and livelihood benefits, an approach that places ecological evidence, governance and distributional effects at the centre of assessment.
A direct link to SDG 15
The organisation’s work relates directly to SDG 15 (life on land). Target 15.7 addresses poaching and trafficking of protected flora and fauna and the demand and supply of illegal wildlife products, while target 15.c covers international support and community capacity connected with sustainable livelihoods. TRAFFIC contributes evidence and practical support relevant to those targets, although progress also depends on enforcement, transparent regulation, reliable reporting and conditions that allow communities to benefit from lawful and sustainable use.
After five decades, TRAFFIC continues to follow trade across conservation science, commerce and enforcement. Its reports and partnerships combine information from multiple sources to identify patterns beyond individual seizures or agencies. However, incomplete data, uneven state capacity and rapidly adapting markets limit what can be known and acted upon. These constraints place particular importance on careful attribution and transparent methods when assessing both the scale of wildlife trade and the impact of efforts intended to change it.
Further information:
TRAFFIC, IUCN and WWF renew partnership, confirms TRAFFIC’s establishment in 1976, its founders and its role as a wildlife-trade specialist.
TRAFFIC 2030 Strategy, sets out TRAFFIC’s evidence-based approach and five strategic pathways.
TRAFFIC Annual Review 2024, provides examples of work on medicinal plants, game meat, shark-fin identification and wildlife-trade data.
UNODC, World Wildlife Crime Report 2024: Summary, supports the seizure-record figures and the cautions attached to interpreting trends.
United Nations, Goal 15, provides the official wording and indicators for SDG targets 15.7 and 15.c.
