
Yao Ming aims to save Africa's elephants by persuading China to give up ivory - adamnemecek
http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/ex-rocket-yao-ming-aims-to-save-africas-elephants--with-china-campaign/2014/09/03/87ebbe2a-d3e1-4283-964e-8d87dea397d6_story.html
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adamnemecek
You guys should consider donating to the International Anti-Poaching
Foundation[0][1] which fights these poachers. The founder, Damien Mander[2],
is an Australian ex spec-ops sniper who is using his military experience to
train the park rangers since they, unlike the poachers, tend to be poorly
equipped and trained as well as understaffed.

There is also the David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust[3][4] which takes care of
elephant and rhino orphans (most of them are orphans due to poaching). For $50
a year, you can become a sponsor of a particular animal and they'll send you
photos and updates about how your sponsored animal is doing. You can for
example sponsor this little fella [5][6].

[0] [http://www.iapf.org/en/](http://www.iapf.org/en/)

[1] [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Anti-
Poaching_Fou...](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Anti-
Poaching_Foundation)

[2]
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Damien_Mander](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Damien_Mander)

[3]
[http://www.sheldrickwildlifetrust.org](http://www.sheldrickwildlifetrust.org)

[4]
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Sheldrick_Wildlife_Trust](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Sheldrick_Wildlife_Trust)

[5]
[http://www.sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/asp/orphan_profile.asp...](http://www.sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/asp/orphan_profile.asp?N=318)

[6] [http://instagram.com/p/sigT3IAUKb](http://instagram.com/p/sigT3IAUKb)

~~~
penetrarthur
We are sorry to inform you that your little fella is dead.

~~~
dredmorbius
I find no validation of that:
[http://www.sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/asp/orphan_profile.asp...](http://www.sheldrickwildlifetrust.org/asp/orphan_profile.asp?N=318)

~~~
louhike
I am not sure, but I think he was joking. It is a risk which may affect
donations but it might be worth it.

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taksintik
So happy to see Yao using his influence for good. I think Chinese consumption
of shark fin and ivory are more habits than desire. Habits can change through
education.

~~~
masklinn
I'm not sure status symbols are as simple as "habits or desire". And that's
what shark fins and ivory are to the chinese, much like caviar to westerners
(and with similar consequences on providing creatures).

You _might_ be able to fix "traditional medecine" issues (which China has in
droves) using education, but status symbols acquisition is not about
illiteracy or lack of education. You can only fix the problem through social
shaming, by reversing those status and making them status of bad taste.

~~~
MarkMc
Another factor besides habit and status: perhaps Chinese culture is simply
more accepting of animal cruelty?

~~~
masklinn
"Western culture" has very similar (and extant wrt sturgeons amongst others if
mostly curbed when it comes to mammals) issues, Chinese weren't the ones
slaughtering charismatic megafauna for fun and status symbols in the late 19th
century and early 20th century.

~~~
maaku
News flash: every culture has barbaric ghosts in its past. It's what we do
here and now that matters.

~~~
masklinn
News flash: "western culture" is still dynamiting endangered sturgeons (and
other roe-producing species passing their roe as caviar[0])

[0] [https://medium.com/full-belly-reports/every-spring-game-
ward...](https://medium.com/full-belly-reports/every-spring-game-warden-rob-
farr-patrols-the-reservoirs-of-the-osage-river-in-central-missouri-
becaf5b489c8)

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po
I've long thought that one of the highest impact things scientists and
engineers could be working on is developing a form of ivory that is
indistinguishable from real thing to collapse the market. It seems like it
should be feasible.

~~~
afafsd
I doubt it. Look at pearls or diamonds.

The sort of people who will pay extra for brand new ivory aren't going to
bought off with fake ivory.

~~~
SamReidHughes
Fake pearls are distinguishable, and I don't know much about the state of lab-
grown diamonds.

~~~
dllthomas
Lab grown diamonds are superior.

From 11 years ago:
[http://archive.wired.com/wired/archive/11.09/diamond.html](http://archive.wired.com/wired/archive/11.09/diamond.html)

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bambax
I may be about to say something stupid, but couldn't we preemptively cut out
the tusks from wild elephants so that there would be no point in poaching
them?

Are tusks necessary for elephants to cut through the bush? I see elephants who
don't have tusks in documentaries all the time, so I'm wondering.

And even if tusks are necessary, maybe we could replace the originals with
prosthesis (of a different color) -- certainly not an easy task on a wild
elephant, but worth a try maybe??

Or just somehow ruin the tusks while leaving them in place? Scratch them, turn
them in a different color, something?

~~~
masklinn
> I may be about to say something stupid, but couldn't we preemptively cut out
> the tusks from wild elephants so that there would be no point in poaching
> them?

De-horning programs were started for rhinos in the 90s following that idea,
which theoretically held up (despite being a risk to the animal, you have to
put him to sleep which may kill him, and de-horning remains traumatic). De-
horned rhinos still got poached:
[http://www.savetherhino.org/rhino_info/issues_for_debate/de-...](http://www.savetherhino.org/rhino_info/issues_for_debate/de-
horning)

There's little reason to believe elephants would fare better, sadly.

> Are tusks necessary for elephants to cut through the bush?

They're for battle (defence against predators animals as well as combats
between males, in these case they also act as "bumpers" to protect the fragile
trunk), and hard tasks: the trunk handles precision stuff, the tusks are used
to move crap out of the way, dig for water or roots, removing bark from trees.

They're not technically necessary, although tuskless elephants are less fit.

~~~
bambax
Many thanks for this answer and link; very enlightening.

If I understand the article correctly, it seems de-horned rhinos are poached
mostly because poachers don't see the rhino has lost its horns, and they kill
it then because

1) they're furious when they find out

2) they don't want to waste more time hunting it again

If this is true it would probably be less of a problem for elephants as their
tusks (or absence thereof) are more visible.

It still sounds like a horrible procedure, but I don't think trying to curb
demand will ever be effective -- or maybe in the very long run, when there are
no elephants left.

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squozzer
I wish Yao luck. The total ban contemplated by the USA has me worried. It's an
admission of defeat. Certainly something can be done to accommodate the ivory
taken legally.

It also sparks memories - for instance, what happened to the "blood diamond"
campaign waged by deBeers? I presume it had some success, because the US govt
hasn't seen fit to ban all diamonds? They used a certification process.

Another similar situation exists with Brazilian rosewood. Gibson ran into some
trouble over that. And yet nothing has been done except to ban trade. No
attempt made at sustainability or habitat preservation.

Connecting the dots...deBeers making money, no ban. deBeers not making money,
ban.

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richsinn
Generating awareness is the first step to take in helping solve this issue
(and a very difficult step at that). Good for Yao Ming!

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NicoJuicy
Recently, there was a article about why Vultures get killed in Africa (it has
to do with ivory also)

[http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/28/opinion/the-poisoning-
of-a...](http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/28/opinion/the-poisoning-of-africas-
vultures.html?smid=fb-share&_r=0)

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phkahler
This could reduce desertification and reduce atmospheric CO2 while helping
elephants. See this Ted talk to understand how:

[https://www.ted.com/talks/allan_savory_how_to_green_the_worl...](https://www.ted.com/talks/allan_savory_how_to_green_the_world_s_deserts_and_reverse_climate_change)

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adamnemecek
hockeybias: you are shadowbanned and have been for the last 5 years

~~~
scott_karana
Wow, that's awful. Shouldn't this stuff have an expiry timer by default? :(

