Culturally sensitive campaigns to reduce demand for wildife products in Thailand, Vietnam.
Southeast Asia is home to some of the planet’s most vital biodiversity, yet it continues to be a hotspot for wildlife consumption. Over the past three decades, Vietnam has lost 80-90% of its domestic pangolin population due to illegal trade and consumption, yet the country still remains a top market for pangolin, rhino, elephant, and tiger products. Thailand has emerged as a significant market for shark fin soup,
WildAid’s programs in this region build public and government support for the conservation of marine and terrestrial animals and their habitats, particularly targeting hotspot consumption areas in Vietnam and focusing on shark consumption in Thailand.
Across these countries, we collaborate with religious, corporate, tourism, and government leaders to ensure our goals enrich rather than diminish cultural practices. We raise awareness and build pride in local wildlife with people of all ages to inspire conservation.
Our campaign to close live animal markets and end the illegal trade in and consumption of bushmeat has reached well over 300 million consumers and have helped to draft text for legislation regarding wildlife consumption in Vietnam. Through both regional and national campaigns, we work to make wildlife consumption socially unacceptable through culturally sensitive activities such as working with restaurants to take wildlife off the menu and promoting sustainable actions, such as ecotourism and pledging to refuse wildlife products.
- 34%
Drop in frequency of consumption of shark fin in Thailand between 2017 and 2023. - 62%
Shark fins for sale in Thailand in 2023 that came from endangered species - 112
companies in Vietnam changed their company policies and gifting culture to prohibit wildlife consumption
Making an Impact
In Thailand, WildAid has launched the ‘Chalong Mai Chalarm’ / ‘Celebrate with #NoSharkFin’ campaign in 2018, enlisting popular celebrities to lend their voices for sharks, including actor ‘Pong’ Nawat Kulrattanarak and Miss Universe Thailand 2017 Maria Poonlertlarp, both of whom are passionate divers, activists, and WildAid ambassadors.
The campaign is already having an impact. Shark fin consumption in Thailand has declined by 34% over the past six years, equivalent to an estimated 8.1 million fewer servings of shark fin per year, according to a Wild Aid 2023 survey, independently conducted by Rapid Asia.
But immense challenges remain. Our consumer survey also showed more than half (56%) of urban Thais still want to try shark fin, while our first shark product DNA study in Thailand found that 62% of the identified fins for sale in 2023 belonged to sharks at risk of extinction.