Most interestingly, however, the substantive barriers to wildlife returns are at odds with the thrust of multilateral conservation policies. For all the challenges and shortcomings of multilateral policy making, when national governments get together, they generally support pragmatic and utilitarian approaches to wildlife conservation aligned with economic development and enhancing rural livelihoods.
Notably, the Parties to the CBD haveagreed on a strong mandate for the use and trade of wild species. CBD Decision 15/23 (2022) explicitly calls for:
- the mainstreaming of the sustainable use of biodiversity, in particular that of wild species, into all relevant sectors.
Further, the GBF includes explicit targets promoting on the use of wild species:
- Target 5 – Ensure that the use, harvesting and trade of wild species is sustainable, safe, and legal…
- Target 9– Ensure that the management and use of wild species are sustainable, thereby providing social, economic, and environmental benefits for people…
The Strategic Vision of CITES also calls for legal international wildlife trade:
- By 2030, all international trade in wild fauna and flora is legal and sustainable, consistent with the long-term conservation of species…
Further, at its recent World Conservation Congress, the members of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), which include States, Government Agencies, and NGOs, adopted a motion to
- to promote and support mechanisms and strategies for meeting Targets 5 and 9; [and]
- to oversee the development of a statement, detailed strategy, and workplan for mainstreaming the sustainable use of wild species into the Union’s work.
In short, there is a clear multilateral mandate to address barriers to the use and trade of wild species, to mainstream this use into economic sectors, and for people to benefit from this use. Wildlife Returns supports policies and enabling actions to ensure that the management, harvesting, and trade of wild species are legal, sustainable, and beneficial to people.