… But Worrying Trend Among Travelers Grows
Beijing, China – Nearly two years after China imposed a historic ban on domestic ivory trade, consumer demand for elephant ivory appears to be stabilizing at reduced levels and support for the ban remains strong. However, consumers who regularly travel outside mainland China and a group dubbed “diehard buyers” continue to express a strong desire to buy ivory.
World Wildlife Fund’s (WWF) third annual survey, Demand under the Ban – China Ivory Consumption Research 2019, found:
- The percentage of people professing to have purchased ivory in the previous 12 months is at significantly lower levels compared to pre-ban years.
- Nearly 80 percent of respondents say the ban will stop them from buying ivory in the future.
- Those who say they intend to buy ivory in the future, after being prompted about the ban, has remained stable since 2018, at 14%. This continuing demand comes from consumers who regularly travel outside mainland China and so-called diehard buyers, those least likely to be swayed from purchasing ivory despite the law or other deterrents.
- The purchase of ivory in person from vendors in Mainland China has dropped, while buying during travels has increased overall – from 18% in 2018 to 27% of travelers in 2019. Thailand, Hong Kong SAR and Cambodia are the destinations most cited by travelers as the locations they bought ivory products outside Mainland China.
WWF and GlobeScan have conducted the largest consumer survey about ivory trade in China – 2,000 people in 15 cities – for three consecutive years, providing the largest assessment available measuring changes in attitudes, purchasing and ban awareness over time. Current demand for ivory appears to have stabilized in China, with some minor fluctuation, following the immediate and dramatic drop after implementation of China’s ban at the end of 2017.
The annual surveys have found that Chinese consumers overwhelmingly support the ban’s intent, though awareness of the specifics of the ban remains low.
“Chinese consumers were a driving demographic behind the global ivory trade that led to an elephant poaching crisis across the African continent beginning around 2010,” said Karen Xue, head of WWF’s global Ivory Initiative. “Their help is crucial in turning the tide against the wildlife crime surge that claims the lives of tens of thousands of elephants each year. Partners across many sectors have bolstered consumer engagement efforts, including China Customs, internet companies and the travel industry. Most recently, WWF is excited to work with Chinese actor Zhu Yilong as WWF Ambassador for Global Wildlife Crime Campaign to call on public to reduce the demand for ivory and other endangered species’ products.”
As in the previous year, the 2019 survey found that consumers report they have curtailed their ivory purchasing. Of concern is a persistent desire for ivory observed in certain groups. According to the survey, regular overseas travelers are the only group reporting more ivory purchases in the past 12 months than in pre-ban 2017. In addition, travelers and diehard buyers are the only ones intending to make future ivory purchases at higher rates than 2018, despite being better informed about China’s ivory ban than all other demographic groups. On the eve of the Oct. 1-7 Golden Week holiday – one of the two busiest travel seasons in China – WWF is again launching a Travel Ivory Free campaign to reach travelers going to Hong Kong SAR, Thailand, Vietnam and Japan, popular destinations with active ivory markets. The campaign integrates targeted social media strategies with on-the-ground outreach activities and travel industry collaboration to deploy messages that persuade against ivory purchases. China Customs have distributed a PSA at all the ports of entry and exit throughout China to influence overseas travelers.
Wander Meijer, GlobeScan’s Asia Pacific Director and Illegal Wildlife Trade (IWT) researcher commented: “The results of this third (2019) ivory survey in China are in line with other surveys conducted by GlobeScan and observations from various NGOs: the overall level of demand for ivory is lower than in pre-ban years, but this demand has not diminished further compared to last year (2018). In surveys for WWF and other NGOs, we have also observed an increase in demand from Chinese travelers in overseas markets and it is the right approach by WWF, and other NGOs, to target these travelers. Moreover, we have also witnessed travelers buying other illegal wildlife products when visiting countries abroad. These markets are often less-regulated, with more open trade so tourists seize the opportunity to purchase wildlife products while traveling. To battle IWT, demand reduction campaigns with targeted messages developed using robust scientific methods are vital instruments to reduce demand.”
“China’s domestic ban on ivory is considered a game-changing effort for elephant conservation and conservation groups are working together with government, e-commerce giants, travel and transportation industries, and the public to ensure the ban is successful,” said Zhou Fei, Chief Program Officer of WWF China. “We welcome the recent actions taken by Singapore and Australia to ban domestic ivory trade and encourage more countries, particularly Thailand and Japan, to shut down their markets.”
After being prompted about the ban, almost half of respondents said they had heard of the ban – a higher number than in 2017 and 2018 — with online channels like news portals and social media being the dominant sources of awareness.
“Regular overseas travelers have been a top priority for outreach since the ban took effect. We are partnering with leading travel companies globally to make them part of this effort and encouraging popular tourist destinations in Southeast Asia to crack down on their illegal trade,” said Jan Vertefeuille, WWF’s Senior Director of Advocacy. “The Travel Ivory Free campaign engages Chinese travelers before, during and after their visits abroad to persuade them to avoid gifts or souvenirs made from elephant ivory.”
The study shows that recognition of ivory and elephant protection campaigns has risen from 16% in 2018 to 22% in 2019. Moreover, the Travel Ivory Free campaign was recognized by around 44% of all consumers surveyed. To assess drivers and deterrents of ivory purchase, the survey identified the top reasons for buying ivory were because of the artistic value and uniqueness of ivory, whereas the extinction of elephants, cruelty of poaching, and legal consequences of purchase are still the most reported deterrents of such purchases.
Note to editors:
- This study, conducted by GlobeScan, an international research consultancy, is the largest and longest-running research on China’s ivory consumption, involving 2,000 consumers in 15 cities across China. This is the third annual survey conducted after the release of 2017 report and 2018 report.
- Implementation of this project was made possible with funding from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).
For more information please contact:
- Elizabeth Davis, WWF, elizabeth.davis@wwfus.org, 202-495-4415
- Stacy Rowland, Communications Director, GlobeScan, stacy.rowland@globescan.com, +1 416-992-2705
Webinar:
On October 31st, WWF and GlobeScan hosted a public, online webinar to explore the key findings of the research. Following an introduction by Anny Liang, Program Officer at WWF, Wander Meijer, GlobeScan’s Asia Pacific Director, led an in-depth presentation to introduce background, methodology and findings of the research. The webinar wrapped up with a Q&A session featuring WWF’s Jan Vertefeuille, Senior Director of Advocacy, and Karen Xue, Head of Global Ivory Initiative.
