Elephants are revered in Thailand and, as an important part of the country’s identity, they are an integral part of Thai beliefs and culture. However, despite this, Thailand has one of the world’s largest unregulated ivory markets and is consistently highlighted as one of the most problematic countries in the illegal ivory trade.

The weekly digest of important reports, research, policy documents, regulations, studies, court cases, protests, conflicts, initiatives, photos, data, statistics, infographics, presentations on the India Environment Portal, 29 June - 05 July 2014.

This report focuses on the consequences of environmental crime. It argues that the situation has worsened to the extent that illegal trade in wildlife’s impacts are now acknowledged to go well beyond strictly environmental impacts – by seriously undermining economies and livelihoods, good governance, and the rule of law.

Over 20,000 African elephants were poached across the continent in 2013 according to a report released today by the CITES Secretariat.