Author: Luke Foddy
Alliance Newsletter | Summer 2026
Tools to tackle forest crime, exploring a potential new UNTOC protocol, engaging the private sector + more
NEWS FROM THE ALLIANCE TEAM
WATCH | Alliance convenes information exchange and training session on using geospatial monitoring to fight forest crime
The Nature Crime Alliance brought more than 450 stakeholders together for an information exchange on how geospatial monitoring technologies can counter forest crimes. Held in partnership with Global Nature Watch (previously Global Forest Watch), the session showcased perspectives from law enforcement, Indigenous communities, governments, and civil society on the role of these technologies – which use satellite imagery to monitor changes to the Earth’s landscape – in tackling crimes such as illegal logging and illegal mining.
Participants heard insights and learnings from Alliance member Conservation Allies, Peru’s public prosecutor’s office, Guatemala’s National Forest Institute (INAB), and the Organisation of Indigenous Peoples of the East (ORPIO), Peru.
The session is available to watch here in English, French and Spanish. Watch in English below.
Following the geospatial monitoring webinar, the Alliance held a training session on using the Global Nature Watch (GNW) platform to identify, investigate and disrupt forest crime. The session, convened in partnership with GNW, saw experts demonstrate how the geospatial monitoring tool can be used to support efforts to tackle illegal deforestation. Participants included government agencies, civil society organisations, and local communities. The Alliance team are very grateful to the Waterloo Foundation for supporting this work.
Alliance Director joins new IUCN Specialist Group
The Director of the Nature Crime Alliance has joined a new IUCN Specialist Group focused on implementing IUCN Resolution 8.048 on Crimes that Affect the Environment, which was adopted at the World Conservation Congress in October. Dr Charles ‘Chip’ Barber, who serves as Director of Natural Resources Governance and Policy at World Resources Institute (WRI), which hosts the Alliance, has been invited to join the IUCN WCEL Crimes that Affect the Environment Specialist Group, which functions under IUCN’s World Commission on Environmental Law. Chaired by John Scanlon AO, Executive President, International Council of Environmental Law, with Ana Motamayor, Policy Advisor at the Global Initiative to End Wildlife Crime, serving as Deputy Chair, the group brings together a wealth of expertise on environmental crime and conservation.
APAC Dialogue explores environmental crime risk to finance and transport sectors
The latest Asia-Pacific Regional Private Sector Dialogue (PSD) on the disruption of financial crimes related to crimes that affect the environment convened in Kuala Lumpur in May, with representatives from the transport sector joining the discussion for the first time. Organised by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, INTERPOL, and WRI – which hosts the Nature Crime Alliance – in partnership with United for Wildlife, the PSDs aim to improve the private sector’s understanding of environmental crimes and related risk. The latest Dialogue, hosted by the Asian Development Bank, brought together government representatives from 18 countries, 14 private sector organisations and 13 civil society and academic institutions.
The inclusion of representatives from the shipping and transport sector saw new topics explored in the Dialogue, including methods for improving vessel screening and identifying risk indicators such as high-risk ports, flags of convenience or links to sanctioned entities. The post-session evaluation questionnaire reported that 100% of participants found the Dialogue enabled them or their organisation to identify new risk indicators, red flags and/or suspicious transactions of financial crimes related to environmental crimes, while 88% reported that the inclusion of the transport sector in the Dialogue, alongside the private financial sector, was extremely valuable.
Exploring a potential UNTOC protocol on crimes that affect the environment
Lynn Schlingemann, Senior Associate, Financial Crime and Corruption, WRI, participated in a roundtable discussion in May on a potential new protocol on crimes that affect the environment (CAE) under the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC). Organised by the Dutch Ministry of Justice and Security and the Permanent Mission in Vienna, the session brought together policy officers and experts from a range of organisations, including Alliance members Wildlife Justice Commission and Wildlife Conservation Society, to discuss such a protocol, which could bring a range of benefits to bolster the global fight against environmental crime.
The UNTOC is the principal international legal framework for combating organised crime, and provides several tools that support law enforcement action. These include mechanisms that enable deeper levels of international cooperation, such as the sharing of financial information to support joint investigations, the provision of technical assistance, and measures to assist in asset recovery. A new CAE protocol would extend the Convention’s operational framework to environmental crimes, enabling its cooperation mechanisms to be applied more consistently across jurisdictions. A key opportunity to drive progress on a new protocol is the upcoming Conference of the Parties to the UNTOC which takes place in Vienna this October.
Find out more about a potential CAE protocol in this GI-TOC podcast featuring John Scanlon AO, Executive President, International Council of Environmental Law, and Frances Craigie, Chief Director, Enforcement, South African National Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment. The Wildlife Justice Commission has published a helpful blog on developments around international legal frameworks, including the UNTOC, which you can read here.
Journalists discuss nature crime investigations at Mongabay’s ‘PUMA FEST’
Image: Alexa Velez (Mongabay Latam)
Ruth Nogueron, Senior Associate at WRI, spoke at the PUMA FEST Latin American Environmental Journalism Festival in Bogotá, Colombia, last week, where she demonstrated the power of satellite-derived information and artificial intelligence (AI) in investigating nature crimes. The festival, organised by Mongabay Latam, brought together journalists, scholars, students and other practitioners at the intersection of journalism and environmental issues. Ruth spoke on a panel that explored technologies such as geospatial monitoring and AI, and their application for investigative journalism. She introduced the Global Nature Watch platform and its forest monitoring systems, and shared examples of its use in identifying environmental crimes including illegal logging and illegal deforestation.
Dutch stakeholders briefed on role of open source intelligence in countering illegal timber trafficking and waste crime
The Alliance team presented and participated in two Open Source Intelligence (OSINT) days in the Netherlands focused on waste and pollution crime and illegal timber trafficking. The event brought together representatives from a range of Dutch organisations including the Environmental Protection Agency, Financial Intelligence Unit, tax authority, police, and several banks. Lynn Schlingemann, Senior Associate, Financial Crime and Corruption, WRI, presented work under the EU ENCORE project on risk indicators linked to corruption and waste and pollution crimes. Additionally, Sarah Carter from Global Nature Watch, WRI, presented on how satellite imagery combined with financial and trade data may help identify deforestation risks and high-risk supply chains.
WATCH | Webinar unpacks findings from forest legality project in Cameroon
From 2021 to 2026, WRI, together with Centre pour l’Environnement et le Développement, Forêts et Développement Rural and Field Legality Advisory Group, implemented a project, supported by the European Union, to strengthen transparency in forest operations and improve forest legality in Cameroon through independent forest monitoring. A recent webinar shared learnings from the project, which identified several challenges in the country. These include insufficient numbers of enforcement agents to cover mangrove areas, lost tax revenues linked to illegal logging, and examples of suspicious company activities. The need for cross-sector collaboration and efforts to build trust were also explored in the webinar. Read a summary of the session on the Forest Governance and Policy website.
Use YouTube Settings icon in video to select English or French audio
Guidelines on productive collaboration between civil society and law enforcement
The recent announcement of a new partnership between IUCN and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime to tackle environmental crime (see ‘News from our Network’, below) highlights the value of multi-sector approaches to this complex challenge. In December, the Alliance team, in collaboration with the INTERPOL Wildlife Crime Working Group and United for Wildlife, published a set of Guidelines to support productive collaboration between civil society organisations and law enforcement on environmental crime.
Analysis: Science is giving forest law enforcement a new edge
A recent WRI Insights article explores how traceability technologies promise to transform law enforcement approaches to illegal timber. Centered on examples from Indonesia, the article highlights how forensic wood identification techniques such as DNA and isotope analysis can identify the precise origin of timber, enabling authorities to verify claims in logging documentation as to the source of forest products.
NEWS FROM OUR NETWORK
Small grants opportunity for projects that advance the global 30×30 target
The High Ambition Coalition for Nature and People (HAC for N&P) has launched its Second Cycle of the Rapid Deployment Mechanism (RDM), a small grants programme supporting developing country members in advancing the global 30×30 target. In its first edition, the RDM awarded 10 grants of up to $50,000 to projects in Ghana, Kenya, Colombia, Maldives, Peru, Burkina Faso, Thailand, Malawi, Cook Islands, and Madagascar. These projects supported actions such as protected area designation, spatial planning, identification of OECMs, community-led conservation, and strengthening protected area management.
Supported by the Earthshot Prize and British Airways, the HAC for N&P, which is hosted by World Resources Institute and the Global Environment Facility, will award 10 grants ranging from $25,000 to $50,000, with successful applicants announced at COP17 in October 2026. Find out more
Taskforce on Nature Related Financial Disclosure (TNFD) seeking inputs on environmental crime guidance
The Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) is holding an open consultation on a draft paper that presents guidance on incorporating environmental crime considerations into organisations’ nature-related dependencies, impacts, risks and opportunities. TNFD has published a Discussion Paper that explores a range of environmental crimes, including illegal mining, illegal fishing and wildlife trafficking, and are seeking inputs from stakeholders. The consultation closes on 7 August 2026. View the Discussion Paper
IUCN and UNODC launch strategic partnership on crimes that affect the environment
IUCN and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) have launched a strategic partnership agreement to deepen cooperation in tackling crimes that affect the environment. The partnership, announced in June during the United Nations High-Level Meeting on Crimes that Affect the Environment at UN Headquarters in New York, aims to bridge the gap between conservation science and international criminal justice, addressing crimes such as wildlife trafficking, illegal logging, and fisheries crime. The IUCN US National Committee produced a good read out from the New York meeting here.
WWF and IFAW contribute to new guidance aimed at bolstering European environmental crime strategies
Alliance members IFAW and WWF are among several organisations to produce new guidance to help EU governments develop and execute effective national strategies to fight environmental crime. The guidance includes practical recommendations for governments preparing their national strategies, from designing science based approaches to recommendations for monitoring and reporting. View the Guidelines here
ELI’s Operation SANDOKAN reveals major wildlife trafficking networks across the Lower Mekong
Earth League International (ELI) has exposed wildlife trafficking networks in Cambodia with links across the Lower Mekong during a major undercover investigation. In a new report – Operation SANDOKAN: Unmasking the Lower Mekong’s Biggest Wildlife Traffickers – ELI documents undercover intelligence operations that reveal the scale of the illegal wildlife trade across Southeast Asia, the criminals who run it, and the corruption that sustains it. ELI has also produced a short film based on the operation to accompany the report. Read more
IFAW report highlights surge in online sales of primates in the US
A recent report from IFAW, developed with AZA and WWF, reveals how fragmented laws, inconsistent enforcement, online platform loopholes, and the normalisation of primates as pets are fueling demand for wildlife exploitation. Alongside documenting the scale of the trade, the ‘Primates for Purchase‘ report outlines practical recommendations for policymakers, enforcement agencies, digital platforms, and the public to help reduce demand, strengthen protections for primates, and improve responses to wildlife trafficking and confiscation. Read the report
WFID publishes key findings from farmed shrimp research
World Forest ID (WFID) has published a new peer-reviewed paper on how chemical testing can be applied to farmed shrimp, supporting transparent supply chains, sourcing integrity, and responsible producers. The paper follows a WFID investigation, published in April, into farmed shrimp, which found that many products sold in supermarkets do not match their declared origin. Read the latest paper
Applications open for virtual media workshop on forest governance
Earth Journalism Network is hosting a two-day virtual media workshop in October on forest governance, primarily aimed at journalists from Ghana, Liberia and Cameroon. Journalists from forest risk commodity consumer markets in Europe and Asia (such as the European Union, United Kingdom, China and India) are also encouraged to apply. The workshop, which convenes on 21-22 October, aims to strengthen journalists’ knowledge of forest governance issues and improve their reporting on challenges and solutions in sustainable forest management. The deadline for applying is 13 August. Find out more and apply here
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Journalists explore nature crime investigations at Mongabay’s ‘PUMA FEST’
Image: Alexa Velez (Mongabay Latam)
Ruth Nogueron, Senior Associate at World Resources Institute, which runs the Nature Crime Alliance, spoke at the PUMA FEST Latin American Environmental Journalism Festival in Bogotá, Colombia, last week, where she demonstrated the power of satellite-derived information and artificial intelligence (AI) in investigating environmental crimes.
The festival, organised by Mongabay Latam, brought together journalists, scholars, students and other practitioners at the intersection of journalism and environmental issues.
Ruth spoke on a panel that explored technologies such as geospatial monitoring and AI, and their application for investigative journalism. She introduced the Global Nature Watch platform and its forest monitoring systems, and shared examples of its use in identifying environmental crimes including illegal logging and illegal deforestation.
The PUMA FEST conference aimed to equip independent investigative journalists with tools, methodologies and connections to support them to investigate environmental issues, including nature crime, given the well-established impact that journalism has on raising public awareness and increasing political will to fight these crimes.
APAC Dialogue explores environmental crime risk to finance and transport sectors
The latest Asia-Pacific Regional Private Sector Dialogue (PSD) on the disruption of financial crimes related to crimes that affect the environment convened in Kuala Lumpur in May, with representatives from the transport sector joining the discussion for the first time.
Organised by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, INTERPOL, and World Resources Institute (WRI) – which hosts the Nature Crime Alliance – in partnership with United for Wildlife, the PSDs aim to improve the private sector’s understanding of environmental crimes and related risk.
The latest Dialogue brought together government representatives from 18 countries, 14 private sector organisations and 13 civil society and academic institutions.
Transport sector joins the discussion
The inclusion of representatives from the shipping and transport sector saw new topics explored in the Dialogue, including methods for improving vessel screening and identifying risk indicators – such as high-risk ports, flags of convenience or links to sanctioned entities. In addition, various tools for improving due diligence and ‘know your customer’ screening, including the use of mapping and satellite imagery, were highlighted by subject matter experts.
The value of public-private partnerships in disrupting financial crime linked to environmental crime was also highlighted during the session, which was hosted by the Asian Development Bank. Participants showcased how well-designed public-private partnerships are delivering tangible investigative leads, drawing on case studies from previous PSDs.
Particular attention was given to the importance of improved feedback loops between the public and private sectors for accelerating operational cooperation resulting in the disruption of environmental crimes.
Adding value
This was the second meeting of the Asia Pacific Regional PSD, which first took place in Singapore in 2024. The post-dialogue evaluation questionnaire reported that 100% of participants found the Dialogue enabled them or their organisation to identify new risk indicators, red flags and/or suspicious transactions of financial crimes related to environmental crimes, while 88% reported that the inclusion of the transport sector in the Dialogue, alongside the private financial sector, was extremely valuable.
The Dialogue was Chaired by John Edward Conway, Executive Secretary of the Wolfsberg Group and Laode Muhammad Syarif, Senior Lecturer at the Hasanuddin University Law School and Former Commissioner of the Corruption Eradication Commission of the Republic of Indonesia. Lynn Schlingemann, Senior Associate Financial Crime and Corruption, WRI, coordinated the session.
For more information on the PSDs, please contact Lynn.Schlingemann@wri.org
Alliance Director joins IUCN Specialist Group on environmental crime
The Director of the Nature Crime Alliance has joined a new IUCN Specialist Group focused on implementing IUCN Resolution 8.048 on Crimes that Affect the Environment, which was adopted at the World Conservation Congress in October.
Dr Charles ‘Chip’ Barber, who serves as Director of Natural Resources Governance and Policy at World Resources Institute (WRI), which hosts the Alliance, has been invited to join the IUCN WCEL Crimes that Affect the Environment Specialist Group, which functions under IUCN’s World Commission on Environmental Law.
Chaired by John Scanlon AO, Executive President, International Council of Environmental Law, with Ana Motamayor, Policy Advisor at the Global Initiative to End Wildlife Crime, serving as Deputy Chair, the group brings together a wealth of expertise on environmental crime and conservation.
Other members include:
Alice Pasqualato, Global Policy Specialist – Wildlife Conservation Society
Brian Gonzales, Head of Protection of Endangered Species, WWF-Hong Kong
Greta Francesca Lori, Lead, Partnerships & Coalition Building, Daughters for Earth
Maud Lelievre, President, IUCN France National Committee
Matthew Baird, Director, Asian Research Institute for Environmental Law
Olivia Swaak-Goldman, Executive Director, Wildlife Justice Commission
Rodrigo Herrera, Director, Fundación para el Desarrollo de la Conservación (Bolivia)
Scott Hajost, Senior Environmental and Wildlife Policy Advisor, National Whistleblower Center
Zara Bending, Expert – Jane Goodall Institute Global
Resolution 8.048 was adopted with strong support at last year’s Congress following fruitful coordination between the International Council on Environmental Law, WRI, and many IUCN member organisations, including members of the Nature Crime Alliance.
Dr. Barber said: “Environmental crime fuels deforestation, drives biodiversity loss, and causes immense human suffering, stealing resources and revenue from communities and countries alike.
“I’m looking forward to working with leading experts in the Specialist Group to support the implementation of Resolution 8.048, which provides a mandate for IUCN to incorporate efforts to tackle these crimes within its workplan and encourages governments to address this issue at the national level.”
Parties interested in joining the Specialist Group can contact Ana Motamayor at ana.icelinternational@gmail.com
WATCH: Geospatial monitoring and forest crime
The Nature Crime Alliance brought its members and more than 450 stakeholders together for an information exchange on how geospatial monitoring technologies can counter forest crimes.
Held in partnership with Global Forest Watch, the session showcased perspectives from law enforcement, Indigenous communities, governments, and civil society on the role of these technologies – which use satellite imagery to monitor changes to the Earth’s landscape – in tackling crimes such as illegal logging and illegal mining.
Enforcement efforts in Madagascar
Caitlin Eschmann, Executive Director of Conservation Allies, a member of the Nature Crime Alliance, shared examples from Madagascar, where they work with law enforcement and community partners to identify deforestation in Protected Areas using Global Forest Watch data, and organise interventions. This includes the creation of ‘conservation brigades’ that are having a positive impact in protecting forests in the country. In the Menabe Antimena Protected Area, where conservation brigades operate, deforestation fell by more than 50% between 2023 and 2024, Caitlin said.
Caitlin was joined by Paul Salaman, President of Conservation Allies, for a Q&A session with the audience in which they shared insights from Conservation Allies’ success. The organisation now publishes an annual report on the state of Protected Areas in Madagascar to help policymakers and funders understand the situation on the ground. They are interested in expanding this approach to other geographies. Read the Madagascar Protected Areas Outlook here.
Community and prosecutor experiences in Peru
The focus then turned to Peru, with perspectives from Betty Rubio, Technology Transfer Specialist with the Organisation of Indigenous Peoples of the East (ORPIO), Peru. Betty spoke about the range of information collected by geospatial monitoring that can indicate potential harm to Indigenous territories, which is then passed on to enforcement authorities. This enables immediate action against threats.
Participants also heard from Bratzon Torres Saboya, Adjunct Provincial Prosecutor, Specialized Bureau on Environmental Crimes, Public Prosecutor’s Office of Peru, who discussed how geospatial data is combined with other intelligence, including information gathered in collaboration with the air force, to identify and disrupt criminal actors threatening the Peruvian Amazon.
Innovative uses in Guatemala
The session concluded with insights from Danger Gomez, Head of Geospatial Information Systems, National Forest Institute (INAB) of Guatemala, who discussed how INAB uses deforestation alerts based on geospatial data to identify potential breaches of conservation incentive schemes. Danger discussed the automated system INAB has built to facilitate this monitoring across Guatemala’s forests.
The webinar brought together more than 450 representatives from governments, law enforcement, Indigenous communities, philanthropies, and civil society to learn from our speakers’ experiences. It was moderated by Ruth Nogueron and Luke Foddy and was produced by Isabela Barriga, World Resources Institute.
WATCH THE SESSION IN FULL (ES and FR versions below)
English version
Versión en español
Version française
WEBINAR: Geospatial monitoring and forest crime
The Nature Crime Alliance, in partnership with Global Forest Watch (GFW), is hosting an information exchange with members and other key stakeholders on the use of geospatial monitoring in countering forest crime.
The session will see practitioners share their experiences of applying these technologies in contexts such as illegal logging and mining, and the lessons they have learned that could support others’ efforts elsewhere.
Speakers include:
- Bratzon Saboya Torres, Adjunct Provincial Prosecutor, Specialized Bureau on Environmental Crimes, Peru’s Public Prosecutor’s Office
- Caitlin Eschmann, Executive Director, and Paul Salaman, President, Conservation Allies
- Betty Rubio, Technology Transfer Specialist, Napo River Basin, Organisation of Indigenous Peoples of the East (ORPIO), Peru
- Danger Gomez, Head of Geospatial Information Systems, National Forest Institute (INAB), Guatemala
There will be presentations in English and Spanish, with live interpretation into French, Spanish and English available. Join us on Zoom at 10am ET/ 4pm CET on Tuesday 21 April.
Alliance expert briefs UN officials on forest crime
Key aspects of forest crime and the solutions to tackling this global challenge were explored by Elodie Perrat, Senior Manager at the Nature Crime Alliance, during a briefing with UN officials convened to mark World Wildlife Day.
Elodie, the Alliance’s policy lead, spoke at the ‘Conserving our Forests: Challenges and Opportunities for Combatting Forest Crime’ meeting in New York, hosted by the Permanent Missions to the UN of Germany, Gabon, and Brazil, and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
The role of organised crime and corruption
Elodie highlighted how illegal deforestation and logging are not marginal compliance failures. They are structured, deliberate, and financially sophisticated crimes, often conducted by organised criminal networks and enabled by corruption.
The same criminal actors involved diversify across illegal logging, mining, land grabbing, wildlife trafficking, and financial crime across the Amazon Basin, Congo Basin, and Southeast Asia, Perrat said, drawing on insights from the UNODC’s report ‘Forest Crimes: Illegal Deforestation and Logging’, part of the 2025 Global Analysis on Crimes that Affect the Environment and the ‘People, Planet, Justice‘ report, published by World Resources Institute (WRI), host of the Nature Crime Alliance, last year.
A key challenge is market infiltration, Elodie noted, with illegal timber entering legal supply chains through fraudulent documentation, corrupt concessions, and trade mis-invoicing. “Forest crime does not sit outside the global economy, it hides within it,” she said.
Engaging the financial system in the response to these crimes is essential. “The $51–152 billion generated annually from illegal logging flows largely undetected through the global financial system — because environmental crime is still barely treated as a predicate offence under anti-money laundering frameworks,” Elodie said. “We’ve built systems to regulate timber. We haven’t built systems to regulate the money it generates. Until we do, we’re addressing symptoms.”
Initiatives like the Global and Regional Private Sector Dialogues, convened by Nature Crime Alliance members UNODC, WRI, and INTERPOL, have demonstrated the value of engaging the financial system to counter these crimes.
Priority actions
During her remarks, Elodie set out seven priority actions that should shape the global response:
Strengthen the international legal architecture. The second meeting of the Intergovernmental Expert Group (IEG) on crimes that affect the environment under the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC) in Vienna last week ended without consensus — but a larger number of countries than previously expressed support for a Protocol. The failure was in the process, not the principle.
Treat forest crime as financial crime. Nature crime proceeds must be integrated into anti-money laundering frameworks as predicate offences — enforcement must follow the money, not just the chainsaws.
Close the displacement gap in trade regulation. Regulations like the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) risk generating displacement without coordinated enforcement. Due diligence in importing countries must be matched by equivalent measures in producer countries.
Strengthen transnational enforcement cooperation. Intelligence must flow across customs, finance, and environmental authorities. Regional Private Sector Dialogues bringing together FIUs, banks, and enforcement agencies should be scaled.
Secure forest frontiers through rights-based governance. Land tenure for Indigenous and forest-dependent communities must be strengthened — their displacement creates the governance vacuums that criminal actors exploit.
Protect forest defenders as an enforcement strategy. Legal protection and accountability for attacks on defenders are not peripheral human rights concerns. They are operational enforcement priorities.
Align climate, biodiversity, and crime agendas. Meeting 2030 deforestation commitments is impossible while treating the criminal economy driving deforestation as a separate problem. These agendas must converge in institutions, funding, and political will.
Other Alliance members to participate in the briefing were the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), INTERPOL, UNODC and IUCN.
For more information, please contact Elodie directly at elodie.perrat@wri.org
Strengthening Environmental Crime Journalism: Insights and Recommendations from a Global Training
A new briefing paper released by the Nature Crime Alliance and our members the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI) and the Financial Accountability and Corporate Transparency (FACT) Coalition sheds light on the key challenges facing investigative journalists reporting on environmental crime worldwide — and outlines practical recommendations to strengthen the field.
Empowering Investigative Journalism on Environmental Crime: Insights from a Global Training, draws on discussions and survey findings from a specialised training workshop held from 29 September to 1 October 2025. The workshop brought together more than 110 journalists and communications professionals from across the globe to deepen their understanding of environmental crime, investigative techniques and crime convergence dynamics.
A growing threat, an urgent need for action
Environmental crime has become a lucrative pillar of transnational organised crime, driving deforestation, pollution and biodiversity loss while undermining governance and sustainable development. Yet it remains underreported and poorly understood by the public.
Investigative journalism plays a critical role in exposing illicit networks, tracing financial flows and uncovering systemic weaknesses that enable environmental crime to flourish. This new briefing highlights how journalists are often the first to reveal crimes that later prompt policy and enforcement responses.
However, the report identifies significant structural and operational barriers that limit the impact of environmental crime reporting.
Key findings
Based on responses from participants, the briefing identifies several recurring challenges:
– Limited access to reliable and affordable data, including scientific datasets and high-resolution imagery
– Insufficient funding for in-depth investigations
– Personal safety risks and the need for stronger digital security training
– Limited structured cooperation between journalists and law enforcement agencies
– The growing complexity of crime convergence, where environmental offences intersect with financial crime, corruption and other illicit activities
The findings suggest that demand for financial and technical support continues to outstrip available opportunities, particularly in relation to fellowships, grants and access to investigative tools.
From training to action
The briefing builds on a three-day online workshop convened by the Nature Crime Alliance — hosted by the World Resources Institute — in partnership with UNICRI and the FACT Coalition. The training featured contributions from experts in environmental enforcement, financial transparency, satellite monitoring and investigative reporting.
Through expert lectures, case studies and practical sessions, participants explored how to investigate environmental crime in complex and restricted contexts, including through the use of satellite imagery, open-source intelligence and financial analysis. Insights gathered during the training informed the report’s recommendations, which include:
– Establishing a centralised environmental crime data platform
– Developing guidelines to facilitate collaboration between journalists and law enforcement
– Creating cross-sector networks to promote information exchange and capacity-building
Strengthening accountability through journalism
At a time of significant shifts across global aid, development and philanthropic funding landscapes, the report underscores the importance of sustained investment in environmental crime journalism. Strengthening investigative capacity, improving access to data and fostering cross-sector dialogue are essential to ensuring that environmental crime is exposed and addressed effectively.
By equipping journalists with the tools, partnerships and institutional support they need, the international community can reinforce accountability and contribute to more effective responses to environmental crime. Personal safety risks and gaps in technical and investigative skills were cited as significant barriers to effective reporting.
The survey highlights a global need for more financial and technical support for environmental crime journalism, with respondents citing a need for fellowships and grants, improved access to data, and mentorship opportunities.
Participants also identified networking opportunities, enabling journalists to engage with experts from law enforcement and NGOs, as a key area that would support more accurate and impactful reporting on environmental crime.
READ THE PAPERConservation Allies joins the Nature Crime Alliance
The Nature Crime Alliance has welcomed Conservation Allies as its latest member.
Conservation Allies is a unique not-for-profit that helps organisations access the financial resources they need to make a major impact on biodiversity conservation.
Based in Washington DC, the organisation works globally, mobilising financial resources to support on-the-ground nature protection against illegal activities across Africa, Asia and Latin America.
Alongside financing the IUCN International Ranger Award – which recognises rangers from across the planet who put their lives at risk in the protection of nature – Conservation Allies supports a wide range of local and national NGOs to confront environmental crime.
This ranges from strengthening operational capacity of organisations tackling nature crime in Colombia and Ecuador, to financing environmental lawyers in Madagascar to ensure perpetrators are pursued and prosecuted.
Dr Caitlin Eschmann, Executive Director of Conservation Allies, commented: “Conservation Allies is greatly concerned with the growing pressure on wildlife and protected areas from individuals, communities, organised crime and others that threaten the survival of many species and protected areas. There is no time more urgent and necessary than now to work together with multi-sector partners through the Nature Crime Alliance towards the common goal of protecting nature.
“Conservation Allies and our dozens of local conservation partners looks forward to collaborating in the Alliance.”
Launched in August 2023, the Nature Crime Alliance is a multi-sector network that brings organisations together to find ways to bolster operational capacity and mobilise financial commitments to where they are needed most.
Dr Charles ‘Chip’ Barber, Director of the Nature Crime Alliance, which is hosted by World Resources Institute, said: “Conservation Allies does crucial work in supporting those on the frontline against environmental crime. We look forward to helping them deepen their work in this space and find new partnership opportunities among the Alliance network.”
Building momentum on environmental crime: Why 2026 matters
Elodie Perrat, Senior Manager, Nature Crime Alliance Secretariat, shares her thoughts on the key moments that could drive international progress on environmental crime this year.
Environmental crime—such as illegal mining, logging, fishing, and wildlife trafficking—continues to devastate ecosystems, undermine livelihoods, and fuel corruption and human rights abuses. Increasingly, governments recognise that global biodiversity and climate goals cannot be met without addressing these crimes more effectively. Yet international responses remain fragmented, spread across environmental, criminal justice, and financial governance systems that often operate in silos.
Against this backdrop, 2026 presents a series of policy moments that could help shift the international response to environmental crime from piecemeal action toward a more coherent and coordinated architecture. Building on important breakthroughs in 2025, these moments span criminal justice, illicit finance, environmental governance, and multilateral diplomacy. Whether they translate into durable change will depend on governments’ ability to align action across these domains and move decisively from political commitments to implementation.
Strengthening the criminal justice response
At the heart of this momentum is the international criminal justice system. The 15th UN Crime Congress, convening in Abu Dhabi from 15–30 April, offers a major opportunity to consolidate global attention on crimes that affect the environment. The Congress follows the IUCN World Conservation Congress, also hosted in Abu Dhabi in October 2025, which adopted a resolution on crimes that affect the environment—firmly anchoring the issue within the global conservation agenda.
The proximity of these two major gatherings is significant. At the IUCN Congress, discussions repeatedly underscored the need to carry conservation momentum into criminal justice processes. This was reflected in a session convened by the UAE Interior Ministry on the role of law enforcement in addressing environmental crime, with contributions from the Ministry’s Foreign Affairs Bureau, Brazil’s Federal Police, France’s Gendarmerie Nationale, UNODC, and ESRI. These discussions highlighted growing recognition that environmental crime must be treated not only as an environmental issue, but as a serious, organised, and often transnational criminal threat.
The Crime Congress’s outcome document, the Abu Dhabi Declaration, is currently under negotiation and is expected to help set global priorities on crimes that affect the environment. If adopted with strong and specific language, it could consolidate international consensus and strengthen the mandate of UNODC and national criminal justice authorities to address these crimes more systematically.
Momentum may also build around a potential new protocol to the UN Convention against Transnational Organized Crime (UNTOC). Championed by the Global Initiative to End Wildlife Crime, a founding member of the Nature Crime Alliance, such a protocol would elevate environmental crimes within the UNTOC framework, alongside human trafficking, migrant smuggling, and firearms trafficking. The 2nd Meeting of the UNTOC Intergovernmental Expert Group on Environmental Crimes, convening in Vienna from 24–26 February, will be a key moment in shaping recommendations ahead of UNTOC COP13 later in the year.
Following the money
While criminal justice frameworks are essential, they are insufficient on their own. Environmental crime is driven by profit, and tackling its financial underpinnings is critical. In June, the UK Government will host an international summit on illicit finance, with illegal gold expected to feature prominently. Rising gold prices have intensified illegal, environmentally destructive mining, increasing pressure on governments to act.
The UK summit aims to build an international coalition to address illicit financial flows linked to illegal gold, including through stronger law enforcement cooperation. It follows a setback at the 7th UN Environment Assembly (UNEA-7), where proposals for a binding international minerals treaty were scaled back to a non-binding resolution—illustrating the political sensitivities surrounding extractive industries.
As attention turns to implementation, parallel discussions within financial integrity frameworks will be crucial. In particular, debates within FATF-related processes will shape whether crimes against the environment are treated consistently as predicate offences for money laundering. Progress in this area remains uneven, yet without it, efforts to disrupt the financial incentives driving environmental crime will remain limited.
Corruption, a key enabler of environmental crime, has received increased attention as well. At the 11th Conference of the States Parties to the UN Convention against Corruption (UNCAC), convened in Doha, Qatar, in December 2025, Member States adopted a new resolution on preventing and combating corruption related to crimes that affect the environment. Tabled by Brazil and Namibia, the resolution represents an important step forward. However, it stops short of fully integrating environmental crimes into anti-money laundering frameworks—highlighting an ongoing gap between political recognition and operational impact.
Environmental governance and regional leadership
Environmental crime is also increasingly recognised within environmental governance processes. As countries move into implementation of the Kunming–Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, addressing the illegal exploitation of natural resources will be essential to achieving biodiversity targets. This reinforces the need for stronger alignment between biodiversity policy and criminal justice responses.
In Europe, a landmark development occurred in December 2025, when the European Union signed the Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of the Environment through Criminal Law. As the first international legally binding instrument dedicated specifically to environmental crime, the Convention goes beyond the EU Directive’s minimum standards by establishing common definitions and criminalisation requirements. It obliges Parties to ensure that serious environmental offences are punishable by effective, proportionate, and dissuasive sanctions, creating a framework with potential relevance well beyond Europe.
UNEA-7 and its follow-up processes will remain important spaces to watch in 2026, particularly for issues such as illegal mining, mercury use, and environmentally harmful supply chains. While recent negotiations have exposed political sensitivities, UNEA remains a critical forum for bridging environmental and criminal justice agendas.
Political coalitions and multilateral momentum
Beyond formal treaties and resolutions, political momentum is also building through coalitions and declarations. At the G20 Leaders’ Summit in Johannesburg in November 2025, the Leaders’ Declaration referenced several issues closely linked to environmental crime, including illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing, corruption, whistleblower protections, and implementation of UNCAC. It also cited the Cape Town Ministerial Declaration on Crimes that Affect the Environment, recognising the urgent need to strengthen national responses.
Further momentum emerged in Rio de Janeiro at the United for Wildlife Environmental Crime Summit and the International Wildlife Crime Conference. Two outcomes were particularly significant: the launch of the Coalition for Multilateral Action against Crimes that Affect the Environment, led by Brazil, and the signing of the Rio Declaration on Crimes that Affect the Environment by a growing number of countries, supported by civil society stakeholders.
With Brazil playing a prominent convening role across environmental and climate fora, climate-related processes—including COP follow-up—may increasingly serve as platforms to highlight the climate impacts of environmental crime, particularly illegal deforestation and mining.
Members interested in collaborating on side events or related initiatives at upcoming international fora are encouraged to get in touch with Elodie Perrat, Senior Manager, Nature Crime Alliance, at elodie.perrat@wri.org
