Raising awareness of nature crime at European fora

The Nature Crime Alliance Secretariat has continued to support efforts to raise political will to fight nature crime, engaging with a range of governments, donors and industry experts.

Lynn Schlingemann, Senior Associate Financial Crime and Corruption, Nature Crime Alliance, spoke on a panel at the event, ‘Environmental Crime: Five years for the EU to turn the tide!’, held at the European Parliament on 26 March. Lynn discussed ways for better leveraging public and private sector efforts to prevent environmental crime and promote sustainable economies.

The event was organised by UNODC, TRAFFIC, WWF and the Spanish Guardia Civil, and was hosted by key European policymakers Sirpa Pietikäinen (Finland), Marie Toussaint (France) and Michal Wiezik (Slovakia).

The session highlighted the urgency of tackling environmental crime, the sophisticated criminal networks behind it, and necessary actions for stakeholders. Discussions covered the EU’s policy, trade, security, and financial responses, emphasising the effective implementation of the Environmental Crime Directive, the prioritisation of environmental crime in EMPACT, and funding opportunities under the next EU budget.

Villars Summit

Schlingemann also participated in the Villars Summit in March, and joined a workshop on the illegal wildlife trade convened by the Royal Foundation and Villars Institute. The private workshop brought together 30 participants including leading experts, policymakers, and practitioners, from governments, donors, NGOs, academia, and think-tanks. 

Schlingemann presented on ways for better addressing financial crimes related to environmental crimes, highlighting key takeaways from the Private Sector Dialogues on disruption of financial crimes related to crimes that affect the environment. She also focused on challenges associated with detecting financial flows linked to the illegal wildlife trade and the needs for developing tailored approaches.