Category Archives: China

Africa, Animal Rights, Biodiversity, China, Christopher J. Gervais, conservation, Dehorning, Documentary Films, Endangered Species, environment, Extinction, Film Festival, Hunting, Illegal Wildlife Trade, Nature Documentary, Nature Films, New York City, Poaching, Power of Film, Rhino, Rhino horn, Rhinos, Uncategorized, Vietnam, WCFF, wildlife, Wildlife Conservation, Wildlife Conservation Film Festival, Wildlife Crime, Wildlife Documentary, Wildlife Films, Zakouma National Park

Rhino’s return to Chad

May 14, 2018 christopherjgervais Leave a comment

Six black rhino return to Zakouma National Park in Chad. The species has not been seen in this country for nearly 50 years after having been killed off by poachers.

The population of black rhinos is down nearly 98% since 1960 with an estimate at just 5,000 black rhinos remaining in Africa. Poaching for their horns, used in traditional medicine in Asia continues to be significant threat to their survival.

The WCFF informs, engage and inspires wildlife conservation through the power of film. Join us for our eight year anniversary in New York, NY, October 18-28, 2018. Ten days of film screenings, pan el discussions, receptions, field trips, networking, Virtual Reality and more. Get your 2018 All Access Film Festival pass today: http://www.wcff.org/nyc-festival-2018/

Contact: info@wcff.org to join the planning committee. Sponsor the film festival, advertise on the big screen during the outdoor summer series and the October festival. Take a page in the full color program book to be distributed in Africa, Australia, China, Europe, India, North and South America.

Christopher J. Gervais, FRGS
Twitter: @CJGERVAIS
Christopher@WCFF.org

Wildlife Conservation Film Festival
October 18-28, 2018 | New York, NY
http://www.WCFF.org
Facebook.com/WCFForg
Twitter: @WCFF_org
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Antartctic Ocean, Asia, Atlantic Ocean, Biodiversity, Cetaceans, China, Christopher J. Gervais, conservation, Documentary Films, Dolphins, Endangered Species, environment, Film Festival, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Marine Mammals, Micro plastics, Nature Documentary, Nature Films, New York City, Nigeria, Ocean, Ocean Pollution, Oceans, Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch, phytoplankton, Plastic Bags, Plastic Debris, Plastic Pollution, Plastic Sea, Plastic Straws. Micro Plastics, Plastic Trash, Plastic Water Bottles, Power of Film, River, Sea Turtles, Seabirds, Sharks, Single-Use Plastic Straws, Uncategorized, WCFF, Whales, Wildlife Conservation, Wildlife Conservation Film Festival, Wildlife Documentary, Wildlife Films

Five trillion pounds of plastic garbage floats in the seas

May 1, 2018 christopherjgervais Leave a comment

Recent study indicates between 88 to 95% of the plastic polluting the world’s oceans pours in from just ten rivers, eight are in Asia and the remaining two in Africa. These rivers account for about five trillion pounds of plastic garbage that is floating in the seas.

The Ganges River in India is responsible for about 1.2 billion pounds, while the Yangtze has been estimated in previous research to dump some 727 million pounds of plastic into the ocean’s each year.

A combination of the Xi, Dong and Zhujiang Rivers (233 million lbs per year) in China as well as four Indonesian rivers: the Brantas (85 million lbs annually), Solo (71 million pounds per year), Serayu (37 million lbs per year) and Progo (28 million lbs per year), are all large contributors.

It is estimated that over 200 million marine mammals, seabirds and sea turtles are killed each year by ingesting plastic garbage in the ocean.

Christopher J. Gervais, FRGS
Twitter: @CJGERVAIS
Christopher@WCFF.org

Asia, Bear Bile, Bears, Biodiversity, Borneo, Cambodia, China, Christopher J. Gervais, conservation, Deforestation, Documentary Films, Endangered Species, environment, habitat destruction, Illegal Wildlife Trade, India, Indonesia, Nature Documentary, Nature Films, New York City, Power of Film, Rainforest, Uncategorized, Vietnam, WCFF, wildlife, Wildlife Conservation, Wildlife Conservation Film Festival, Wildlife Documentary, Wildlife Films

Malayan Sun Bear film to screen at 2018 WCFF

April 27, 2018 christopherjgervais Leave a comment

“Big Pygmies Little Giants” produced and directed by Dr. Audrey Low and Howard Jackson is an official selection to the 2018 WCFF this October in New York.

The Sun Bear is the smallest member of the bear family and is found in southeast Asia from southern China to eastern India and as far south as Indonesia, sun bears, also called Malayan sun bears, take their name from the bib-shaped golden or white patch on their chest, which legend says represents the rising sun. They have a stocky, muscular build, small ears, and a short muzzle, which has earned them the nickname “dog bear.” Their sleek, black coat is short to avoid overheating in the tropical weather but thick and coarse to provide protection from twigs, branches, and rain.

The WCFF mission is to inform, engage and inspire wildlife conservation through the power of film. Join us for our eight year anniversary October 18-28, 2018. Ten days with over 100 documentary films screened, many World and North America premieres. Panel discussions, receptions, field trips, networking, virtual reality/360 and more. All Access Film Festival passes are available now for purchase: wcff.org/nyc-festival-2018/

Christopher J. Gervais, FRGS
Twitter: @CJGERVAIS
Christopher@WCFF.org

Africa, Animal Rights, Biodiversity, Botswana, China, Christopher J. Gervais, conservation, Dehorning, Documentary Films, Endangered Species, environment, Extinction, Film Festival, Hunting, Illegal Wildlife Trade, Kenya, Mammals, Nature Documentary, Nature Films, Poaching, Poaching, Power of Film, Rhino, Rhino horn, Rhinos, Rwanda, South Africa, Uncategorized, Vietnam, WCFF, WCFF Education Outreach, White Rhinocerous, wildlife, Wildlife Conservation, Wildlife Conservation Film Festival, Wildlife Crime, Wildlife Documentary, Wildlife Films, Zimbabwe

Dehorning Rhino – Official WCFF selection

February 25, 2018 christopherjgervais Leave a comment

Dehorning Rhino in the Wild, produced and directed by James and Sam Suter, is an official selection to the 2018 WCFF. This short documentary will screen this October in New York.

The WCFF mission is to Informs, Engage and Inspire wildlife conservation through the power of film. Join us for our eight year anniversary in New York, NY, October 18-28, 2018. Ten days of film screenings, panel discussions, receptions, field trips, networking, virtual reality and more.

World Pangolin Day

February 18, 2018 christopherjgervais Leave a comment

Today is World Pangolin Day. Pangolins are the only mammals that are covered in scales, which are made of keratin—just like our hair and finger nail. There are 8 species of pangolin, four in Asia and four in Africa, all are listed as Endangered Species. Some estimate 6,000 pangolins are killed by poachers every day, just over 2 million animals a year. Pangolins are the most illegally trafficked mammal on Earth. High demand for their scales & meat come from China & Vietnam

The WCFF informs, engage and inspires wildlife conservation through the power of film. Join us for our eight year anniversary in New York, NY, October 18-28, 2018. Ten days of film screenings, panel discussions, receptions, field trips, networking, Virtual Reality and more. This year we will screen short and feature films on Pangolins.

Christopher J. Gervais, FRGS
Twitter: @CJGERVAIS
Christopher@WCFF.org

Africa, Animal Rights, Big Cats, Biodiversity, Botswana, China, Christopher J. Gervais, conservation, Deforestation, Democratic Republic of Congo, Documentary Films, DRC, Elephants, Endangered Species, environment, Extinction, habitat destruction, Hunting, Illegal Wildlife Trade, Ivory, Mammals, Megafauna, Poaching, Poaching, Population, President Xi Jinping, Uncategorized, Urban Development, WCFF, wildlife, Wildlife Conservation, Wildlife Conservation Film Festival, Wildlife Corridor

China’s New Ban on Ivory

January 2, 2018 christopherjgervais Leave a comment

On Sunday, January 31 a total ban on Ivory in China was put into place. President Xi Jinping declared the import and export of elephant ivory to be illegal in the nation that has the world’s largest importer of elephant tusks for decades.

This ban will greatly reduce the number of elephants killed by poachers in Africa, which at one point was nearly 100 animals a day, over 30,000 annually. The partial ivory ban declared by China in 2017 helped reduce the number of elephants killed by nearly 40%. Now that a total ban is in place in China, conservationists hope this number will be reduced much further. The African Elephant population was near 10 million animals in 1900 and reduced to 1.2 million by the mid 1980’s. Today as few as 300,000 remain on the continent.

Poaching for ivory has been the biggest threat to the survival of the two species of Elephants in Africa, the Savannah and Forest Elephants. Loss of habitat and increased human population is another concern as urban development continues with the expansion of cities and roadways. The human population will soon reach 1 billion on the continent alone and this means less space for wildlife.

The establishment of wildlife corridors, connecting national parks and protected areas from one country to the next is the only hope for elephants, big cats, giraffes and of Africa’s wildlife both large and small.

Christopher J. Gervais, F.R.G.S.
Twitter: @CJGERVAIS
Christopher@WCFF.org

Cambodia, China, Christopher J. Gervais, Climate Change, conservation, Dali International Film Festival, Dali University, Documentary Films, Endangered Species, environment, Extinction, Film Festival, Illegal Wildlife Trade, Indonesia, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Malaysia, Nat Geo WILD, National Geographic, Ocean University of China, Uncategorized, WCFF, WCFF Education Outreach, Wild China Films, Wildlife Conservation, Wildlife Conservation Film Festival, Yunnan Arts University, Yunnan Tourism Group

Wildlife Conservation Film Festival in China

December 13, 2017 christopherjgervais Leave a comment

The WCFF recently returned from a two week trip to China where this unique film festival participated in the first Dali International Film Festival. The WCFF was invited by the Yunnan Tourism Group, Wild China and National Geographic. WCFF provided exceptional award winning content and both participated and hosted panel discussions. Discussions ranged from specific species, ecosystems, filming techniques and wildlife crime.

Long term partnerships have been established between the WCFF, Dali international Film Festival, Wild China Films and National Geographic. In discussion are future feature film projects in China, Cambodia, Malaysia and Indonesia, a potential series and the establishment of the WCFF education outreach program in China.

WCFF hosted film screenings over the course of ten days to over a thousand students representing Dali University, Yunnan Arts University, Kunming University of Science and Technology and Ocean University of China. Students and faculty from these institutions of higher learning were Informed, Engaged and Inspired via the power of film through the WCFF screenings and panel discussions.

WCFF will return to China in 2018 for more programs in Dali and Beijing. We are ever so grateful to our generous hosts that include: Yunnan Tourism Group, National Geographic, Wild China Films, CCTV, Dali Art House, NatGeoWild and the many volunteers, participants and friends made during our stay.

Christopher J. Gervais, F.R.G.S.
Twitter: @CJGERVAIS
Christopher@WCFF.org

Asia, Big Cats, Biodiversity, Cambodia, China, Christopher J. Gervais, conservation, Endangered Species, environment, Extinction, habitat destruction, Hunting, Indochinese Tiger, Poaching, tigers, Uncategorized, WCFF, wildlife, Wildlife Conservation, Wildlife Crime

Cambodia’s plan to reintroduce tigers

November 11, 2017 christopherjgervais Leave a comment

The Indochinese tiger (Panthera tigris corbetti) is one of the six living tiger subspecies, and is found in Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, and southwestern China.

The total population is less than 325 individuals in the wild. The largest population unit survives in Thailand estimated at 175 to 200 individuals. There are 75 individuals in Myanmar, and only 20 Indochinese tigers remain in Vietnam. The last tiger seen in China was 2009 in the Yunnan province.

As recently as 1999, Cambodia was home to one of the world’s largest tiger populations. Within a decade, the big cats had been eliminated from the country due to poaching and habitat loss. The last Indochinese tiger (Panthera tigris corbetti) was captured by camera trap roaming the lush Mondulkiri Province in the country’s east in 2007. Nearly 11 years later, none have been seen.

The Cambodian government is looking to change that. The Ministry of Environment announced in late September that it is moving forward with a plan, along with the WWF, to reintroduce tigers to Cambodia — a scheme that has drawn criticism from wildlife experts across the globe due to weak rule of law, rampant poaching and the destruction of Cambodia’s environment through illegal logging and other practices

However are there are a number of conservation organizations and scientists that feel now is not the right time to launch this program in Cambodia.

To read more visit: https://news.mongabay.com/2017/11/is-cambodias-plan-to-reintroduce-tigers-doomed-to-fail/?n3wsletter&utm_source=Mongabay+Newsletter&utm_campaign=1868686cdf-newsletter_2017_11_02&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_940652e1f4-1868686cdf-67233543

Christopher J. Gervais, F.R.G.S.
Twitter: @CJGERVAIS
Christopher@WCFF.org

Wildlife Conservation Film Festival
October 18-28, 2018
http://www.WCFF.org
Facebook.com/WCFForg
Twitter: @WCFF_org
Instagram: @wcff_org
Vimeo.com/wcff
LinkedIn: Wildlife Conservation Film Festival

Canada, China, Illegal Wildlife Trade, North America, Turtles, Uncategorized, Wildlife Smuggling

5 Years in Prison for Canadian Turtle Smuggler

May 2, 2016 christopherjgervais Leave a comment

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On April 12, Kai Xu, a Canadian man caught in 2014 attempting to smuggle 51 live turtles in his pants, was sentenced to fifty-seven months in prison by a US federal judge. According to prosecutors, Canadian border guards had found “41 turtles taped to his legs and 10 hidden between his legs”, and he had already sent over 1000 turtles to Shanghai in suitcases via a co-conspirator.

Since his arrest in September 2014, the 27-year-old has spent his days in prison. He has admitted he’s tried to smuggle over 1600 turtles, ranging in species from Eastern box turtles and red-eared sliders to Diamondback Terrapins, from the US to China between April 2014 and his arrest. The Associated Press reported that Xu entered Michigan multiple times to buy and ship turtles to China without a federal permit. Assistant US Attorney Sara Woodward noted his wildlife smuggling crimes to be among the largest in recent years.

Xu, who claimed in a letter to US District Judge John Corbett O’Meara to be selling the turtles in part to fund his college degree, thanked agents “for stopping the darkness of my greed and ignorance”, and expressed remorse for his actions. The sentencing marks a victory against the dangerous and widespread global trend of wildlife trafficking.

Source: Dasgupta, Shreya. “Turtle smuggler sentenced to five years in prison.” Mongabay, 18 April, 2016.

Wildlife Conservation Film Festival
Biodiversity & Wildlife Crime Conference
Christopher J. Gervais, F.R.G.S.
Founder & CEO
Christopher@WCFF.org
www.WCFF.org

Facebook.com/WCFForg
Twitter: @WCFF_org
Twitter: @CJGERVAIS
Instagram: @wcff_org
Vimeo.com/wcff
dailymotion.com/WCFF1
LinkedIn: Wildlife Conservation Film Festival

Africa, animal abuse, Animal Cruelty, Animal Rights, Biodiversity, China, Christopher J. Gervais, conservation, Elephants, Endangered Species, environment, Extinction, Illegal Wildlife Trade, Ivory, Poaching, Uncategorized, WCFF, wildlife, Wildlife Conservation, Wildlife Crime, Wildlife Smuggling

Caught: The Killers of Elephants

November 2, 2015 christopherjgervais Leave a comment

Boniface Matthew Mariango, “SHETANI” / “The DEVIL”

Boniface Matthew Mariango, “SHETANI” has spent the past years managing at least 15 poaching syndicates throughout Tanzania, Burundi, Zambia, Mozambique and southern Kenya, according to the Elephant Action League. Last Thursday he was arrested in Tanzania.

This arrest is another substantial breakthrough in Tanzania’s anti-poaching and anti-trafficking efforts, with implications also reaching into neighboring countries. Finally, those directly responsible for illegal Ivory trade are getting caught for the heinous crimes by international law enforcement.

Yang Fenglan, a Chinese national “The Queen of Ivory,”

It is believed that 96 elephants are killed every day, 35,000 a year in Africa by poachers for their valuable ivory. With only 400,000 elephants left in the Africa wild, it is believed that if this rate of mass murder continues, elephants will be extinct by the year 2025. Breakthrough arrests like Bonicafe Mariango and recently Ms. Yang Fenglan, a Chinese national “The Queen of Ivory,” cannot come soon enough.

Recent commitment to ban elephant ivory by President Barack Hussein Obama and Chinese Present Xi Jinping gives hope for elephants.

Wildlife Conservation Film Festival
& Biodiversity Conference
Christopher J. Gervais, FRGS
Founder & CEO
Christopher@WCFF.org
http://www.WCFF.org

Facebook.com/WCFForg
Twitter: @WCFF_org
Twitter: @CJGERVAIS
Instagram: @wcff_2014
Vimeo.com/wcff
LinkedIn: Wildlife Conservation Film Festival

From the Founder: Wildlife Conservation Film Festival