Eliminating the Ivory Trade
If ivory had no commercial value there would be no incentive for anyone to kill elephants for their tusks. And, with adequate legislation and enforcement to ensure compliance - admittedly, huge challenges - one of the major threats to the survival of elephants would almost certainly disappear. Find out what you can do to help IFAW save the world's last surviving elephants.

Protecting Elephants from Poachers
Elephant poaching for ivory represents one of the greatest threats to elephant populations, especially in West and Central Africa. Since the partial lifting of the United Nations Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) ivory trade ban in 1997 and the one-off ivory stockpile sales to Japan and China in 1999 and 2008 respectively, poaching has increased in certain parts of Africa and Asia. In response, IFAW conducts assessments of the capacity of specific West and Central Africa nations to prevent ivory poaching, then works with those governments to provide the training, equipment and support they need to succeed.

Securing Elephant Habitats
In India, China and some African countries, we're working with local governments and communities to resolve conflicts between animals and people, promoting the creation of trans-boundary protected areas that give elephants the space they need to live, and helping to rebuild and strengthen national parks.

Living with Elephants
As human populations in elephant range states increase, elephants are squeezed into smaller and smaller areas. This causes more conflicts over space, food and water. IFAW works to preempt and defuse these conflicts with practical and humane solutions that meet the needs of elephants and the people who live with them.