BITE Insight

An elephant is slaughtered every 15 minutes for its ivory.  The international trade in ivory is illegal, but many countries continue to allow trade within their borders. 

Following the recent and welcome announcement that the UK government is planning to ban ivory trading, conservation charity Stop Ivory is challenging other nations to follow suit with a hard-hitting new campaign by JWT London.

Called “Going, Going Gone”, the campaign consists of a film that takes place in an auction house with frantic bidding for a large, carved ivory tusk. As the gavel finally falls, a gunshot is heard and, with a spatter of blood, the buyer is suddenly confronted with the elephant that is dying for her prize.

The end line reads: “As long as ivory is being sold, elephants are being killed”  before calling for a total ban in 8 European languages.

With the convening of the Illegal Wildlife Trade Conference 2018 in London in October, this campaign seeks to use a critical opportunity to appeal to all countries that still trade ivory to follow the UK’s lead and implement a ban, as well as urge the UK government to pass their proposal into written law as soon as possible.