When the Conservative Party dropped a pledge to ban antique ivory sales from its 2017 manifesto, it became one of the most-read Facebook stories of the general election. The Tories had misjudged the depth of public feeling about this legal loophole, which wildlife campaigners claim contributes to the slaughter of more than 20,000 elephants a year.
A new law for a full ivory ban will consequently receive its final reading in the House of Lords later this month. But with poaching, pollution, habitat loss and climate change all now contributing to the sixth mass extinction of life on earth, an urgent underlying question remains: why do some people feel the threats to rare species so deeply, while others do not?
Subscribe to The New Statesman today from only £8.99 per month
Content from our partners
