SAVE THE TIGER NEXT SEPTEMBER

UNCLAS VLADIVOSTOK 000110 E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: SENV PREL SCUL RS SUBJECT: SAVE THE TIGER NEXT SEPTEMBER REF: VLADIVOSTOK 108 -------------- Summary -------------- ¶1. (U) This is an action request. See paragraph two. Declining habitat, increased international awareness, and a star studded film festival create the "perfect storm" for a State Department program to help save the endangered Siberian tiger. Tigers were recovering in the Russian Far East for a number of years as Chinese enforcement of poaching laws reduced demand for tiger parts and skins. With declining enforcement on the Russian side, however, poachers have apparently found secure ways to kill, export, and market tigers abroad, and wildlife groups have been shocked to see tiger numbers crash by 40% (reftel) since the last census. These figures reinforce the necessity of a coordinated international effort to reduce pressure on these endangered big cats. Russians have the know-how to protect their tigers, but poaching and weak administration (rules and enforcement) are taking an immense toll. A "conservation culture" needs to be nurtured and embedded. The best way is to bring much greater public awareness to the issue. We have in the near future a great opportunity to achieve high visibility public outreach through events such as the 2010 Vladivostok International Film Festival, Tiger Day, or proposed Tiger Summit. End summary. -------------- Action Request -------------- ¶2. (U) Post proposes the Department, in coordination with the World Wildlife Fund, World Conservation Society and World Bank (which announced a big tiger conservation project in 2008) approach a well known celebrity conservationist, such as Harrison Ford, Conservation International Vice Chair, to come to Vladivostok to take part in the 2010 "Pacific Meridian" Film Festival, where Tiger protection will be a major theme of the festival. -------------- --- Siberian Tiger: Winning or Losing the Struggle -------------- --- ¶3. As the World Bank puts it "The health of the tiger population is an indicator of biodiversity and a barometer of sustainability." As with other global challenges, like climate chance, disease and poverty, the tiger crisis "overwhelms local capabilities and transcends national boundaries." Russia's Primorye Region is home to the world's remaining Siberian tigers. It is one of the key environmental battlegrounds where the struggle to save the tiger species will be won, or lost. 
 -------------- Spotlights and Curtains -------------- ¶4. A big spotlighted venue to promote tiger protection is the upcoming eighth international film festival "Pacific Meridian" to be held in Vladivostok in September 2010. This past year's theme was the space program, highlighting U.S.-Russian space cooperation and the 40-year anniversary of the moon landing. Last year's film festival attracted French megastar Catherine Deneuve and American astronaut Alvin Drew. Previous stars include Olympia Dukakis and Yul Brynner's son Rock Brynner. The festival attracts media, film stars, and producers from throughout the Pacific. Human trafficking was the theme in 2007. In both cases, these issues were widely covered by all media and supported by the Russian Ministry of Culture. A tiger theme would generate enormous enthusiasm. ¶5. The United States has a tradition of making a strong contribution to this festival, and this year we could use it as a vehicle to save one of the planet's most powerful symbols of environmental health and a species many Americans are already working on preserving. Strong US participation fits into the long-term objectives of the US Government in this part of Russia. Post has actively promoted conservation in the past by funding wildlife biologist Melody Roelke's visit to the Far East and organizing an international visitor program for Russians involved in conservation to visit the U.S. ¶6. A celebrity spokesperson, and American conservationists accompanying him or her, could address poaching, habitat protection, fire prevention and other subjects to help garner critical public support for increased habitat protection. Local conservation groups depend on public support for their tracking programs, reintroduction of native forest trees to ensure abundant game for tigers, mortality tigers to determine how and why tigers die, and reproduction studies. ¶7. The Global Environment Facility, with the World Bank, Smithsonian National Zoo, and the International Tiger Coalition have also launched a new International Tiger Conservation Initiative aimed at protecting tigers in the wild. They would be ideal partners in this proposal, and presumably may have funds of their own if convinced of the great value a focus on the preservation of the Siberian tiger could have. Festival organizers, moreover, have paid for food, travel, and lodging in the past. So it is possible that State's role could be more a facilitator, indentifying, promoting, and programming an appropriate American spokesperson with good conservation credentials and "star power." ¶8. There are also other projects in the region that merit support, from individuals who run a bear rescue center in Ussurisk, to a youth salmon conservation league in Sakhalin, to a WWF endangered leopard station in Barabash. In short, if Washington can find supporters, we can find projects. Post also encourages visitors from OES to come to the Far East and see these projects and participate in the solutions to these environmental challenges. Thank you for your support! ARMBRUSTER