In 2008, WCS staff conducted a brief survey of Fort Drum soldiers who had survey overseas to understand the extent to which soldiers were seeing and purchasing wildlife items.
Activities
The survey results showed that of the 371 respondents more than 40 % had either purchsed wildlife products while overseas or had seen another soldier purchase wildlife products. Soldiers had purchased these items in Afghanistan, Iraq, Korea, and 37 other countries. Less than 12% had heard of CITES. The findings will be published in the near future.
Threats
While we had anecdotal evidence from WCS staff based in Afghanistan of U.S. military purchasing items in Afghanistan we were uncertain how widespread the demand for wildlife products was within the miltiary. Staying true to WCS's commitment to research and sound science we conducted a self-administered survey at Fort Drum in 2008.
Accomplishments
The survey results led to a unique partnership with the Department of Defense Legacy Natural Resources Program to engage in developing training and educational materials for soldiers deploying to Afghanistan, Iraq, or elsewhere.