The ill-effects of the pandemic have highlighted the importance of a holistic approach towards preventing another such debilitating catastrophe. Given that the suspected origin of the COVID-19 pandemic as per a WHO report lies in the wet market, there is a need to re-examine the manner in which wildlife trade is conducted. As a student of public policy, I was curious to explore what an appropriate policy response would be to mitigate the spread of disease. Thus, the topic of my research, with the Sustainable Development and Climate Change team , to understand the implications of a wildlife trade ban policy was opportune. I was able to don the cap of a policymaker to examine the question of how wildlife trade ban policies could be designed to achieve their intended effect of curtailing disease transmission.
While I would have enjoyed the international experience of undertaking the internship at the Manila office of the Asian Development Bank which was not possible due to the COVID-19 travel restrictions, the opportunity to interact remotely with subject matter experts from across the globe offered a multi-cultural and multi-disciplinary experience. I interviewed a wide range of experts, including academics, economists and wildlife conservation activists from the PRC, Viet Nam and the United States who were able to provide insights into the dynamics of wildlife trade as well as the effects of trade controls on the wildlife industry. I was even given the esteemed opportunity to present some of the findings of the research in a spotlight session of End Pandemics, a global movement which aims to prevent the outbreak of future pandemics. The chance to participate in such discussions offered ground level insights into how wildlife trade controls were being received. I was also exposed to some innovative approaches towards tackling the spread of zoonotic disease through the wildlife trade.
Above all, what stood out to me the most was that there is a need to coordinate efforts across human and animal ecosystems in accordance with a One Health approach, as being advocated by the World Health Organization. I hope that this research informs the design of suitable policies regarding wildlife trade which can facilitate joint action at the local, national, regional and international level so as to prevent the spread of harmful zoonotic diseases.
