Fighting for
the Wild
Leave Them Wild is an organization that specializes in the use of ethnographic methods to gather data and analyze wildlife crimes. Allison Skidmore, the founder, is a National Geographic Explorer. Her PhD research focused on the poaching and trafficking of Amur tigers in the Russian Far East. Data collection utilized qualitative methods, including interviews and observations, with those directly involved in tiger poaching—the poachers, buyers, middlemen and smugglers—to understand the details of this criminal act from the viewpoint of the offenders themselves. These novel research methods focused on the identification of pinch points in the crime commission sequence for a more nuanced understanding of criminal modus operandi, with the objective of highlighting intervention points that are most likely to disrupt the flow of illegal trade. Allison recently founded Leave Them Wild to provide consulting and training services for researchers interested in wildlife crime related problems. With a focus on the successful utilization of theory and methods within the fields of ethnography and criminology, the goal of Leave Them Wild is to facilitate other researchers who want to gather data, analyze, and ultimately prevent wildlife crime. The illegal wildlife trade is highly contextual; however, these methods are applicable to most regions plagued by high instances of some form of wildlife crime coupled with a lack of information.
Up close with tiger poachers – from Cats of the Wild Podcast
From Cats of the Wild Podcast: "Over 6,000 kilometres from Moscow in the Far East of Russia is the remote and harsh habitat of the Amur Tiger - also known as the Siberian Tiger. It is one of the largest cats in the world, and there is estimated to be around 400...
Will it be the Year of the Tiger? It’s up to you
Today, February 1st, 2022, is the first day of the Year of the Tiger, ushering in a year of ‘fortune favors the bold’ with symbolizations of strength, tenacity, and boldness. The Lunar New Year, also known as the Chinese New Year, will be celebrated by nearly 2...
National Geographic: Siberian tigers are being hunted at night for their body parts
I am so please to announce that an article about my PhD research on tiger poaching in the Russian Far East has been published in National Geographic! This is such an important step to raise global awareness for an issue about this horrific wildlife crime that Russia...
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