Dot Earth Blog: Basketball Giant Keeps Pressing China on Rhinos and Ivory

It?s encouraging to see China?s basketball legend Yao Ming?continuing his effort to educate China?s middle class on the ecological cost of its appetite for ivory and rhinoceros horn. He put on a new push at a Beijing news conference today.

This is hardly a fleeting effort, given his longstanding focus on wildlife conservation, including a push against shark fin soup a few years ago.

The Yao Ming Foundation, which has also focused on rebuilding schools in regions devastated by the potent 2008 earthquake in Sichuan province, is working with WildAid, Save the Elephants?and the?African Wildlife Foundation?to raise awareness of the links between consumer habits and the spasm of poaching in Africa (and South Asia).

Here?s a new video from his 2012 visit to Kenya and South Africa:

Source: http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/04/16/basketball-giant-keeps-pressing-china-on-rhinos-and-ivory/?partner=rss&emc=rss

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