Step 1: Agreement on personal data

Avaaz recommends allowing your contribution to be published, and allowing the Commission to contact you, but it’s entirely up to you.

Step 2: Section A — Information about the respondent.

1. Select ‘an individual’
2. Give your name
3. Give your email
4. Give your country
5. Leave blank
6. Select ‘Private Individual’
7. Select ‘Not Applicable’
8. Select ‘Not Applicable’

Step 3: Section B — Are you involved in the ivory trade?

Select No

Step 4: Section C — Information on the illegal trade of ivory in EU

Questions 1- 6) Leave blank

Question 7) What do you consider the most important problems, if any, in relation to the illegal trade in ivory in or from the EU? Please provide any relevant evidence you may have to support your opinion.

Paste in the following answer:

I am seriously concerned that the EU‘s legal ivory trade stimulates demand for ivory and serves as a cover for an illegal trade that is fuelling the current slaughter of elephants. I call on you to immediately close down the legal trade both within the EU's borders and beyond.

Step 5: Section D — EU Priorities in relation to ivory trade

1) Which of the following do you think should be the priorities for the EU and EU Member States in relation to tackling the illegal trade in ivory within/to/from the EU? (Please tick the appropriate boxes)

The most important things to do are to tick 'Banning all ivory trade to, from, and within Europe' as the main Priority Action as below and marking 'not a priority' for raising awareness about existing guidelines. Do tick other rows as lower priorities if you like, but they are not required.

	This should be main Priority Action.	This should be pursued together with other priority actions	This should not be a priority	Don’t know
Better enforcement of the existing EU regulations and guidelines for the trade in ivory
Educating and raising awareness on the existing EU regulations and guidelines among ivory traders/customers to promote legal trade			X
Banning all ivory trade to, from, and within the EU	X
Banning raw ivory trade to, from, and within the EU
Banning trade in ivory within the EU, with well-justified exemptions
Banning (re-)export of ivory from the EU, with well-justified exemptions

2) How much do you agree or disagree with the following statement?
"Illegal trade in ivory in the EU represents a marginal problem compared to the global ivory trafficking problem. Rather than changing the EU rules on ivory trade, the EU priority should be to provide support for actions against ivory trafficking in other regions (in particular, Africa and Asia), which are more important as countries of origin and destination markets for illegal ivory trafficking."

Select Strongly Disagree

3) How much do you agree or disagree with the following statement?
"The current EU regulations are sufficient to ensure that the EU domestic elephant ivory market does not contribute to illegal international trade in elephant ivory. Rather than changing the rules, the priority should be that people are fully aware of these rules and that they are better enforced".

Select Strongly Disagree

4) How much do you agree or disagree with the following statement?
"The current EU regulations are not sufficient to ensure that the EU domestic elephant ivory market does not contribute to illegal international trade in elephant ivory. Further restrictions on ivory trade should be put in place at the EU level to address the problem".

Select Strongly Agree

5) In your opinion, should the EU further limit intra-EU trade in elephant ivory? If so, what should such restrictions consist of? Please provide any relevant evidence you may have to support your opinion.

Paste in the following answer: The EU should ban all trade in ivory

6) In your view, which of the following ivory items should be exempt from any further regulations or guidelines regarding trade within the EU?

Select None of the above

7) In your opinion, would it be reasonable and proportionate for the EU to take steps to tighten the regulations on control of ivory trade within the EU, for example by requesting that all ivory traders are included on public registers or that intra-EU trade in antique items be subject to the issuing of certificates or declarations? What would be the impact (e.g. financial, logistical, environmental) of such measures? Please provide reasons and any relevant evidence on impacts you may have to support your opinion.

Paste in the following answer: The EU should ban all trade in ivory

8) In your opinion, should the EU further limit elephant ivory trade TO and FROM the EU? If yes, what should such restrictions consist of? Please provide any relevant evidence you may have to support your opinion.

Paste in the following answer: The EU should ban all trade in ivory

9) In your view, which of the following, if any, ivory items should be exempt from any further regulations or guidelines regarding the re-export of worked ivory from the EU to countries outside the EU?

Select None of the above

10) In your view, which of the following, if any, ivory items should be exempt from further regulations or guidelines regarding the import of ivory to the EU from countries outside the EU?

Select None of the above

11) What impact (e.g. financial, logistical, environmental) would possible further EU regulations or guidelines on import, re-export and/or intra-EU trade of ivory have on you or your organisation?

Select Substantial Positive Impact

12) What impact would possible further EU restrictions on import, re-export and/or intra-EU trade of ivory have on elephant poaching and international illegal trade of ivory?

Select Substantial Positive Impact

Step 6: Section E — Other information

1: Please provide details of any studies (published or ongoing) you are aware of relating to ivory trade relevant to the EU.

Leave blank

2: Are there any final comments relevant to this subject that you would like to convey?

Writing a personal message here is critical. If this space is blank or copy and pasted, regulators will treat all our submissions as the same. Write a personal message about why this issue matters to you, and why you want the EU to ban the ivory trade.

Step 7: You’re done! Send your form by clicking the blue submit button!

Thank you for taking the time to push for a total ivory ban and save the elephants!