Pope Francis: Say No to Religious Ivory and Save Thousands of Elephants

In his recent encyclical on Climate Change, Pope Francis has warned of the “unprecedented destruction of ecosystems” by a world that increasingly commodifies humans and exploits nature. The ivory trade is a prime example of precisely that; massive profits being made by international criminal syndicates and terrorist groups at the expense of local communities who are not only losing their natural resources but also therefore their livelihoods. And that’s before we even start considering the unspeakable suffering and looming extinction of one of the world’s most extraordinary animals.

Given what Pope Francis clearly believes, please sign this petition asking him to call on the Catholic community to reduce their massive demand for ivory as a symbol of devotion.


Millions of people around the world worship using ivory to express their devotion to God, creating a global demand that leads directly to the slaughter of thousands of elephants. The Catholic faith alone supports and fuels a huge market in religious ivory.

In 1995 the Dalai Lama spoke out against the use of tiger skins for ceremonial dress by people of the Tibetan Plateau. The result was an 80% reduction in demand for tiger skin. Pope Francis could do the same for the ivory market. This is a real opportunity to put ivory on the Vatican’s agenda and support a total ban on its use and trade. We know the Vatican has never condoned the use of ivory for religious purposes but nor has it explicitly spoken out against this widespread practice. Just a few words would make so much difference.

So please join me and URGE THE VATICAN FOR A CLEAR AND UNEQUIVOCAL STATEMENT AGAINST THE USE OF IVORY FOR RELIGIOUS FIGURINES.

The elephant in these pictures is – was – Satao, a 54-year-old bull elephant who lived in Tsavo National Park (a supposedly protected area) in Kenya. He was killed on 12th June last year, his face chopped off for his curse of having borne such magnificent tusks. He might have lived another 15 years, as an elephant’s natural lifespan can be anything up to 70 years but now few, if any, reach this age in the wild. This is not only the loss of a generation but also of the accumulated wisdom and experience so invaluable to the species.

If we don't act now to halt the ivory trade, independent experts believe that wild elephants will be gone from the face of the earth within a decade [3]. WE CANNOT LET THAT HAPPEN.

So PLEASE ADD YOUR VOICE and
ASK POPE FRANCIS TO SAY NO TO IVORY.

In 2012 Bryan Christy’s report in National Geographic, Ivory Worship, exposed the extent of the demand for religious ivory within the Philippines. In fact the link between the Catholic faith and ivory is so strong among Philippino Catholics that the word for ivory – garing - also has another meaning – ‘religious statue’. [1]

Elephants are now massacred on an industrial scale by organised gangs armed with weapons including AK-47s and rocket-propelled grenades [1]. And why? Because ivory is now big business. Money from the ivory trade fuels transnational criminal syndicates and terrorist groups across the planet [2] funding arms, drugs and people trafficking activities on a global scale.

The situation has never been more desperate for elephants. Between 2009 and 2013 poaching reduced the once mighty herds of the Selous region of Tanzania by 66% (as confirmed by DNA analysis of seized tusks). All the more reason why we have to ACT NOW. By asking Pope Francis to do what he can to put an end to the religious use of ivory by the Roman Catholic community, and oppose the use and trade of all ivory, demand may really begin to decline. If the markets begin to decline and the value of ivory falls, so will the killing. This petition will continue to collect signatures - and I will continue to do everything I can - to ensure this goal is achieved.

PLEASE ADD YOUR VOICE to this petition and
ASK POPE FRANCIS TO SAY NO TO IVORY

This petition will continue to collect signatures - and I will continue to do everything I can - to ensure this goal is achieved.
1. Bryan Christy, Ivory Worship. National Geographic. 2012. http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2012/10/ivory/christy-text?ar_a=1 2. UNEP, CITES, IUCN, TRAFFIC Report, Elephants in the Dust, 2013http://www.cites.org/common/resources/pub/Elephants_in_the_dust.pdf 3. EIA Report, Vanishing Point, 2014. http://eia-international.org/wp-content/uploads/EIA-Vanishing-Point-lo-res1.pdf 4. http://www.cruxnow.com/church/2014/10/28/pope-delivers-mini-encyclical-on-poor-environment-2/