The COVID-19 Pandemic:
TRADE Hub's response
NEW PROGRAMME
Assessing the COVID-19 pandemic's influence on perceptions around wildlife consumption and wildlife management policies
Researchers from The Universities of Oxford and Stirling, UK, Wildlife Conservation Society, DRC, The Intitut de Recherche en Ecologie Tropicale, Gabon and The École Régionale Post-universitaire D’aménagement et de Gestion Intégrés des Forêts Tropicales, ROC, are collaborating on a new programme: Assessing the COVID-19 pandemic’s influence on perceptions around wildlife consumption and wildlife management policies. This project will:
- Explore the perceptions, and behaviour of wildlife consumption in China, DRC, Gabon, ROC and the UK,
- Understand the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on these perceptions
- Understand how these public responses are shaped by media discourses.
Research will investigate which information sources on COVID-19 are used by media and social media, and how much scientific evidence underpins these narratives. We will investigate the extent that these different media outlets and sources are trusted by the public, and in particular wild meat users. Our teams will compare policy suggestions on wildlife consumption emerging in the media in response to Covid-19, and explore support for these policies across demographics.
This research will be used to provide evidence-based policy briefs to inform national and regional wild meat policy design and implementation, with aim of reducing and regulating wild meat consumption in urban areas
NEW REPORT
TRADE Hub scientists contributed to UNEP’s comprehensive report on zoonotic disease emergence and transmission. The report also offers a set of practical recommendations that can help policymakers prevent and respond to future disease outbreaks.
Access the report here
WEBINAR
COVID-19 AND WHAT IT MEANS FOR WILD MEAT
WEBINAR LED BY CIFOR, SUPPORTED BY GCRF TRADE HUB
PUBLICATION
Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash
EXPANSION OF ONGOING ANALYSIS AND FIELDWORK
Across country teams, from Central Africa to Indonesia, TRADE Hub researchers have expanded their ongoing research to include changing dynamics in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. This includes:
- Comparisons of wildmeat consumption patterns before and after the pandemic
- Political and economic responses to the outbreak, and concomitant impacts on trade-relevant variables such as deforestation rates
- Mapping disruptions to the supply chains of commodities being investigated
- Investigating changes in perceptions about live animal trade in China, Indonesia, and Central Africa
COVID-19 UPDATES FROM TRADE HUB PARTNERS
