In 2012, I was invited to join a safari at the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy in Kenya. Lion prides, cheetah coalitions and herds of buffalo and giraffes walk freely there. Majestic African elephants also roam the conservancy’s terrain, but in far smaller numbers than they once did.
While on safari, I personally witnessed the serious poaching threat that African elephants face. This compelled me to discover the full extent of the illegal wildlife trade’s intricate web of smuggling, money laundering and organized crime. Its consequences are devastating: the near extinction of entire species and destruction of biodiversity that threatens entire ecosystems. Worse still, the plundering of resources in poverty-stricken areas only adds to regional destabilization.
I returned to China and learned that the internet was becoming a channel for the illegal sale of wildlife and animal parts. This disturbed me and other Tencent leaders. The connective power of the internet should serve to bless mankind, not be used by a minority to do evil. As a leading provider of internet value-added services in China, Tencent has the responsibility and ability to do more to thwart this network of illegal trade.
Every day, hundreds of millions of Tencent users around the world, primarily in China, communicate, share experiences, consume information and seek entertainment through our integrated platforms. Tencent’s core strategy in recent years has been to enrich people’s lives by focusing on two goals: first to establish extensively connected social platforms with our two primary instant messaging tools, Weixin/WeChat and QQ; and second to deliver the best possible platform for providing digital content.
Given the sheer flow of information and the engagement that we have enabled on Weixin/WeChat and QQ’s powerful platforms, we have set three goals: to improve our technology to better discover illegal wildlife network chains and shut them down; to produce educational conservation content that resonates with the public and increases their awareness and stewardship of wildlife and the environment; and to influence wider groups with messages that dispel outdated beliefs about the health benefits of consuming endangered species.
Beginning in 2015, Tencent has established partnerships with international public welfare organizations in a joint effort to create the public welfare program “Tencent for the Planet”, which is designed to educate and to help eradicate the illegal wildlife trade. Tencent has created whistleblowing labels so that users can flag and report any suspect activity related to the illegal sale of wildlife. Through easy-to-use whistleblowing channels, we work collectively with the public and with professional groups to discover and destroy illegal wildlife trading hidden on social platforms more quickly.
Since the program began, user reports have helped us to identify close to 1,000 accounts used to conduct or facilitate illegal trade in wildlife. Reports are promptly acted on and investigated by appropriate institutions, while information about crimes that may lead to arrest is passed to law enforcement. We continually perfect our technologies and algorithms to optimize this process and have also discussed ways to leverage our global business peers to better combat the illegal wildlife trade. Together, we are working to develop better identification, big data analysis and other technologies that will make us even more effective in the future.
There is also other encouraging progress. My colleagues and I were delighted when China announced a ban on all ivory trade by the end of 2017. This is a significant milestone in protecting elephants, including the stately African elephants that live in Lewa. Wildlife protection allies are expanding. The State Forestry Administration, law enforcement and more international organizations are joining together to tackle networks of illegal wildlife traders. Besides the coordinated sharing of information that leads to prosecution, there are stronger joint efforts, with greater impact, to increase public awareness.
Meanwhile, Tencent’s own exploration of how to protect biodiversity and empower sustainable development through the connectivity of the internet and other technological means has just begun. We now also provide a convenient way for pollution whistleblowers to report illegal activity to China's Ministry of Environmental Protection. With our tool, internet users can upload pictures taken with their cellphones that will simultaneously submit geographical location information. This allows departments tasked with environmental protection to quickly obtain sufficient evidence and address the points at which pollution takes place.
We are doing even more to protect the environment in everyday urban life. Our new company headquarters and office buildings in Shenzhen will soon be put to use for rainwater storage as part of the “Sponge City” pilot project, an initiative of the Chinese government to combat flooding and drought, which may one day improve the entire ecosystem of the city. Tencent is also developing a complete set of technical support and public platforms to better detect and analyze meteorological data, rainwater collection and soil humidity through big data and internet-of-things technologies. This data could, in turn, be used to enhance scientific inquiry and urban management.
There is a natural hunger in all people to do good, something Tencent sees firsthand during our annual “9.9 Charity Day” event. Last year, a record 6.77 million internet users donated more than RMB307 million ($44 million) in the three days around 9 September. Linking trust and technology, the internet has exponentially increased the power of collective good and charitable giving. The donations from the event will be used in hundreds of programs dedicated to the protection of animals and wildlife, environmental development, and poverty and disaster relief. With the internet, we can all lend a hand to transparent, efficient sustainable development.
Our corporate vision has always been to become the most respected internet company. We believe that, in realizing a connected future through the Internet of Everything, we can develop a thriving ecosystem online and in the real world. We will strive to ensure that each precious life on this planet is protected at all times and by all means through our platforms, the internet and our partnerships.
