"If you had one wish for tigers tomorrow,

what would you wish for?"

     Dedicated to the challenges, opportunities, and innovative solutions of tiger conservation, day 6 marked the end of Singapore Tiger Week. We heard from Mr. Y. Bhg. Dato’ Abdul Kadir bin Abu Hashim, the Director General of the Department of Wildlife and National Parks (Perhilitan); Dr. Adrian Loo, the Group Director of NParks’ Wildlife Management Division; Ms. Elizabeth John of TRAFFIC Southeast Asia; and Ms. Jenny Roberts, the director of WWF’s Tigers Alive Initiative. 

     Dato’ Abdul Kadir Hashim brought us back to Malaysia and took us into how the government is planning tiger conservation. Beyond poaching, Perhilitan is fighting the threats like exotic trade and disease—specifically canine distemper virus, which has taken the lives of multiple tigers even in protected ranges. With multiple programs devoted to tiger conservation—including the National Tiger Conservation Plan, the 2010 Wildlife Conservation Act, and the ongoing Biodiversity Patrolling and Protection Programme, Dato’ Abdul Kadir Hashim showed us how the government is fighting for tigers on all levels, from forensics to habitat.

     Dr. Adrian Loo took us into our own backyard with a dive into Singaporean biodiversity and the illegal wildlife trade. Though Singapore has lost most of its large mammals, it is far from empty—everything from straw-headed bulbuls to banded langurs to the Sunda pangolin lie across our Central Catchment reserves and more! Each of our reserves are buffered by many nature parks, and nature links like the BKE’s Eco-link Bridge enhance connectivity. But outside the forests, Singapore must reckon with the destruction of wildlife elsewhere. As a trade hub, the government has always condemned wildlife trafficking. This stance has solidified in recent years as Singapore enacted a strict ivory ban and continued its existing work—collaborating with NGOs, online trackers, and other governments to protect wildlife everywhere they can. 

     Ms. Elizabeth John zoomed out on wildlife trafficking to examine it on a continental scale. From 2000 to 2018, TRAFFIC analysed tiger seizures and found 2,359 tigers have been seized worldwide, with an estimated 120 tigers lost to trafficking per year. Of these tiger seizures, the most common illicit items were first tiger skins, then bones. But justice is rarely served: even with 1,167 people arrested, only 429 were prosecuted, and only 168 were incarcerated. Ms. John linked the tiger trade to its impacts on other species, even beyond wildcats. She ended with a look at recent tiger seizures, notably two instances where 7 frozen tiger cubs were found. These point to possible syndicates, a new demand, and a fresh wave of threats to tigers.

     Finally, Ms. Jenny Roberts discussed WWF’s vision for tiger recovery. In 2010, the last Year of the Tiger, tiger range countries set a goal of doubling tiger populations by the next Year of the Tiger, 2022. Next year, 65 countries will reunite in the Global Tiger Summit in Russia to share their progress and set new goals.  Ms. Roberts suggests future goals should include a focused plan for Southeast Asian tiger populations, as their situation remains particularly severe, as well as a new global tiger population goal that includes increasing tiger range and occupancy. 

     In the Q&A, we asked each speaker what their one wish for tigers would be. We concluded Singapore Tiger Week with a presentation delivered by two youth participants, Tanvi Dutta Gupta and Aryanna Ram about “Our Wishes for Tigers,” drawn from what speakers have shared over the last week. And with that, we said goodbye to our speakers, participants, organizers, and everyone who has worked so hard to make this week a reality.

     Although the Zoom room has closed, the conversation has not ended. Now, we turn to you: what wish do you have for tigers? And how can you make it a reality?