Reducing wildlife trafficking requires more than awareness - it requires changing behaviour. Yet, while public concern about wildlife trafficking is high, little is known about what drives people to act. To support IFAW’s upcoming EU and UK campaign, Sapience conducted a large-scale study to understand awareness, attitudes, and behaviours related to wildlife trafficking, and to identify how communication can effectively close the gap between concern and action.
Methodology
To capture a realistic picture of public perceptions and behaviours, Sapience developed a Wildlife Trafficking Campaign Tracker. An online survey (±10 minutes) was conducted among 3,767 nationally representative respondents across five countries (France, Germany, Spain, the Netherlands, and the UK). The study measured awareness and knowledge of wildlife trafficking, attitudes towards animals, and self-reported behaviours, providing a robust baseline (Wave 0) for tracking campaign impact over time.
The study delivers:
✅ Clear evidence of a “care vs. do gap”: while most people oppose wildlife trafficking, few take action.
✅ Insights into knowledge gaps, with only limited awareness of Europe’s role and the mechanisms behind wildlife trafficking.
✅ Identification of key audience segments (e.g., Wildlife Advocates vs. Neutral Observers) to enable targeted communication strategies.
✅ Actionable guidance to design campaigns that increase perceived personal impact and drive behaviour change, not just awareness.
Read the full report: Download the report (PDF)