Hi Fly, a leading wet-lease specialist and charter airline operating worldwide, announced its latest environmental initiative a campaign conceived specifically to combat wildlife trafficking.
This initiative is Hi Fly’s latest contribution to the United for Wildlife Transport Taskforce, which develops solutions to wildlife trafficking, such as increasing awareness, reporting and enforcement. Run by The Royal Foundation of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, the Taskforce is a part of the "United for Wildlife" program, which is made up of conservation organizations working together to prevent the trafficking of animals and sale of poaching products.
The photography-based campaign centers around a series of images of iconic animals that suffer at the hands of wildlife traffickers and is designed to highlight the beauty of these animals and remind people how important they are to the future of all life.
Involving Hi Fly crew members posing in a series of photographs – one released each week for six weeks – the #ProtectWildlife campaign will be spread worldwide on Hi Fly external and internal channels.
Hi Fly staff and the general public will be encouraged to share and like the images on social media to spread the Hi Fly message of hope to a wider audience using the hashtags #FlyingTheChange and #ProtectWildlife.
Launching the initiative at Hi Fly headquarters in Lisbon, Portugal, company President and CEO Paulo Mirpuri explained that though the ongoing international COVID-19 crisis has raised global awareness of the need to live in harmony with nature, it has also damaged international efforts to protect the natural environment from those that would seek to exploit it for profit.
“This global crisis has seen International meetings delayed, while government activity on climate change, biodiversity, conservation and ocean health, have been disrupted or postponed," he said.
“We have all been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, but at Hi Fly we believe also it is an opportunity to remind people of the positives that the company can bring to causes that we support and believe in.”
Hi Fly joined the Transport Taskforce in 2019 and has committed to recognizing the devastating impact of the illegal wildlife trade. And as such, "will not knowingly facilitate or tolerate the carriage of wildlife products, where trade in those products is contrary to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wildlife Fauna and Flora, and as such is illegal under both international and national laws.’
On joining the taskforce, Hi Fly immediately adopted a zero-tolerance policy on illegal wildlife trafficking in a bid to end the illegal practice.
Additionally, Hi Fly committed to increase awareness of the nature, scale and consequences of the illegal wildlife trade to its passengers, customers, clients and staff.
The #Protect Wildlife campaign is a part of the “Flying the Change” movement, created by Hi Fly with the aim of raising awareness for environmental threats. In 2018 the Flying the Change movement spread the hashtag #turnthetideonplastic, and focused on the need for ocean conservation in an action-packed, creative and fun way, after crew members were photographed enjoying a variety of water sports in a bid to highlight the damage single-use plastics are doing to our planet.
