If you’re thinking of sponsoring virus hunters so they can tell us about dangerous viruses and advise us to conserve wildlife…
Why not just give your money directly to people who are actually conserving wildlife?
Why not just give your money directly to people who are actually conserving wildlife?
We’ve known for decades that the wildlife trade exposes us to novel animal pathogens. We don’t need to keep pulling out shiny new viruses to convince people that the wildlife trade and wildlife farming (for food, medicine, luxury items) needs to stop.
A culture that glorifies the wildlife trade - as a means for the poor to get rich or as a source of unproven medicines - is not helping to mitigate pandemic risks.
We should encourage other effective means of fighting poverty that don’t exploit wildlife.
We should encourage other effective means of fighting poverty that don’t exploit wildlife.
On the other hand, if you’re sponsoring virus hunting because you want to create an armada of viruses for dual use, i.e., the wildlife conservation aspect is a side dish… the world needs to have a very serious conversation about this activity and whether the risks are worth it.
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