The first of its kind, this exhibition aims to raise public awareness about environmental crimes that affect the people’s livelihood, the global economy as well as the world’s ecosystems. The exhibition includes photographic presentations with brief explanations of each issue to improve the public’s understanding of the matter. There will also be video presentations of five of the most prominent crimes committed against the environment and humanity i.e. illegal trade in wildlife, illegal trade in ozone depleting substances, dumping and illegal transport of hazardous waste, illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing and illegal logging and the associated timber trade. The exhibition will also include edutainment, which is learning through playing activities for school children and informal discussions with experts.
Dr. Young-Woo Park, Regional Director and Representative for Asia and the Pacific, UNEP Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, said “Tackling environmental crime should be considered as a fundamental responsibility which would help in reducing poverty, increasing food security and restoring the rule of law, good governance and ecological sustainability. The ARPEC members are pleased to be working with the Emporium, one of the leading shopping malls in Bangkok, to organize the ARPEC Awareness Event and raise public awareness of crimes against the environment.”
Speaking about the collaborating behind this exhibition Siriluck Maithai, management representative of The Emporium Shopping Complex said “As the first retail department store in Thailand who is a member of Climate Neutral Network, The Mall Group which includes The Emporium Shopping Complex, Siam Paragon and The Mall are proud to be able to contribute in helping ARPEC raise public awareness about environmental crime. This exhibition is the first of its kind in Bangkok and we would like to put in our level best to educate the public about the issues and its consequences. School children from several international schools have also been invited to join in the activities at the exhibition as it is of utmost importance to educate them and provoke a level of awareness about the environmental crimes of such a global scale.”
ARPEC has been to date a platform for organisations that work on environmental crime to improve and facilitate collaboration among each other. ARPEC also acts as a platform that creates possibilities for partners to take part in joint initiatives on particular issues. This forum has created numerous opportunities for partners to cooperate in capacity building, training and workshops and to share information in their respective fields of specialisation. It also crystallized regional enforcement operations like Project Sky Hole Patching, an Operation on Combating illegal trade in ODS and hazardous wastes.
