Explorer: Warlords of Ivory, National Geographic Channel

This amazing series was produced as a key part of a cross-platform initiative to raise awareness about the plight of the African elephant and the human toll of the ivory trade. Created in partnership with National Geographic magazine, the NGC series turns a journalistic eye on ivory trafficking, which is responsible for the annual slaughter of some 30,000 African elephants as well as numerous murders, rapes and physical attacks against the people caught up in its path. Accompanied by cameras and guided by a GPS tracking system embedded in an artificial tusk, National Geographic Fellow Bryan Christy follows the trade to the doorsteps of Africa’s most notorious militias and terrorist groups, for whom poaching is a lucrative business. On World Elephant Day (August 12, 2015) the series was distributed to influencers worldwide along with the September 2015 issue of National Geographic magazine, which featured an in-depth cover story on the global ivory trade. The multi-platform effort was then backed up with targeted calls to action, helping this powerful documentary, in the words of its nominator, to “solidify a successful campaign that raised global awareness of the ivory trade and galvanized public support to curtail wildlife crime.”