Public leaders need to protect the environment from a problem of increasing magnitude: the private ownership of exotic animals.

As a national leader on animal protection and wildlife conservation, Born Free USA is working to halt the epidemic of wild animals as “pets” and the deep impact keeping wildlife in captivity has on conservation by spearheading efforts to preserve wildlife’s rightful place in the wild.

The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) will hold its next triennial conference in Bangkok from 3 to 14 March to decide how to improve the world's wildlife trade regime that has been in place for 40 years.

Some 2,000 delegates representing 177 governments, indigenous peoples, non-governmental organizations and businesses are expected to attend and discuss, among other things, 70 proposals for amending the rules for specific species. Many of these proposals reflect growing international concern about the escalation of poaching and illegal trafficking of wild animals, the destruction of the world's marine and forest resources through overfishing and excessive logging and the risks that wildlife crime represents for the security of the planet.