Environmental Whistleblower Attorney to Discuss Global Anti-Corruption Tools to Combat Wildlife Crimes
On Tuesday, September 8th, leading whistleblower attorney Stephen M. Kohn will present at a webinar focused on using whistleblowers to combat environmental crimes. The webinar, Whistleblower protection: An essential tool for stopping the corruption that threatens the world’s forests, fisheries, and wildlife, is a part of the Targeting Natural Resource Corruption (TNRC) learning series. This webinar is free and open to the public.
Kohn, a founding partner at qui tam law firm Kohn, Kohn & Colapinto (KKC), will discuss how countries suffering from the illegal exploitation of natural resources can implement effective whistleblower laws and programs. Kohn is an internationally recognized expert in whistleblower law who authored an award-winning Environmental Law Review article explaining the importance of using qui tam whistleblower laws, or whistleblower rewards, to combat illegal wildlife trafficking (Monetary Rewards for Wildlife Whistleblowers: A Game-Changer in Wildlife Trafficking Detection and Deterrence).
In 2015, the National Whistleblower Center implemented the Global Wildlife Whistleblower Program under Kohn’s leadership. This program was named a Grand Prize Winner in the 2016 Wildlife Crime Tech Challenge, an initiative of USAID in partnership with the National Geographic Society, the Smithsonian Institution, and TRAFFIC.
In 2017, Kohn testified at an official meeting of Advisory Council on Wildlife Trafficking held at the Department of Interior, where he pushed several government departments to utilize whistleblower reward laws.
Several U.S. laws, including the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, False Claims Act, and Commodity Exchange Act have whistleblower provisions that can be used to stop environmental crimes such as illegal fishing, logging, and wildlife trafficking.
The webinar will answer questions such as:
- What are effective strategies for reporting corrupt practices under U.S. whistleblower laws?
- What are some of the most important innovations in whistleblower protection?
- How do we assess opportunities to advance whistleblowing, and strategies for managing risks, in a wide variety of contexts?
For more information on the webinar and to register for the event, visit: https://www.worldwildlife.org/pages/tnrc-event-whistleblower-protection
Learn more about wildlife whistleblowers:
International Wildlife Advocates Learn How U.S. Anti-Corruption Laws Fight International Corruption
Special Report: The Critical Role of Whistleblowers in Enforcing Wildlife Protection Laws
More information on Environmental Law Whistleblowers
