Souvenirs of the Slaughter

The slaughter of elephants is no doubt a tragedy, but as the deadly attack at the Westgate mall in Kenya shows, the bloodshed fueled by the sale of ivory does not stop with the elephants. Buying ivory helps pay for the bullets and bombs used by terrorists to kill innocent people, including park rangers and now these shoppers in Nairobi.

Highlighting this connection between the sale of ivory and violence is important because a powerful tool in combating the demand for poached ivory is to so thoroughly taint the image of ivory goods that potential consumers are shamed and discouraged from ever buying ivory again.

For more on the ivory trade, ABC News had a good segment on the challenges of distinguishing "illegal" ivory from that which was on the market before the ban was in place.

Elephants in Crisis is incredible undercover by reporter Bryan Christy on how religion plays a role in the problem of ivory trafficking, a cover story for National Geographic magazine.