For the past five years, more than 150, 000 elephants were slaughtered in Africa for the purpose of ivory trafficking, creating a one billion U.S dollar illegal business between Africa and China. Filmed undercover for 16 months across three continents, filmmakers Kief Davidson and Richard Ladkani follow a team of intelligence agents, wildlife activists, and frontline rangers as they infiltrate a global network of ivory trafficking. The film has won numerous awards including the WWF Golden Panda Award (Wildscreen Festival 2016), International Green Film Award (Cinema for Peace Award 2017), and Best International Documentary Feature (Beijing International Film Festival 2017).

Among the activists featured in the film, there is a Chinese journalist and Columbia alumnus HUANG Hongxiang (SIPA ’13). Since 2011, Mr. Huang has conducted extensive investigations on the environmental and social impact of Chinese investment and business in Latin America and Africa. In 2014, he launched “China House” in Nairobi, Kenya, an NGO focusing on researching on-the-ground impact of Chinese investments in Africa, and offering consultancy on effective ways for Chinese business to take on corporate social responsibility. 

In this screening and panel discussion, we invite Mr. Huang to present “The Ivory Game” screening at the Columbia Global Centers | Beijing, and join a discussion with Mary Peng, Treasurer and Member of the Board of Directors, Jane Goodall Institute China and Professor Ying Qian, Assistant Professor, Department of East Asia Languages and Cultures, Columbia University, on the impact of Chinese business and investments in Africa, the politics and economics of wild life exploitation and conservation, and the important roles played by journalists, filmmakers, and other media-makers in shaping and understanding this new power dynamics. The discussion will be moderated by Professor Lydia H. Liu, the Wun Tsun Tam Professor in the Humanities, Director, Institute for Comparative Literature and Society at Columbia University. Executive Vice President of Columbia University (Global Centers and Global Deveopment), Professor Safwan Masri, will deliver an opening remark for the screening.

6-6.30pm Registration

6.30-6.35pm Event Intro

6.35-6.50pm Opening Remarks by Professor Masri, EVP of Columbia University 

6.50-8.40pm Film Screening "The Ivory Game"

8.40-9.20pm Panel Discussion

Address

Columbia Global Centers, 26, 1F Core Plaza, 1 Shanyuan Street, Zhongguancun, Haidian District, Beijing
北京市海淀区中关村西区善缘街1号立方庭（西门）底商26号 哥伦比亚大学全球中心