(from: www. breakingnewsenglish.com)

The UN has agreed to approve a landmark nine-year ban on trading in ivory to stem a surge in poaching that is killing as many as 20,000 elephants annually. The agreement will go into effect after a one-off sale of stockpiles of ivory to Japan. Four southern African nations will sell their government-held stock of elephant tusks, although the exact amount is unknown.

Willem Wijnstekers, the Secretary General of the 171-nation Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), reckoned as much as 200 tonnes of ivory might be heading to Japan. It will be made into personal stamps that are used in place of written signatures.

However, CITES was positive about the new deal. It said: "This African solution to an African problem marks a great step forward for wildlife conservation.… It is good news for the elephants and the people who live

alongside them."

The agreement ends an 18-year deadlock on the ivory trade and elephant poaching. The future of the world’s largest land mammal was at stake. There are only half a million of the majestic beasts left in the world and this number was falling due to sharp increases in hunting since the turn of the century.

Conservationists say elephant numbers are decreasing every year to satisfy illicit markets in China and Japan. African governments hope the one-off sale to Japan will reduce demand and the money raised will go into conservation programmes. However, China is up in arms over the agreement as it is excluded from the sale.

CITES refused a request by Beijing last week, saying: "We do not agree that they meet the criteria.” Customs officials will now be watching carefully to see if the trafficking of ivory reaches China.

TASKS FOR THE ARTICLE

Ex.1.PRE-READING: ARTICLE TOPIC DISCUSSION: Speak about ivory.

Ex.2. CHAT: In pairs / groups, decide which of these expressions from the article are most interesting and which are most boring-to-discuss. Explain why.

landmarks / the ivory trade / elephants / tusks / stamps / signatures / solutions / agreements / deadlocks / things at stake / beasts / conservation / trafficking

Ex.3. PRODUCTS DISCUSSION: In pairs / groups, talk about what you think of the following examples of trade in animals:

Ex.4. ANIMAL TRADING DISCUSSION: In pairs / groups, talk about how far you agree with these opinions on trading in animals and animal products:

a. Trading in animals is not different from farming and killing animals.

b. There is little difference between using leather from cows and snake skin.

c. Traditional Chinese medicine should be exempt from international

regulations.

d. Big profits and commercial demand for animals will ensure their survival.

e. People caught selling endangered species should get 30 years in prison.

f. People will never stop buying fur coats or ivory bracelets.

g. The answer is to breed the animals and legalize the sale of their products.

h. A polar bear rug looks absolutely beautiful.

Ex.5. I’M AN ELEPHANT ROLE - PLAY: Imagine you are an African elephant. Hunters want to kill you and your friends to cut off your tusks and sell them to China and Japan Walk around the class and talk to the other “elephants” about your life and the threat from poachers. Do you have any friends in captivity?

Ex.6. WRITING: Spend one minute writing down all the words you associate with the word “elephant”. Share your words with your partner(s) and talk about them. Together, put the words into different categories.

Ex.7. QUICK DEBATE: Students A think poachers and traders in exotic species should receive life in prison. Students B think poachers and traders in exotic species should receive heavy fines. Change partners often. Share your findings.

Ex.8. TRUE / FALSE: Guess if a-h below are true (T) or false (F).

Ex.9. SYNONYM MATCH: Match the following synonyms from the article:

Ex.10. PHRASE MATCH: Match the following phrases from the article (sometimes more than one combination is possible):

Ex.11. GAP FILL: Fill in the gaps using the words on the right.