“The Outlaw Ocean” represents a four-year project, built on a series of deeply reported features for The New York Times that brought Urbina from the Antarctic to Somalia — though most of it takes place in the vastness of the high seas, a region that begins 13 miles from shore.  Traffickers and smugglers, pirates and mercenaries, wreck thieves and repo men, vigilante conservationists and elusive poachers, seabound abortion providers, clandestine oil-dumpers, shackled slaves and cast-adrift stowaways— each chapter in the book tells a very different story.

Join Urbina as he talks to Oliver Steeds, investigative journalist and Mission Director of Nekton, about the book and the challenges of reporting from the high seas. Signed copies of “The Outlaw Ocean” will be available at the event.

Reviews for Outlaw Ocean 

“This is just incredible investigative work.” —Naomi Klein

“Our planet is 70% ocean and yet to watch the tv or read the papers you’d have little idea humans ever ventured offshore. Thanks to Ian Urbina for beginning to close the reporting gap, and for showing the high drama to be found on the high seas.“ —Bill McKibben

“It is a master class in journalism.” — Blair Braverman, New York Times.

Speakers

Ian Urbina is an investigative reporter for The New York Times. He has won a Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News and a George Polk Award for Foreign Reporting. Several of his stories have been developed into major feature films and one was nominated for an Emmy Award. He has degrees in history and cultural anthropology from Georgetown University and the University of Chicago. Before joining the Times, he was a Fulbright Fellow in Cuba and he also wrote about the Middle East and Africa for various outlets including the Los Angeles Times, Vanity Fair, and Harper’s Magazine. He lives in Washington, D.C., with his family.

Oliver Steeds is a critically acclaimed international investigative journalist and broadcaster. His films and reports – covering war, human rights, indigenous peoples, environmental affairs, politics and development – have been broadcast by NBC, ABC, Al Jazeera, Channel 4 and Discovery Channels, amongst others. Oliver is also founder and Mission Director of Nekton, a new marine institute that explores and protects the deep ocean.

In 2016, Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) embarked on a yearlong undercover investigation into the murky world of ivory trafficking in Mozambique in Africa. These investigations revealed a Chinese-led criminal syndicate which for over two decades has been trafficking ivory from Africa to Shuidong, their hometown in southern China. The traffickers claimed that up to 80 per cent of all African elephant tusks were destined for Shuidong town.

This panel discussion and Q&A will focus on the connections between corruption, criminality and the illegal ivory trade, the impacts of EIA’s investigations in China and Africa, and the responses so far from the Chinese government. Voices from the frontline will give a unique insight into how EIA uncovered this ivory trafficking syndicate and the risks this entailed.

You can read the report online here.

Chair

Dr Sam Geall

Dr Sam Geall is executive editor of chinadialogue.net and an associate fellow at Chatham House. His research focuses on low-carbon innovation, environmental governance, media and civil society in China. He edited China and the Environment: The Green Revolution (Zed Books, 2013). Sam’s writing has appeared in many leading publications, including BBC Chinese, the Guardian, Foreign Policy, Index on Censorship and Nikkei Asian Review. Sam was formerly departmental lecturer in Human Geography of China at the University of Oxford.

Speakers

Julian Newman

Julian joined EIA in July 1997 as an investigator after working as a journalist for six years. He has carried out field investigations into illegal logging in Indonesia, China, Malaysia, Vietnam and Laos, and wildlife crime investigations in Tanzania, Zambia, Singapore and China. He has also been involved in training local NGOs in Indonesia and Tanzania. Since 2008 he has been Campaigns Director.

Mary Rice

Mary has been with EIA since 1996, joining as a volunteer before holding positions including Head of Communications & Projects, Head of Development and Head of Campaigns. She has been Executive Director since 2008 and is responsible for directing the long-term strategic management of EIA as well as working on specific projects and leading the Elephant Campaign.

Deborah Davies

Deborah Davies is part of the award winning Al Jazeera Investigative Unit.  Their 2016 film, The Poacher’s Pipeline, used undercover filming to infiltrate the illegal supply chain of rhino horn from South Africa to China.  The film caused a massive political storm when one of the Chinese criminals showed photographs of “his good friend”, South Africa’s Minister of State Security, David Mahlobo. As an investigative reporter, Deborah has a long track record of breaking exclusives including the first ever film about Osama bin Laden, exposing Iraqi death squads and the 1997 film naming top level football coaches who had sexually abused young players, a story which exploded back into the headlines last year.