The TRACE network aims to achieve its objectives through a series of activities in three principal areas:

1. Provision of Information
One of the primary objectives of TRACE is to act as a single source of information for wildlife forensic practitioners and enforcers, providing an opportunity to access information, ask questions and exchange ideas.

This website provides access to a web portal that contains information on a wide range of techniques and applications relevant to wildlife crime investigation. The portal is designed so that registered users can sign up and gain access to a number of different resources, including reference searches, international laboratory contacts, Q&A forums and notification of upcoming events.

The site is designed to be interactive, with members contributing information to the wildlife forensics community, as well as solving individual problems.

2. Training and Capacity Building
Although wildlife trafficking and persecution are recognized as global issues, regional hotspots exist. In such areas, specialist techniques may be required to assist local enforcement agencies in wildlife crime investigation. Where regional capacity in wildlife forensics is not already in place, TRACE aims to develop the skills and infrastructure required to meet enforcement needs on a national or regional level. We are currently working with a number of organizations in Africa and Asia to help implement forensic testing services.

TRACE offers training courses in wildlife DNA forensics to government departments and national institutions looking to implement modern forensic tools for enforcement. Courses may be run in country, or in the UK. Please contact us for details of future courses, or view the events calendar on the web portal.

3. Directed Research and Development
Novel techniques and approaches to investigate wildlife crime are continually required to tackle problems as they emerge. TRACE actively supports the development and validation of new forensic enforcement tools.