Steve Galster is Chairman of the International Management Committee at Freeland, a global, non-profit organisation with a vision for a world free of wildlife trafficking and human slavery. Including Freeland, Steve has helped develop five organisations, including Global Survival Network (US), Phoenix (Russia), WildAid, and ASEAN-WEN. Steve also served as a Chief of several USAID-sponsored programmes between 2005-2012 and now works closely with the ASEAN Secretariat, NGOs, Police, Customs, and environmental agencies of 14 Asian countries to develop multi-agency task forces and public awareness initiatives that address transnational organised crime. His background covers investigative research, media campaigning, and programme development relating to counter-human and wildlife trafficking in the former Soviet Union, USA, China, Afghanistan, Africa, and Southeast Asia.
Freeland’s Steve Galster discusses new initiatives to stop illegal wildlife traffickers by hitting them where it hurts the most – in their bank accounts – and how financial institutions can help.