The Washington Convention (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora – CITES) is a multilateral treaty that was adopted to control international trade in endangered species of plants and animals. The Latvian National Museum of Natural History is one of three institutions in Latvia designated as a CITES Scientific Authority.
The CITES exhibition help spread public awareness on the Washington Convention. Showcased are the most common illegal items people acquire on their travels: Eastern medical products, cosmetics, crocodile and snake products, furs, snakes in alcohol bottles, corals, seashells, hunting trophies, and so on.
These items have been sourced from the museum’s collection, or were confiscated from tourists or merchants because of non-compliance with CITES regulations.
The informative material is supplemented with interactive species descriptions and educational games.
Additional information on CITES is available on the Nature Conservation Agency’s website www.daba.gov.lv.
The exhibition was created in 2021 with the financial support of the Cohesion Fund.
