Celebrities join World Bank in Saving Tigers

By Lesley Wroughton

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Hollywood celebrities Harrison Ford, Bo Derek and Robert Duvall on Monday threw their support behind a new global initiative by the World Bank to save tigers from extinction.

While the global development agency's main mission is to fight poverty in developing countries, it has rarely taken on wildlife conservation efforts of endangered species.

The new Tiger Conservation Initiative will bring together wildlife experts, scientists and governments to try to halt the killing and thriving illegal trade in tiger skins, meat and body parts used in traditional Asian medicines.

Ford, a long-time environmental activist, said efforts to protect tigers would only succeed if local communities were involved in conservation efforts.

"By committing to help wild tigers, the World Bank is sounding its intention to be a global leader in biodiversity conservation," Ford, the star of the latest "Indiana Jones" movie, told an event at Washington's Smithsonian National Zoo.

World Bank President Robert Zoellick said the decline in the number of tigers was "shocking" from over 100,000 a century ago to currently less than 4,000.

POACHING AT ALL-TIME HIGH

A World Bank report warned that "if current trends persist, tigers are likely to be the first species of large predator to vanish in historic times."

"Just as with many other challenges of sustainability, such as
climate change, pandemic disease, or poverty, the crisis facing tigers
overwhelms local capabilities and it is one that transcends local
borders," Zoellick said.

"This is a problem that cannot be handled by individual nations
alone, it requires an alliance of strong local commitment backed by
deep international support," he added.

"All those concerned may not agree but this does not mean we should stand on the sidelines and do nothing," he said.