We, the undersigned, call on Facebook to shut down its wildlife trafficking marketplace and stop profiting from the illegal trade in endangered animals.

Pangolins, sea turtles, and clouded leopard cubs are being sold on Facebook like second-hand furniture. The platform has become a hub for wildlife trafficking, with listings multiplying across the network every day. Facebook's algorithms actively promote these listings to more users, expanding the reach of poachers and smugglers. The company profits from every ad clicked on these pages. This is not a side effect of the platform — it is the business model at work.

Endangered species face extinction. Habitat loss, pollution, and poaching have already brought countless animals to the brink. Wildlife trafficking accelerates that collapse. When Facebook's systems make it easier to buy and sell protected animals than it is to report them, the company becomes complicit in that extinction.

This is not a technical problem Facebook cannot solve. The platform removes content flagged for violence, hate speech, and misinformation within minutes. It has the tools, the staff, and the capacity to dismantle wildlife trafficking networks. What it lacks is the will — because doing so would mean accepting a loss of revenue and engagement.

We demand that Facebook:

Take immediate action to identify and permanently remove all wildlife trafficking listings and accounts.

Disable algorithms that promote wildlife sales or connect buyers and sellers of protected animals.

Invest in detection systems specifically designed to catch trafficking activity before it spreads.

Work with enforcement agencies to report trafficking activity to appropriate authorities.

Be transparent about the scale of wildlife trafficking on its platform and the steps it is taking to eliminate it.

Facebook's investors need to understand that profiting from the extinction of endangered species carries a cost. We will make sure they do.

The time for half-measures is over. Shut down the wildlife marketplace. Now.