The world’s most trafficked product is not rhino horn, elephant ivory, or pangolin scales, but a rare tropical hardwood called rosewood, long prized for its use in luxury Chinese furniture.

To protect the world’s dwindling supply, in 2016, 300 species of the dahlbergia species of rosewood were successfully added to Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which requires permits and a stricter control for their export… but despite this, neither the demand for rosewood furniture nor its illegal trade has stopped.

In my first article for South China Morning Post, I explore the consumer demand behind the trafficking.