A massive new public aquarium is currently being built in Berlin.
Berlin, 25 February 2026 – ‘The Ocean’ Berlin will hold 7.5 million liters of saltwater, making it the largest facility of its kind in Europe—all far away from the ocean. …
CITES CoP20 side event – Rethinking Trade Data
Samarkand, 27 November 2025 – The side event ‘Rethinking Trade Data’ we held together with IFAW, AAP and Eurogroup for Animals and hosted by the Dominican Republic. Cristina De Avila, …
CITES CoP20 Doc. 92 – Marine ornamental fishes
Samarkand, 27 November 2025 – Today brought a modest but meaningful step forward for the monitoring and hence hopfully conservation of marine ornamental fishes. Since discussions began in 2019—when Switzerland, …
Meeting with the European Parliament’s delegation in Samarkand at CITES CoP20
Samarkand, 26 November 2025 – I am very grateful for the opportunity to join the NGO group and contribute insights on the marine ornamental fish trade. It was an honor …
CoP20 to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species CITES
Samarkand, 24 November 2025 – The next two weeks, I will be in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, for the Conference of the Parties (CoP20) to CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered …
The European MEPs for Wildlife hosted an expert discussion on wildlife trafficking and legal loopholes in the EU – “Stolen Wildlife: Closing the Loopholes in the EU Wildlife Trade Regulations”
Brussels, 14 October 2025 – As an expert panelist, Dr. Monica V. Biondo emphasized the urgent need for reliable, species-specific data in the EU’s TRACES system to enable informed and …
Enhancing wildlife trade monitoring in the European Union – No need to re-invent the wheel
Ecology and Evolution , 29 August 2025: Biodiversity loss is driven by overexploitation and agriculture, with global wildlife trade playing a significant role in natural resource depletion. The trade, encompassing …
GLITSS Webinar: Collecting Data on the Marine Ornamental Fish Trade with the EU TRACES Platform
EU COST Action GLITSS, 16 December 2024: Our Webinar for the EU COST Action GLITSS (Globalization, Illicit Trade, Sustainability and Security) on the use of the European TRACES (Trade Control …
Saving Living Jewels: One Woman’s Mission to Shine a Light on the Ornamental Fish Trade
The Revelator, 4 December 2024 – Marine biologist Monica Biondo has spent more than a decade studying the multibillion-dollar market for these colorful fish, which pulls thousands of species from …
The EU is the largest importer by value of marine ornamental fishes
ANIMALS, 11 June 2024: Our new scientific study shows that Europe represents the largest share by value of marine ornamental fishes. In 2021 this share constituted 24 million Euro. Between …