“We are losing 100 million sharks a year”: Olivia Swaak-Goldman on the devastating effect of ocean crime

Olivia Swaak-Goldman is executive director of the Wildlife Justice Commission, an organisation focused on dismantling organised crime networks driving species extinction. She is also the fascinating keynote for this year’s Ocean Talks, taking place on 11 June 2026 at the Magazine, Serpentine North Gallery, in London's Hyde Park.

Ahead of the event, in partnership with Ocean Family Foundation, BOAT’s Lucy Dunn sits down with Swaak-Goldman to talk about her valuable work targeting kingpins profiting from everything from shark fins to rhino horn. Listen to the podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts below.

Olivia Swaak-Goldman has not always been on a mission to save the shark - this calling only came a few years ago. A lawyer who had built a successful career spanning international criminal law and humanitarian law, alongside academic roles as a lecturer at Harvard and Leiden Universities, she began to look for a way to make a difference. “I wondered if there was a way that I could deliver a more tangible impact on the ground,” she says. “And that's when I began to think about wildlife crime, because the devastation is absolutely horrific.”

The reasons for animal trafficking are many - markets are global and it comes in many forms, from a large-scale illegal pet trade in Europe to the farming of shark fins, sea horses, pangolin scales and sea cucumbers for traditional medicine in Asia.

Swaak-Goldman discovered the sheer scale of destruction that wildlife crime was having, with animals wiped out in staggering numbers, and in some cases, pushing entire species towards the brink. “For example, we are losing one hundred million sharks a year,” she says. “That’s terrifying! Sharks play such an important role in the biodiversity of our oceans, along with sea cucumbers and seahorses. When I discovered what was happening, I thought there is no way I could stand by and allow this to continue.”

Criminal networks, she realised, are eager to exploit wildlife because the profits can be immense, while the risks - especially compared with the drug trade -  remain relatively low. Swaak-Goldman saw that she could bring the same rigour, strategy and professionalism that define serious criminal investigations to this overlooked space and, in doing so, begin to tip the balance.

Swaak-Goldman’s strategy, together with her team at the Wildlife Justice Commission, is to go after the kingpins rather than the poachers. “We don't need to just catch one poacher or one fisherman or one person cutting down a protected piece of the rainforest," she explains. "What we need is to disrupt and dismantle the system that allows them to get away with it.”

While criminals are becoming increasingly sophisticated - using complex financial systems, corrupt networks and cryptocurrency - the team has been highly successful in disrupting illegal trade.

Swaak-Goldman cites a recent investigation where, working with local authorities, they infiltrated a network of shark fin traffickers, mapped the structure of the organisation, identified the key actors and built a comprehensive intelligence picture.

“By doing this, we have been responsible for two of the largest global seizures of shark fins, ever," she says. "Our organisation managed to contribute to 90 per cent of all shark fin seizures in the past 18 months. And, you know, we are just getting started. We have so much more to do.”

Hear more about Swaak-Goldman’s work, the lengths the Wildlife Justice Commission go in their fight against trafficking and what you can do to help in our podcast (above) and don’t forget to sign up for tickets to Ocean Talks 2026 below.