Philippine wildlife crime-fighting champions honoured at national awards
Not every contribution to combating wildlife crime makes the headlines. This year's winners of the Wildlife Sentinel Awards shone a spotlight on the many whose work — often behind the scenes—has strengthened wildlife protection and enforcement across the Philippines.
The Awards, first held in 2024 and organized by TRAFFIC Southeast Asia, recognizes individuals and government units for their exceptional work against wildlife crime in the Philippines.
Home to some of the world's richest biodiversity and many endemic species, the country also faces significant threats from wildlife crime. In 2024 and 2025 alone, Philippine authorities cracked down on more than 980 wildlife crime cases.
Every arrest made, every case filed, every operation carried out with integrity, these are the quiet, unglamorous acts that help ensure the survival of these precious beings. I am certain we can build a world that gives all creatures, especially our endangered species, a fighting chance,”
said Quezon City Mayor Josefina “Joy” Belmonte, in her opening address at the awards ceremony.
The 2026 nominees were not limited to law enforcers. They spanned the gamut of people and agencies who modernised procedures and built systems, communities and networks that scaled crime-fighting. Their diverse actions covered new and repeat offenders as well as terrestrial, marine, and cybercrime.
This year, 11 individuals and government units were nominated for the fight against wildlife crime, up from eight nominees in the inaugural WiSe Awards in 2024.
The work of winners, meanwhile, showcased the efforts that have enabled hundreds of investigations, operations and arrests against wildlife crime in the Philippines. They were recognized under five categories:
The winners under the five themes were:
- INNOVATION: Police Major Arnel C. Anino, (Individual winner)
Acting Assistant Chief, Regional Maritime Unit Negros Island Region, Philippine National Police (PNP) Maritime Group
- IMPACT: Philippine National Police - Maritime Group (PNP MG) (Unit winner)
- LEADERSHIP: Philippine National Police - Maritime Group (PNP MG) (Unit winner)
- COLLABORATION: Enforcement Division of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources National Capital Region (DENR NCR) (Unit winner)
- INTEGRITY: Enforcement Division of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources CARAGA (DENR CARAGA) (Unit winner)
Behind every arrest, wildlife rescue or seizure, is a quiet hero working behind the scenes. We salute the remarkable dedication and commitment of these countless wildlife defenders,"
This year's winners and nominees remind us that the task ahead is not easy, sometimes fraught with risk and dangers, but they choose, every day, to stand on the side of nature. We hope their stories inspire others to join this fight, to make the world safer for wildlife and people,"
said Kanitha Krishnasamy, Director for TRAFFIC Southeast Asia.
The WiSe Awards is part of TRAFFIC’s Taking Charge: Strengthening Criminal Justice Response to Wildlife Crime in the Philippines project, generously funded by the United States Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL).
The winners were determined through a rigorous and independent judging process conducted by a Panel of four distinguished experts from the environmental arena. Each entry was evaluated objectively against the pre-defined assessment criteria established for each theme and based on the evidence and information provided within the nominations.
