EVENT:

Please join us on Thursday, September 7, 2017 at 13:00 (GMT) for a telephonic press conference with Dan Foote, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs. Mr. Foote will discuss wildlife trafficking in Africa and U.S. efforts to halt this bloody crime.

BACKGROUND:

Wildlife trafficking threatens not only wildlife, but also national and global security. Wildlife trafficking fuels corruption, insecurity, and instability; it weakens border security, and undermines the rule-of-law in places where government structures are already weak. Wildlife trafficking strengthens violent criminal organizations, who leverage the proceeds from this low-risk, high reward crime, into other illegal activities such as drug trafficking. It is estimated that environmental crimes generate around $40 billion in revenue for criminals each year. It is for these reasons that the State Department works together with partners from around the world to find solutions to end the death and destruction affecting not only elephants, but also rhinos, pangolins, tigers, and countless other species around the world. 

DETAILS:

Speaker: Dan Foote, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs
Date: September 7, 2017
Time: 09:00 EST |13:00 GMT
* Please use Time Zone Converter to determine the start time of the event in your time zone.
Language: English.  French and Portuguese interpretation will be offered.
Ground rules: On the record
Dial-in Info: To be provided once you RSVP
RSVP: RSVP to afmediahub@state.gov. Please indicate if you will dial in (specify English/French/Portuguese line), or request that we dial out to you (provide the phone number and language to be used).
Twitter: Follow us on @StateINL and @AfricaMediaHub.

LOGISTICS:

• Callers should dial-in to the conference call 10-15 minutes early. 
• When an individual journalist dials-in, the operator will collect the caller’s name, press affiliation, and location. When an embassy dials in, the operator will ask the embassy’s name and location.
• The moderator will facilitate the Q and A among the connected callers. Journalists on the conference call will be instructed to press the “*” and “1” buttons on their phones in order to enter the question queue. NOTE: You can press “*1” at any time during the call to join the question queue, even before the moderator begins the Q and A portion. We ask that journalists limit themselves to one question and indicate to which speaker the question is directed. Journalists can also submit questions in English to afmediahub@state.gov prior to or during the call. 

Bio:

Dan Foote, Deputy Assistant Secretary

Dan Foote was appointed as Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement (INL) in September 2015. He oversees INL program activities in Afghanistan and Pakistan, in addition to INL’s Office of Anticrime Programs.

Prior to his appointment, Mr. Foote was the Coordinating Director at Embassy Kabul, managing all U.S. civilian foreign assistance and law enforcement activities in Afghanistan. He served twice as Deputy Chief of Mission; in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic and Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Previously, he headed INL’s Colombia operations as INL Director at Embassy Bogotá, and led the U.S. Provincial Reconstruction Team in Maysan province, Iraq. Dan also served as Management Counselor in Buenos Aires, and as a member of the Regional Reconstruction Team in Erbil, Iraq. His other overseas postings include Luxembourg, London, and Guadalajara, Mexico. In Washington, he has worked in the State Department’s Operations Center and in the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs.

Mr. Foote holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from Columbia University, where he lettered in football and track and field. After graduation, he worked as a natural gas trader/broker in the New York City area for several years. Thereafter, he devoted two years as a Peace Corps volunteer in rural Bolivia, where he managed extensive development projects. After returning to the U.S., he taught high school Spanish and coached varsity football and track-and-field prior to joining the Department of State.

A career member of the Senior Foreign Service, Dan is a native of Syracuse, New York, and attended high school in the Buffalo area.

Additional Resources: www.state.gov/j/inl/focus/combatting/environment/index.htm.