Global Biodiversity: Extinct Arctic Mammoth Tusks as Substitute Resource to Save Live Elephants
Authors: Ivan Potravny , Tatyana Sofronova , Alena Chindina 
Published: October 2024

Objective: The aim of this article is to justify an approach to natural resource substitution using fossilised mammoth bones from the Arctic to conserve live elephants.

Theoretical Framework - The theoretical idea and basis of the article is the replacement of ivory with the tusks of extinct mammoths against the background of melting permafrost in the Arctic. This approach is considered within the framework of a kind of 'mammoth pipeline' - the journey of extinct fossil mammoth tusks and their transformation into eternal values in the form of exclusive products, as well as their ultimate contribution to the conservation of living elephant populations. The theoretical basis of the study is the concept of sustainable development, the theory of natural resource substitution, biodiversity conservation, the concept of benefit sharing paradigm in Arctic mining.

Method - The study is based on an interdisciplinary approach using methods from economics and management, ethnology and palaeontology, social research and monitoring. The evaluation of the effectiveness of the ivory to mammoth tusk substitution scheme is considered in terms of the benefits to global biodiversity conservation, including the maintenance of wild elephant populations and the development of traditional fisheries by indigenous peoples of the North.

Results and Discussion - This article assesses the world resource of mammoth bone remains, concentrated in the Russian Arctic, and shows the possibilities of their use as a substitute natural resource for elephant conservation and socio-economic development of areas inhabited by indigenous peoples of the North. The influence of ongoing climate change on the increase in the extraction of fossil mammoth tusks is shown. The stages and links of the 'mammoth pipeline' under consideration, including the extraction of mammoth bones, the export and trade of tusks, and the substitution of mammoth tusks for ivory, are substantiated. The factors influencing the formation of the world demand for mammoth tusks are identified and the directions of their use for elephant conservation and socio-economic development of the local population in the Arctic territories in the areas of their extraction are shown.

Research Implications - The results of the study can be used to conserve global biodiversity, develop a green economy, substitute mammoth tusks for ivory and conserve elephant populations. The authors estimate that supplying the world market with an average of 10 kilograms of mammoth ivory can save one elephant; exporting even half of the mammoth tusks extracted in Yakutia can save 60,000 elephants. At the same time, issues of social and economic support for the traditional trades and livelihoods of the indigenous peoples of the North are being addressed.

Originality/ Value - The originality of the research and its value lie in the new scientific formulation of the solution to the scientific problem of global biodiversity conservation through the substitution of natural resources, the use of own empirical data obtained in the Arctic territories, as well as the possibility of practical application of the results obtained in the field of green economy.