Li Bingbing, actress and UN Environment Programme Goodwill Ambassador, speaks during the opening ceremony of the Climate Summit at the UN headquarters in New York, on Sept 23, 2014. The one-day summit, convened by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, is expected to galvanize global action on climate change. [Photo/Xinhua]

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Li Bingbing urges greater effort to combat illegal wildlife trade

Li, 41, has been a United Nations Environment Programme goodwill ambassador and helped launch several campaigns - including one to reduce demand for ivory -- with the UN and by herself in China.

Li has also used her rising profile to create awareness about environmental issues among her fans, through programs such as the L.O.V.E Green Campaign, which promotes a low-carbon lifestyle.

"I have been lucky enough to have gained a lot of attention, support and appreciation from fans - mostly for my work as an actress - but I started to feel that it's time I need to do something in return for their support," Li notes.

"I always wonder: 'Why would they continue to support you if you don't do something meaningful in return?' " she says.

After Li's UNEP mission to Nairobi, Kenya, last year, she urged the international community to combat wildlife poaching and trafficking.

"It's so sad to see those lovely elephants being killed for the ivory trade," says Li. "If you get closer to them, you can feel their friendliness and love and their caring for their families; it's very touching," Li says about her trip to Kenya, where she also fed orphaned elephants.

"As an actress, it was very different to be on that mission and to be close to wildlife," she says. "It urged me to do something immediately."