In 2006 Yao, then at the peak of his career with the Houston Rockets, made waves outside of China when he announced that he would swear off shark fin soup for life and campaign against it with WildAid. In China, a country where celebrities did not normally endorse environmental causes, Yao's stand against shark fin soup was highly unusual. And at the time, his message went practically unheard, with local media ignoring or burying the story.

But over the last seven years, Yao and WildAid's message has reached a growing number of mainlanders, who previously knew little about shark fins. The gruesome process of harvesting fins resonated with an urban generation that has embraced environmental causes, and a major turning point arrived in the summer of 2012 when the Chinese government banned the serving of shark fin soup at all official functions.

Yao said that before saying no to shark fin soup, he had no idea how the fins were harvested. As soon as he learned about the finning process and the numbers of sharks killed by it, he said, he decided to take action with the hope that ordinary Chinese would do the same once they were informed.

"I think that as a lot of people began to consume shark fins, they were simply unaware of the cruelty and marine ecological destruction behind it," he said. "Like me, once they understand the facts, they'll boycott consumption of shark fins and spread the word."

Yao said that the success of his partnership with WildAid has made him "appreciate how meaningful this kind of work is." For WildAid, which surveyed 24,000 Chinese in 16 cities before launching the campaign, Yao's participation has been invaluable.

"Yao Ming's leadership on this issue has been key," said Peter Knights, WildAid Executive Director and founder. "As the flag bearer in the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Yao's status in his homeland may never be surpassed. He is known for his patriotism and integrity and has been an eloquent ambassador for the campaign."

Yao and Knights are not alone in their quest to end the shark fin trade -- Richard Branson and TCL CEO Li Dongsheng have also joined the WildAid campaign. Additionally, dozens of environmental NGOs, many based in Hong Kong, have targeted different aspects of the business, focusing on high-end hotels and airlines in the Asia-Pacific region.

The groups' efforts are yielding results. The Peninsula Hotels and Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts have removed shark fin soup from their menus, with many other hotels in the region following suit. Cathay Pacific, Air New Zealand, Korean Air, Fiji Airways and other airlines have banned shark fins from their planes, removing one link from the supply chain at a time.

Even U.S. state governments are getting in on the act. In late July, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed a bill banning the possession or sale of fins from any shark (except the populous dogfish) beginning next summer. New York will join California, Washington, Oregon, Hawaii, Delaware and Maryland in the small but growing number of states with shark fin bans. In June, the tiny sultanate of Brunei was applauded by environmental groups after becoming the first Asian country to enact a nationwide ban on the trade.