Ethics And Poaching Research Paper

ETHICS IN GEOSPATIAL TECHNOLOGY As geospatial technology advances, it becomes increasingly more important to implement an equally advancing ethical component. It is relatively easy to acquire geographic information and share it with millions with a click of a button, such as a simple geotag on a safari vacation. Few people, however, recognize that geotags’ magnitude and how it could be aiding in the mass poaching event of African rhinos. South Africa’s National Parks have been fighting poachers that use geotags to locate African rhinoceros for decades and it seems like an interminable fight. Poachers in South Africa were able to track down rhinos when coordinates were attached to photos from the safaris (Time n.d.).
Society’s current fixation on communication of geographic information over social media platforms, such as Instagram, can be extremely dangerous to something that is trying to hide from extinction. The ethical concern stems not only from the poachers using the GPS coordinates for illegal activities but also for those who are willingly providing the coordinates for critically endangered species on social media. Humans have a moral responsibility to defend the environment …show more content…
Poaching has numerous consequences that concern society. The loss of one or two species can create a cascading event that would disrupt entire ecosystems, which can also negatively impact human health and fitness. The first to be affected by this ecosystem shift would be the local residents that would possibly affect future crop yields, (BUSINESS) pest populations, and even land topography. Though people from other countries may not feel the immediate affects from the loss of rhino populations, they eventually will. By not protecting critically endangered species, humans can face devastating ecological consequences (Sterbenz