2Posted on 29 July 2012
By Robert Steinmetz, Conservation Biologist,
WWF-Thailand
In Southeast Asia, iconic wildlife species
such as tigers and elephants survive in
tenuously small populations surrounded by
villages, agriculture and roads. Tigers,
in particular, face a menacing combination
of threats – direct poaching for their body
parts, which are sold internationally as
medicine and decorations, and poaching of
their prey, like the sambar, barking deer,
gaur and wild pig, that tigers depend on
for survival and reproduction.
Wildlife poaching, especially
of large mammals, has reached critical levels
in Thailand and throughout Asia, resulting
in forests that are nearly empty of animals.
Controlling poaching
Tackling poaching requires
professionally managed protected areas and
often, high levels of ranger patrolling.
But park rangers are usually outnumbered
by local people living in the surrounding
areas. If parks fail to gain the help of
local people in the fight against poaching,
then the continued efforts of the poachers
will overwhelm even the best-trained, motivated
rangers who are at the frontline protecting
tigers.
But if society actively
supports conservation efforts, then rangers
would be part of a broad alliance that outnumber
the poachers. Engaging society in conservation
is crucial for lasting and effective conservation.
In 2008, WWF-Thailand
and Kuiburi National Park in southern Thailand’s
Prachuap Khiri Khan Province, began an experimental
project to reduce poaching by enlisting
the support of surrounding communities.
Conducted jointly with Thailand’s Department
of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation,
the project’s main goal was the recovery
of tiger prey. Until then, tiger prey population
had been poached to such scarcity that tigers
were on the verge of extinction.
Under the project, a
long-term outreach and education campaign
was organised, reaching out to three strata
of local village society – adult villagers,
children, and local leaders and government
officials – that could help stem the tide
of poaching.
Motivating people to
support conservation
Increased awareness
of the plight of wildlife, its role in maintaining
healthy ecosystems, and the immorality of
driving another species to extinction, must
surely be a prerequisite to action. Therefore,
as a first step, the project sought to raise
awareness, increase knowledge, shift attitudes,
and build compassion for wildlife.
Outreach events were
organized at village meetings, schools,
markets, temple fairs, youth camps, government
meetings, and in the forest itself. A tiger
mascot joined some events, which were educational
and fun, with slide shows, games, music
and discussions.
In 2009 a Wildlife Recovery
Network of 11 schools was initiated, and
teachers have implemented a local curriculum
focused on wildlife recovery issues. Altogether
over 100 outreach events had been conducted
since 2008 when the experiment started,
directly reaching out to more than 7,000
people.
Incentives for changing
behaviour
But awareness and knowledge
are not enough. People also need incentives
to change behaviour. Outreach emphasized
the role of wildlife in maintaining healthy
forests and watersheds which local people
ultimately depend on. Also, the project’s
school outreach urged students to share
their concern about what they had learned
with their parents. This then creates an
incentive for parents to shift behaviour
in favour of conservation.
But still more is needed.
People need choices, and solutions to act
on. At every outreach event people were
proposed three simple actions they could
voluntarily undertake. These were, in increasing
order of difficulty: (1) spread the word
about the precarious state of Kuiburi’s
wildlife; (2) reconsider hunting, eating
or buying wildlife; and (3) reject outside
poachers by alerting the park to poacher
incursions.
Poachers themselves
were not expected to participate in outreach
events, but it was expected they would be
influenced indirectly, by encouraging new
social norms in society that constrained
poachers. People often respond to society’s
expectations – if neighbours and children
of poachers no longer tolerated poaching,
many poachers might think twice.
Poaching declined, wildlife
increased
To evaluate the effects
of outreach, poaching pressure and wildlife
population trends were monitored. Since
2008, poaching pressure has declined every
year; ranger patrols found four times fewer
poaching signs, such as shotgun shells and
hunting camps, in 2011 than in earlier years.
A questionnaire survey indicated that the
main driver of this decline in poaching
pressure was increased awareness from park
outreach.
Wildlife responded to
the increased freedom from persecution.
Camera trap and sign surveys indicated that
distributions of gaur, sambar, wild pig
and muntjac – the main prey of tigers –
more than doubled.
The experience at Kuiburi
clearly demonstrates that when local communities
are well-engaged and mobilized, through
outreach and partnerships, they can be a
very powerful force against poaching.
