Teacher_Book - General - Draft 23 - 2015

PERSPECTIVES
Question
1. Discuss which perspective is correct?
[NOTE: Discuss means: what are the reasons FOR / AGAINST something or POSITIVES / NEGATIVES]
[NOTE: Write in full sentences and using a P.E.E.L. writing technique)]
SAMPLE ANSWER
There are a number of perspectives about wildlife and the issue of poaching, each has its own positives
and / or negatives. The first perspective which is correct is the conservationists. Conservationists are
people who advocate or act for the protection and preservation of the environment and wildlife. They
are dedicated to stabilising, restoring, preserving and maintaining the biodiversity of an ecosystem.
Ecosystems require the functioning of food chains. If rhino and elephants are targeted for their horn / ivory
and poachers use cyanide, wire snares and wild fires to kill their targets, the use of such indiscriminate
tool kills multiple species within the food chains causing a break down of the overall food web within the
savanna. In 2013, ten elephants from Zimbabwe were killed with cyanide in the water system. From this,
thirty-nine endangered white-backed vultures were found dead from feeding on the carcasses. Vultures
are scavengers and the sight of vultures circling down from high above the African bush is a sure sign of a
recent kill and alerts rangers to the presence of poachers. The cyanide remains in the water and soil via the
ground water system, when villagers dig a well it can be lined with cyanide which kills villagers, their crops
and livestock. So, the conservationist perspective on the importance of wildlife in the ecosystem is correct.
Another reason for the conservationist perspective being correct is the importance of wildlife for the
African tourism industry. Tourists are attracted to the rawness of Africa, they include photographers,
volunteers, wildlife lovers and environmentalists. Tourism relies on support systems such as cafes, hotels,
restaurants, super-markets, tour guides and game rangers. Tourism’s main comparative advantage over
other sectors is that visitor expenditures have a “flow-through” or catalytic effect across the economy
in terms of production and employment creation in those areas. Receipts from African tourism in 2012
amounted to over US$36 billion and contributed just over 2.8% to the region’s GDP. However, in 2014
(January to August) 2,200 elephants were found with tusks poached which is a loss to African economies
of US$4.4 billion over the life span of those elephant living for 70 years. Wildlife has an economic value and
it is correct for conservationists to value wildlife.
Another reason the conservationists are correct is their discussion concerning the lifting of the ban on
rhino horn trading. Conservationists realise they will be unable to stop the demand for the rhino horn and
instead, want to be able to supply the rhino horn to the market which ensures the rhino’s safety. Rhino
horn is made up of keratin (like the composition of a human finger nail) and can be filed or trimmed just
like a human finger nail without pain and it grows back within three years. If C.I.T.E.S. was to lift the ban
than African farmers could stock rhinos and extract the horn periodically to the market.
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