THE CONVERSATION: What would you do if you saw someone breaking the law? Would you report the offender to the police? Confront them? Or would you do nothing?
We recently asked more than 2,000 fishers in seven countries what they would do if they saw a poacher in a protected marine area.
Poaching – the illegal harvest of animals – plagues many of the world’s marine protected areas. Illegal fishing undermines marine parks, and can threaten chronically over-fished species.
A key problem is the lack of enforcement resources. An increasing number of governments and management agencies are encouraging fishers to help, by understanding marine protection rules and reporting poachers.
Yet little is known about how fishers respond when they witness poaching.
