Criminology
This page explores the deforestation and degradation of the David Dunlap Observatory lands through the lens of terrestrial green criminology, offering a perspective that frames ecological destruction not simply as environmental change, but as a form of systemic harm against ecosystems. Drawing on critical work that expands the definition of victimhood to include species, habitats, and landscapes, the insights presented here examine how institutional structures—like law enforcement, government policy, and development planning—often fail to intervene in ecological crises, either due to legal limitations or political hesitation. These frameworks highlight why ecosystems like the DDO forest, though partially protected, remain vulnerable to fragmentation, biodiversity loss, and symbolic conservation measures. Rather than promote confrontational protest, the page underscores the importance of education, scientific analysis, and artistic communication as forms of ethical resistance. Together, the featured works justify a method of advocacy rooted in clarity, evidence, and justice for the land, positioning the DDO not only as a local issue, but as a case study in how modern societies overlook and enable environmental harm.
​
A Green Criminological Case Study of the Northern White Rhino & Reflections on Wildlife Crime in Canada
Maryann Anastasakos
🕒 Estimated reading time: 15-16 minutes
The northern white rhino's extinction is one of the most symbolic and devastating failures in modern conservation history. Once native to Central and East Africa, the subspecies was driven to functional extinction due to relentless poaching despite decades of legal protections, international trade bans, and last-ditch scientific interventions (Nuwer, 2021). At the heart of this loss is a broader set of global failures, failures not only of enforcement but also of imagination, ethics, and justice. Green criminology, a branch of critical criminology that recognizes nonhuman animals and ecosystems as victims of harm, provides a framework for understanding how conservation models have historically prioritized control and punishment over long-term sustainability and equity. Viewed through this lens, the extinction of the northern white rhino reveals the limitations of deterrence-based conservation, the adaptability of transnational wildlife crime networks, and the ethical implications of treating species as economic commodities (Ayling, 2013, pp. 63–64; Hübschle, 2017, pp. 427–428). Moreover, the rhino's disappearance raises questions about whose knowledge and interests are centred in global conservation planning, as militarized approaches often marginalize local communities and ignore the socio-economic drivers of poaching. This paper argues that addressing wildlife crime and preventing further species loss requires a shift toward species justice: an ethical stance that affirms the intrinsic value of nonhuman life and demands more inclusive, community-based conservation strategies. Rather than relying solely on criminalization and reactive enforcement, effective conservation must consider the lived realities of those most affected by environmental crime while tackling consumer demand and the economic incentives that sustain illegal wildlife markets. While the case of the northern white rhino unfolded outside of Canada, the issues it illustrates are deeply relevant within the Canadian context. This paper will explore how similar enforcement-focused policies have failed to prevent crimes such as the illegal trade in black bear gallbladders and examine the potential of Indigenous-led conservation initiatives to offer a more just and sustainable alternative. By comparing global and Canadian responses to wildlife crime and evaluating the effectiveness of deterrence-based and community-centred models, this analysis will argue for rethinking conservation grounded in green criminological principles, ecological integrity, and human rights.
What is Green Crimnology?
Species Justice
Green criminology expands the traditional boundaries of crime and victimization by recognizing nonhuman species as legitimate victims of harm. This broader ethical framework, known as species justice, positions the extinction of the northern white rhino as an intense act of violence, not just against biodiversity but against the moral responsibilities humans hold toward other species. As emphasized, species justice challenges anthropocentric legal and political systems by asserting that animals, ecosystems, and the environment deserve consideration beyond their utility to humans. In the case of the northern white rhino, poaching-driven demand for rhino horn, combined with ineffective international enforcement, led to the subspecies' functional extinction despite years of conservation efforts (Nuwer, 2021, para. 5). Griffiths (2017) further explains that poaching is not a victimless crime; it causes widespread ecological harm and deeply affects the cultural identity of communities historically connected to endangered species. These harms go beyond immediate population losses, disrupting entire ecosystems and severing human-animal relationships rooted in spiritual, economic, and social ties (Griffiths, 2017, pp. 47–48). From a species justice perspective, the rhino's extinction reflects not only the failure to protect a species but a more profound failure to recognize its right to exist free from commodification and violence. This framing is crucial to later understanding Canadian wildlife crime, where species such as black bears are similarly targeted for their body parts and reduced to economic goods. A green criminological approach invites a reconceptualization of these harms, recognizing that the loss of one species is rarely an isolated event, but rather a symptom of systemic environmental injustice.
Figure 1. Fatu, right, grazes with her mother and a southern white rhino hours after Sudan passed away (Ami Vitale, 2018).
Conservation Failures
A central reason for the northern white rhino's extinction lies in the overreliance on deterrence-based conservation, which focuses on punishment and enforcement rather than addressing the systemic causes of poaching. These strategies, which include harsher penalties, international trade bans, and militarized patrols, were intended to discourage illegal hunting. However, the persistence of rhino horn trafficking illustrates that such models are often ineffective when applied in isolation. Ayling (2013) outlines how rhino horn remained an attractive target because it met all the criteria outlined in the CRAVED model: it was concealable, removable, available, valuable, enjoyable, and disposable (p. 63). Even as enforcement efforts increased, poachers and traffickers adapted, ensuring that the trade continued despite the risks. The CAPTURED model further builds on this by highlighting the resilience and innovation of wildlife crime networks in response to enforcement pressures (Ayling, 2013, p. 64). Militarized approaches, such as Botswana's controversial shoot-to-kill policy, have been promoted by some as effective deterrents. While such strategies may reduce poaching in the short term, they also raise ethical concerns and can create tension between enforcement authorities and local communities (Madigele & Mogomotsi, 2017, p. 55). These models prioritize punishment over prevention and often ignore the economic and social realities that drive individuals toward poaching in the first place. These strategies' failure to protect the northern white rhino highlights the need to shift away from punitive conservation and toward approaches that prioritize local engagement, equity, and long-term sustainability.
Canadian Wildlife Crimes
The limitations of deterrence-based conservation are not exclusive to Africa or Asia; they are also evident in Canada's ongoing struggle with wildlife trafficking, particularly in the illegal trade of black bear gallbladders. These organs are highly valued in traditional medicine markets, making black bears vulnerable to poaching and black-market exploitation. Despite federal protections under the Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act (WAPPRIITA), the demand for bear gallbladders continues to fuel illicit activity across provincial and international borders (Environment and Climate Change Canada, 2023). In one case, three individuals were fined a combined $34,000 for illegally transporting bear gallbladders between New Brunswick and Quebec, highlighting the persistence of this crime and its organized, interprovincial nature (Environment and Climate Change Canada, 2023). Much like the rhino horn trade, bear gallbladders possess several of the CRAVED attributes outlined by Ayling (2013): exceptionally high market value, ease of concealment, and strong consumer demand (p. 63). These similarities suggest that Canada's enforcement strategies, while present, suffer from the same limitations as those applied in global contexts: they react to symptoms of wildlife crime without addressing root causes. Moreover, the continued targeting of bears for specific body parts indicates a failure to incorporate species justice into Canadian conservation frameworks. By focusing narrowly on punishment, Canadian wildlife protection efforts risk overlooking the deeper cultural, economic, and ecological implications of poaching. This underscores the need to look beyond criminalization and toward more holistic, preventive strategies rooted in community engagement and education.
The Canadian context reflects many of the same enforcement-centered conservation challenges that contributed to the extinction of the northern white rhino. One prominent example is the illegal trade in black bear gallbladders, which continues to thrive despite provincial and federal wildlife protection laws. In 2023, three individuals were fined a total of $34,000 for violating federal legislation by transporting gallbladders from New Brunswick to Quebec (Environment and Climate Change Canada, 2023). These organs are highly valued in traditional medicine markets, making bears a frequent target for poaching. Just as rhino horn retained high market value despite international trade bans, bear gallbladders remain lucrative on the black market due to persistent consumer demand and cultural significance. Both products share attributes identified in Ayling's (2013) CRAVED model—concealability, removability, availability, value, enjoyability, and disposability—that make them attractive to poachers and traffickers (p. 63). Moreover, Ayling (2013) argues that wildlife crime networks demonstrate high adaptability, allowing them to evolve in response to law enforcement strategies through mechanisms captured in the CAPTURED model (p. 64).
In this sense, the Canadian bear parts trade is not an isolated issue, but part of a larger pattern of wildlife crime sustained by criminal network resilience and a reactive enforcement system. Despite legislation such as the Wild Animal and Plant Protection and Regulation of International and Interprovincial Trade Act (WAPPRIITA), enforcement alone has proven inadequate in deterring this form of poaching. While Canada's approach does not mirror the militarized tactics seen in countries like Botswana, where "shoot-to-kill" policies are employed (Madigele & Mogomotsi, 2017, p. 55), its strategy still relies heavily on post-crime punishment. For example, in the case of the rhino, where arrests, bans, and armed patrols failed to halt illegal activity, Canada's use of fines and penalties against poachers occurs after harm has already been done. From a green criminological standpoint, this approach overlooks the more profound ethical and ecological harms at play. Enforcement-focused models are often framed as necessary deterrents, but in practice, they do little to address the structural conditions—such as economic inequality, lack of community engagement, and sustained consumer demand—that allow these crimes to persist. When species such as black bears are reduced to commodities, their victimhood becomes invisible within traditional legal frameworks.
Justice-Based Solutions
Nevertheless, as explored by Griffiths (2017), species justice argues that nonhuman animals should be recognized as victims whose lives have inherent value and whose loss constitutes a moral failure (pp. 47–48). Furthermore, Canadian enforcement practices have not adequately engaged with the socio-cultural dimensions of conservation, a gap that echoes the global conservation failures that led to the rhino's extinction. Osorio and Bernaz (2024) argue that conservation efforts must incorporate a human rights perspective, as enforcement-first models often disproportionately affect marginalized communities. This concern is relevant in the Canadian context, where Indigenous communities have historically been excluded from the design and implementation of conservation policy. Although some positive steps have been made in recent years, such as increased federal funding for Indigenous-led conservation projects (Environment and Climate Change Canada, 2024), mainstream conservation in Canada still operates primarily through top-down structures. Without meaningful community participation, conservation policy risks alienating those most connected to the land, much like in the rhino case, where local communities were often marginalized by militarized enforcement. Despite laws, fines, and monitoring, the persistence of wildlife crime in Canada suggests that enforcement alone is insufficient. Instead, a shift toward preventative, justice-oriented conservation that includes human and nonhuman interests is needed.
​
The apparent dissimilarities between militarized and community-based conservation models reveal fundamental differences in how states conceptualize wildlife crime and species protection. Militarized approaches, such as Botswana's controversial "shoot-to-kill" policy, represent the extreme end of deterrence-based conservation. These strategies rely on force, surveillance, and the threat of death as tools for protecting endangered species. Advocates argue that such tactics are necessary in high-risk poaching zones, and Madigele and Mogomotsi (2017) suggest that this policy has, in some cases, successfully reduced poaching incidents (p. 55). However, the same authors also caution that this strategy blurs the line between conservation and counterterrorism, raising serious ethical concerns and intensifying hostility between law enforcement and local populations (Madigele & Mogomotsi, 2017, pp. 56–57). From a green criminological perspective, this model not only fails to address the underlying drivers of poaching, such as poverty and marginalization but may actually escalate violence and erode trust in conservation institutions. The failure to save the northern white rhino despite increased militarization illustrates how such reactive models may offer short-term deterrence, but lack the structural capacity to support long-term species justice.
In contrast, community-based conservation emphasizes local empowerment, economic alternatives, and ecological stewardship. Hübschle (2017) argues that traditional anti-poaching strategies are flawed because they neglect the social and economic contexts that push individuals into illegal wildlife economies (p. 429). In many cases, marginalized people turn to poaching not out of malice but necessity, and without addressing these root causes, conservation efforts will remain incomplete. Community-led models offer a more sustainable path forward by involving local populations in species protection and creating incentives for conservation through ecotourism, environmental payments, and co-management programs. These strategies are more effective over the long term and more ethically aligned with principles of justice and inclusion. Osorio and Bernaz (2024) reinforce this by arguing that conservation cannot be divorced from human rights, as enforcement-heavy tactics often harm the very communities they claim to protect. This shift toward inclusive conservation in Canada is reflected in the growing support for Indigenous-led environmental governance. Environment and Climate Change Canada (2024) recently announced funding for 42 Indigenous-led conservation projects across the country, demonstrating a growing recognition of Indigenous knowledge systems' role in ecological stewardship. These projects align more closely with community-based models, allowing Canada to distinguish itself from the enforcement-heavy strategies contributing to the loss of species like the northern white rhino.
Conclusions from the Northern White Rhino
The extinction of the northern white rhino was an ecological loss and a profoundly symbolic moment in conservation history. As the last male rhino, Sudan, neared death, global media outlets focused on the species' plight, prompting widespread mourning and renewed urgency for conservation. Almond (2018) captures this moment through visual storytelling and narrative reflection, documenting the death of a subspecies and the emotional resonance it carried for conservationists, scientists, and the public. Similarly, Nuwer (2021) explores the lives of the two remaining females, Najin and Fatu, and the controversial efforts to save the species through artificial reproductive technology. These accounts reveal a pattern in global conservation: significant public attention and resource allocation often arrive only after a species is on the brink of extinction. While scientific interventions may offer hope, they are ultimately reactive strategies that fail to address the root causes of decline, including poaching, market demand, and political inaction. The case of the northern white rhino demonstrates how conservation narratives can become saturated with symbolism, focusing more on emotionally charged "last chance" efforts than on sustained, systemic change. This symbolic pattern is also evident in Canada, where animals like polar bears, orcas, and wolves often become focal points for public concern, even while less charismatic species face equal or greater risk. Conservation campaigns frequently rely on emotional appeals, which can galvanize attention but may obscure deeper structural issues, such as habitat loss, colonial land policies, or enforcement gaps. These campaigns also tend to privilege a narrow set of voices, sidelining Indigenous knowledge systems and long-standing stewardship practices that rarely receive equivalent media coverage or public funding. From a green criminological perspective, this reliance on symbolic imagery and late-stage interventions mirrors the ethical failures that contributed to the rhino's extinction. By centring species only when they become culturally or visually iconic, conservation efforts risk becoming reactive and superficial rather than preventative and justice-oriented. The lesson from the northern white rhino is clear: Conservation must not wait until a species becomes a symbol of loss before action is taken. Instead, sustained engagement, inclusive policy, and early investment in both human and nonhuman communities are essential to preventing future ecological tragedies.
A green criminological perspective offers the critical framework to understand why global and Canadian conservation efforts have repeatedly failed to prevent wildlife crime and species decline. Traditional criminology tends to define crime narrowly, focusing on human-centred legal violations and overlooking the broader harms inflicted on ecosystems, animals, and marginalized communities. In contrast, green criminology reorients this focus by recognizing that nonhuman life and the environment can be victims of harm, even when that harm is not legally defined as criminal. This shift in thinking is crucial for interpreting the extinction of the northern white rhino and its parallels in Canada. The poaching of bears for their gallbladders, for instance, has persisted despite being largely illegal across Canadian provinces (World Animal Protection Canada, 2019). When wildlife is viewed solely through the lens of property or resource management, enforcement becomes reactive and superficial. This approach fails to account for the structural, cultural, and economic systems that allow these harms to continue. Green criminology instead demands that conservation be rooted in justice, not only for human communities but also for species and ecosystems that are exploited and erased. By framing wildlife crime as both ecological and social harm, this perspective encourages more holistic approaches, including public education, economic alternatives to poaching, and meaningful collaboration with communities most impacted by conservation policies. In Canada, adopting a green criminological lens could support the development of conservation strategies that are not just legalistic but genuinely transformative.
The extinction of the northern white rhino was not an isolated tragedy but the result of global conservation systems that failed to address the root causes of wildlife crime. This paper has shown that deterrence-based approaches, while widespread, are insufficient in the face of resilient poaching networks, persistent market demand, and the ethical neglect of nonhuman victims. The illegal trade in bear gallbladders in Canada reflects similar dynamics, where enforcement efforts fall short and deeper structural issues remain unaddressed. While militarized responses have received attention globally, this paper has argued that community-based, justice-oriented conservation offers a more sustainable and ethical path forward. In particular, Indigenous-led conservation in Canada demonstrates the potential of inclusive stewardship grounded in cultural knowledge, ecological responsibility, and long-term vision. Furthermore, the case of the northern white rhino highlights the danger of relying on symbolic storytelling and reactive, last-minute scientific interventions rather than proactive, preventative action. A green criminological perspective calls for a fundamental rethinking of how harm, justice, and responsibility are defined in environmental contexts. For Canada to lead in wildlife protection, it must continue to move beyond enforcement and symbolism and toward conservation strategies that recognize the interconnectedness of human and nonhuman life and that centre justice as a guiding principle.
References
-
Almond, K. (2018). The last of the northern white rhinos. CNN. https://www.cnn.com/interactive/2018/03/world/last-rhino-cnnphotos/
-
Ayling, J. (2013). What sustains wildlife crime: Rhino horn trading and the resilience of criminal networks. Journal of International Wildlife Law & Policy, 16(1), 57–80. https://doi.org/10.1080/13880292.2013.764776
-
Environment and Climate Change Canada. (2024). Forty-two Indigenous-led conservation projects across Canada receive federal funding to protect more nature. https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/news/2024/01/forty-two-indigenous-led-conservation-projects-across-canada-receive-federal-funding-to-protect-more-nature.html
-
Environment and Climate Change Canada. (2023). Three individuals fined a total of $34,000 for violating federal wildlife legislation. https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/three-individuals-fined-a-total-of-34-000-for-violating-federal-wildlife-legislation-850354995.html
-
Griffiths, M. (2017). Heritage lost: The cultural impact of wildlife crime in South Africa. SA Crime Quarterly, (60), 45-50. https://doi.org/10.17159/2413-3108/2017/v0n60a1728
-
Hübschle, A. M. (2017). The social economy of rhino poaching: Of economic freedom fighters, professional hunters and marginalized local people. Current Sociology, 65(3), 427–447. https://doi.org/10.1177/0011392116673210
-
Madigele, P. K., & Mogomotsi, G. E. J. (2017). Live by the gun, die by the gun - Botswana’s ‘shoot-to-kill’ policy as an anti-poaching strategy. SA Crime Quarterly, 2017(60), 51–59. https://doi.org/10.17159/2413-3108/2017/v0n60a1787
-
Nuwer, R. (2021). The last two northern white rhinos on earth. The New York Times Magazine. https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/06/magazine/the-last-two-northern-white-rhinos-on-earth.html
-
Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry. (2023). Ontario protects black bear against illegal hunting practices. Government of Ontario. https://news.ontario.ca/en/bulletin/1004970/ontario-protects-black-bear-against-illegal-hunting-practices
-
Osorio, C. P., & Bernaz, N. (2024). Addressing the international illegal wildlife trade through a human rights approach. Review of European, Comparative & International Environmental Law. https://doi-org.ezproxy.lib.torontomu.ca/10.1111/reel.12563
-
World Animal Protection Canada. (2019). Canada’s role in the wildlife trade. News Article. https://www.worldanimalprotection.ca/news/canadas-role-wildlife-trade/
Operational Independence & Ecological Inaction
Analysis by Kyle Kuthe, based on Maya Kuthe’s MA Thesis: Operational Independence in the Freedom Occupation Crisis (2024)
🕒 Estimated reading time: 5-6 minutes
Why Police and Governments Rarely Intervene in Environmental Harm
While Maryann Anastasakos’ work addresses ecological harm as a form of systemic injustice, another important layer to understanding why deforestation and degradation continue unchecked lies in the structure of state authority itself. Maya Kuthe’s thesis, "Operational Independence in the Freedom Occupation Crisis," explores the limits of political and police action in public crises, revealing critical insight into the failures of institutional response that apply just as much to environmental harm as they do to political protest.
Maya’s research shows that Canadian police and political authorities operate under a blurry, often misunderstood principle known as “operational independence.” This means politicians cannot order police to intervene, and police may hesitate without clear legal or political backing. During the Freedom Occupation, this led to widespread confusion, inaction, and delayed enforcement—even in a high-profile emergency. The same ambiguity plays out in the ecological realm: tree removals, habitat destruction, and land conversion often fall through the cracks of government responsibility because no one feels authorized to stop it.
Unlike political protests, ecological destruction rarely triggers dramatic institutional response. Yet, as Maya’s thesis implies, this is not due to lack of significance—it is due to structural ambiguity. When no single entity feels responsible to act, harmful development projects like those at the David Dunlap Observatory go forward with little to no resistance. Understanding this helps environmental advocates shift their strategy away from relying on slow or silent authorities.
Why ATAAS Rejects Acts like Ecovandalism and Environmental Scare Tactics
Informed by the insights of both Maryann and Maya, ATAAS embraces a unique position: we are operationally independent too—but instead of confusion, we move with clarity. Instead of passive bureaucracy or destructive protest, our movement communicates harm through research, art, and storytelling. Maya’s thesis helps explain why this method is not just preferable—but necessary.
Where institutions pause, delay, or defer, ATAAS acts. We map deforestation, quantify forest fragmentation, trace native species decline, and present this information in accessible forms—satellite animations, field surveys, illustrated species profiles, and on-site educational graphics. We are not waiting for permission, but we are also not resorting to ecovandalism. Maya’s thesis legitimizes this space of intellectual independence, where action is thoughtful, data-driven, and ethically constructed.
​
The failures of police-government coordination during the Freedom Convoy are mirrored in environmental contexts—where no enforcement body is willing to hold the line. ATAAS reclaims operational independence as an opportunity: our clarity, not their confusion, guides our mission. Like Maryann's call for species justice, we believe that ecosystems need advocates—not enforcers—and that justice can be achieved through knowledge, not destruction.
References
-
​Kuthe, M. (2024). Operational independence in the Freedom Occupation Crisis: An analysis of police and government roles during public emergencies in Ontario (Master’s thesis, University of Ottawa). University of Ottawa Institutional Repository. https://doi.org/10.20381/ruor-30482. https://ruor.uottawa.ca/server/api/core/bitstreams/d6d56a0a-7a50-4be3-b0dc-6f02f1aebec9/content