A picture is worth 1000 words, but not at any price
As critical as images are, we are committed to using only images that are ethically obtained.
At Raincoast, we use, and rely on many powerful images to convey the beauty and importance of the areas where we work, and the wildlife that thrives there. They are critical to help us inform people of conservation concerns, and our efforts to protect our beautiful coast. They help us to inspire people to act on behalf of conservation, and to support our various projects.
The time commitment and expense involved in obtaining high quality, inspiring images would seriously drain our resources. We depend heavily, and are grateful for the support of some world-leading photographers such those that supported our recent One Shot for Coastal Carnivores exhibit.
As critical as these images are, we are committed to using only images that are ethically obtained. These considerations are informed by our own conservation ethics and what we learn along the way. The points below are those from a code of conduct, given to us by Brad Hill and available in full on Brad’s website.
This code suggests ethical wildlife photographers should:
- Engage in passive wildlife photography only.
- Do nothing intentional to alter or influence the behaviour of subjects for the purpose of photography.
- Always allow the wildlife subject – regardless of the species – to determine the distance it is comfortable with between itself and the photographer.
- Strive to always consider both the individual and collective effects my photographic activities can have on the subject(s).
Brad is one of the spectacular photographers who have allowed us the use of some of their powerful images. We wholeheartedly endorse these principles, and will not knowingly use images that are not ethically obtained.
We thank Brad, and the other photographers, who have helped us immeasurably through their art, to protect this stunning coast that we love. Their ability to illustrate the power and beauty of the habitats that we strive to protect, as well as their gift of portraying wildlife as distinct individuals, is exactly the message that we constantly seek to put forth.
If a picture is worth a thousand words, their eloquence is priceless.
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Raincoast’s in-house scientists, collaborating graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and professors make us unique among conservation groups. We work with First Nations, academic institutions, government, and other NGOs to build support and inform decisions that protect aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, and the wildlife that depend on them. We conduct ethically applied, process-oriented, and hypothesis-driven research that has immediate and relevant utility for conservation deliberations and the collective body of scientific knowledge.
We investigate to understand coastal species and processes. We inform by bringing science to decision-makers and communities. We inspire action to protect wildlife and wildlife habitats.
