There is an international trade of ivory and rhino horn. The ivory and rhino horns come from Africa and travel to Asia, where they use them for medicine and jewelry. 70% of the Chinese surveyed, thought that ivory fell out of the elephants like teeth do, and the elephants didn't have to die. There is an international ban on ivory trade since 1989. Some countries are still trading. The UN can impose trade sanctions that would have many social impacts upon the country.
Poaching can have a very bad effect on the global environment. One way it can do this is having a negative effect on the survival of hundreds of animal species. One specific example is African elephants. Their population is dropping quickly because ivory is in high demand, and poachers are killing them for their ivory. population numbers have droped to 1/2 of what they were in 1979. The location of the problem is in the savannas and forests of africa. In 1989, a international ban on ivory trade was approved by CITES a branch of the UN. In resent times, the exportation of ivory has gone back up to what it was before the ban.
Poaching also has a effect on climate changeas you can see in the quote.
"Protecting elephants is an important part of fighting climate change. Why? Because every day across Africa and Asia, elephants disperse billions of seeds, some of which will grow into the forests of tomorrow, sequestering and storing carbon, generating rainfall and stabilising our climate. Save the elephants to save the forests to save the world!"