Shark Savers Blog

Palau Shark Sanctuary Update

Written by: Todd Essick
July 11, 2011

Todd Essick recently returned from Palau with a report on the Palau Shark Sanctuary. With an area the size of France to patrol, Palau's sharks and mantas remain vulnerable to poachers.

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Shark Savers Canada: Toronto Dragon Boat Race Festival

Written by: Judson Chiu - Shark Savers Canada
July 6, 2011

Shark Savers Canada successfully held its first event June 25th and 26th at the 23rd Toronto International Dragon Boat Race Festival.

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Florida Shark Workshop Report

Written by: Shark Savers
July 1, 2011

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission (FWC) held six public workshops about increasing protections for sharks all over the state. Those workshops are now complete.

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A note of thanks to Shark Savers' Hong Kong team

Written by: John (Chip) Scarlett, MD
June 21, 2011

The following is the text of an email sent to Jonn Lu, Shark Savers Hong Kong, from Chip Scarlett, a member of Shark Savers Board of Directors. The email congratulates Jonn and the team for the outstanding effort and success of the shark fin soup campaign event conducted with Lush Cosmetics. We provide it here as a way of reinforcing the value of grassroots action in our conservation activities and to thank our volunteers in Hong Kong and throughout the world.

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Update: California Assembly Bill AB 376

Written by: Kevin Sullivan
June 20, 2011

California Assembly Bill AB 376, which would ban the possession, sale, and trade of shark fins in the State of California, was heard before the Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Water on Tuesday, June 14th in Sacramento. Testimony was presented for over an hour in the committee from both supporters and opposition of the bill. Many California residents contacted the committee members to express their support for the bill prior to the meeting. This action was clearly evident in the Senators' responses to testimony. Shark Savers expresses our heartfelt thanks to all of you who took the time to contact Senators. Following the testimony, the committee members elected to postpone voting on the bill for two weeks, until June 28th, to allow supporters and opposition the opportunity to submit additional information.

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Shark Savers and Lush Cosmetics joined forces to fight shark fin soup in Hong Kong

Written by: Shark Savers
June 20, 2011

As the world’s shark populations are forced towards the brink of extinction due to global demand for shark fin soup and other shark products, Shark Savers and Lush Fresh Handmade Cosmetics joined together to bring the message of sharks to the people of Hong Kong. The first two weeks of June saw an intense pace of shark conservation activities by Shark Savers in concert with Lush. Each of Lush’s 12 stores in Hong Kong and Macau pushed Shark Savers’ pro-shark message by asking customers to sign postcards to the government of Hong Kong, urging them to ban shark fin soup and products in the municipality.

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Cynthia Aguilar “not afraid of sharks” on her record-breaking solo paddleboard crossing of the Florida Straits

Written by: Shark Savers
June 17, 2011

Yesterday afternoon, at approximately 12:45PM, Cynthia Aguilar, Shark Savers’ “ocean ambassador”, landed in Key West, Florida completing her quest to be the first person to cross the Florida Straits on a prone paddle board. Aguilar covered 103 miles in approximately 29.5 hours to cross the Straits. Shark Savers, an international shark conservation organization, joined Aguilar for the crossing as a way to call attention to the ocean and its sharks. On the way over to the drop-off point near Cuba, Aguilar’s support boat crew spotted a bait ball (a ball of bait fish) surrounded by sharks. Rather than fearing their presence the crew took it all in stride as a good sign of a healthy ocean ecosystem.

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Action alert in Australia: Restore fishing restrictions for grey nurse sharks

Written by: Shark Savers
June 16, 2011

Grey nurse sharks are critically endangered in Australia and need your help: especially if you are Australian. The government has revoked new restrictions to protect the grey nurse sharks from accidental fishing. You can help restore these protections of grey nurse sharks by providing your comments during the public comment period.

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Help Protect Florida's Hammerhead and Tiger Sharks

Written by: Shark Savers
June 14, 2011

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is holding public workshops about increasing protections for Florida sharks. All Floridians who care about our oceans: please join to provide public comment to add Hammerheads and Tigers to Florida's protected list of species! Please contact Shark Savers -- savefloridasharks@sharksavers.org -- to let us know if you will be able to attend any of these Workshops. We will connect you with Shark Savers staff and members planning to attend the Workshop and answer any questions you might have.

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Shark Savers and Keep Paddlin: The Power of Hope

Written by: Shark Savers
June 10, 2011

Shark Savers is proud to join with Dream Big and Keep Paddlin to support Cynthia Aguilar's attempt to set the distance record for prone distance paddling from Cuba to Key West. We support her goal to be the first solo, non-stop, prone paddle boarder to cross the Florida Straits, both to raise funds for the Make-A-Wish Foundation and to raise awareness about the plight of sharks.

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Action Alert: California Senate Hearings to Ban Shark Fins

Written by: Shark Savers
June 9, 2011

California residents, your action is needed today to support AB 376 to ban the sale and possession of shark fins.

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Enforcement Victories

Written by: Shark Savers
May 24, 2011

Shark Savers celebrates improved enforcement of the no-take zone in Misool Eco Resort, within the Raja Ampat Shark Sanctuary. Last time we visited, several fishing boats were apprehended, but the procedures for enforcement and prosecution had not yet been determined. On May 17 Marit Miners of Misool Eco Resport reports that poachers have been apprehended and successfully prosecuted under the new laws.

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Tags: Shark Sanctuaries Campaign

Action Alert: Save Hammerheads and Oceanic Whitetips

Written by: Shark Savers
May 19, 2011

Please sign the PEW Environment Group petition to the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to protect hammerhead and oceanic whitetip sharks in U.S. waters.

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Shark Savers visits the sharks and mantas of Raja Ampat

Written by: Shark Savers
April 25, 2011

Several members of the Shark Savers team recently returned from Raja Ampat. As many of you know, The Raja Ampat Shark and Ray Sanctuary was declared November 2010 in that part of eastern Indonesia in response to an initiative undertaken by Misool Eco Resort and Shark Savers.It was important for us to visit the area to view the fruits of the conservation efforts. We also witnessed the challenges of protecting it, first hand.

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San Francisco ad campaign combats shark fin soup

Written by: Shark Savers
April 18, 2011

Shark Savers has joined WildAid, Oceana, and the Humane Society in an advertising campaign to run in San Francisco MUNI buses to combat the consumption of shark fin soup. In addition to reducing shark fin soup consumption, the purpose of the campaign is to boost community awareness in the San Francisco Bay Area and support the ongoing efforts to pass the California Shark Fin Ban, AB376.

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Update on bills to ban shark fins

Written by: Shark Savers
March 1, 2011

From one side of the Pacific to another, there are bills to ban the trade in shark fins. Many of these bills are inspired by the ground-breaking Hawaii law, but they all have their local flavors and have met with different kinds of resistance and amendments. Guam has passed a bill. California has a bill that is drawing much support, but is also meeting opposition. Oregon and Washington also have bills to ban the shark fin trade.

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Support needed: California shark fin bill

Written by: Shark Savers
February 15, 2011

On February 14, Assemblymembers Paul Fong (D-Cupertino) and Jared Huffman (D-San Rafael) unveiled landmark legislation, Assembly Bill (AB) 376, to ban the shark fin trade and shark finning, a process where the fins and tails are cut from living sharks, and the remainder of the fish, which is often still alive, is thrown back into the ocean. You can download the bill, here: California AB 376.

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Washington State shark fin ban: New bill needs your support

Written by: Shark Savers
February 11, 2011

Note: This hearing is in the past. No additional testimony is needed at this time. Earlier this week, the Washington state legislature introduced a bill to ban the shark fin trade. This bill prohibits the possession of trade in shark fins, similar to the groundbreaking Hawaii law. The text of SB 5688 can be seen here. The legislation is moving with lightning speed. A public hearing is scheduled for this coming Monday, Feb 14, 1:30pm PST in the Natural Committee Resources Hearing Room (Rm 2 J.A. Cherberg Building Olympia, WA). The notice of the agenda may be seen here. If you live in Washington and can appear in person to provide testimony, please do. No matter where you live, your emailed testimony can make a great difference in encouraging the senators to act in favor of this bill.

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Pacific Fisherman Lawmaker: World Needs Moratorium on Shark Fins

Written by: Shark Savers
February 3, 2011

PRESS RELEASE -- FEBRUARY 3, 2011 Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands – Before he was the Speaker of the House and Lietenant Governor, Diego T. Benavente was a fisherman. Today Benavente is the minority leader in the Northern Mariana Islands House of Representatives, and is making a name for himself for his conservation efforts. “Twenty years ago I could go out in my boat and catch enough fish to stock my market,” explains Benavente. “I can’t do that anymore. My market is closed and I’ve sold my boats.”

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Shark Savers announces new Board members

Written by: Shark Savers
January 26, 2011

Shark Savers is pleased to announce the enhancement of its Board of Directors and Advisory Board. We welcome several extraordinary individuals who have inspired millions with their knowledge and images of, and passion for, the oceans and sharks. Joining our Board of Directors are Sue Chen, Eric Cheng, Martha Watkins Gilkes, and Douglas Seifert. Joining our Advisory Board are Jim Abernethy, Michele Hall, and Howard Hall. Meet our new Board members.

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Shark Savers Congratulates the Northern Mariana Islands for Shark Fin Law

Written by: Shark Savers
January 26, 2011

Shark Savers (www.sharksavers.org), an international shark conservation organization, is pleased to congratulate the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) for protecting dwindling shark populations by banning the shark fin trade. Governor Benigno R. Fitial signed the historic law today, recognizing that “sharks are one of the top predators in the marine food chain and play an important role in our ocean’s ecosystem. Sharks have characteristics that make them more vulnerable to overfishing than most fish.”

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Your action needed: Write a letter in support of Guam's shark fin ban

Written by: Shark Savers
January 25, 2011

We need your help to support a new bill in Guam's legislature to ban shark fin trade. Shark Savers has teamed with WildAid and Shark Defenders to support legislation to ban the shark fin trade and to broadly protect sharks and mantas in CNMI, Guam and throughout the Pacific. Please write a letter or email to support this new bill on or before January 30, 2011. You can email your letter to info@sharkdefenders.com. Shark Defenders will introduce our collective testimony at an upcoming hearing.

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Northern Mariana Islands to protect its sharks from the shark fin trade

Written by: Shark Savers
December 12, 2010

WildAid (www.wildaid.org) and Shark Savers (www.sharksavers.org), two international conservation organizations working to protect sharks from over-fishing, applaud the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) Senate’s vote to outlaw the shark fin trade. The bill was originally introduced by Representative Diego Tenorio Benavente into the CNMI House of Representatives, where it was approved on November 17th. The landmark bill recognizes sharks to be “an essential element of the ocean’s ecosystem” because of their role as apex predator of the sea. It seeks to stop the severe over-fishing of sharks that occurs worldwide in order to feed the status-driven demand for shark fin soup. The bill makes it “unlawful for any person to possess, sell, offer for sale, trade, or distribute shark fins in the CNMI”. The bill is similar in that regard to one recently passed in the State of Hawaii. If signed into law, the CNMI will join another Pacific island nation, Palau, which has also taken a bold stand to protect its nation’s sharks.

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Shark Savers launches new Shark Fin Soup campaign

Written by: Shark Savers
December 3, 2010

We're pleased to announce the launch of the next stage of Shark Fin Soup campaign to persuade consumers to stop eating the soup. Beginning in 2009, Shark Savers teamed with WildAid and their spokesperson, Yao Ming, one of China’s biggest and most influential stars to produce and distribute a television public service announcement (PSA), 1,000 bus stop and video billboards. We also produced an online campaign in China. New for 2011, Shark Savers has create an innovative media and grassroots campaign called I Pledge. In I Pledge, former consumers of shark fin soup share their reasons with members of their communitiy why they have stopped eating shark fin soup. These citizens are compelling and persuasive, encouraging others to join them.

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Hilton shark fin soup action: Yes, you can make a difference

Written by: Shark Savers
December 1, 2010

Every year, dive industry professionals from around the world gather to participate in the world's largest dive industry trade show -- DEMA (Dive Equipment Manufacturers Assn). This year's DEMA show - Nov. 17- 20 was held in Las Vegas and hosted by the Las Vegas Hilton. Most exhibitors and attendees, including Shark Savers, stayed at the LV Hilton and many industry meetings, parties and awards ceremonies were held there. Then to our horror, we learned that one of the restaurants in our host hotel was offering shark fin soup and three other shark fin dishes on their menu. Several outraged divers came by the Shark Savers booth to inform us about this. While we are painfully aware that shark fin soup is legal just about everywhere and is not uncommon in Chinese restaurants, its proximity to one of the great gatherings of ocean lovers was more than we could ignore

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Who benefits from the Raja Ampat Shark Sanctuary?

Written by: Shark Savers
November 29, 2010

A question has been raised as to whether Shark Sanctuaries lock out local fishermen for the pleasure of divers and conservationists, while protecting sharks. Local villages and their people will be such an important element of the success of the Raja Ampat Shark Sanctuary that we feel it important to clarify its relationship to the surrounding communities. The goal of the Raja Ampat Shark Sanctuary is to protect sharks and other wildlife. In order to do that effectively, we believe the program needs: The active participation of the local communities to ensure they are invested in the outcome. Local villagers are not locked out, but are locked-in. To utilize an appropriate level of underwater ecotourism (diving) as a means to bring jobs to the communities and money to enforcement, while not undermining the conservation goals. Without both, it's very hard to make a Shark Sanctuary a sustainable, viable solution and the sharks will be gone in short order.

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Tags: Shark Sanctuaries Campaign

Shark Sanctuary declared in Raja Ampat

Written by: Shark Savers
November 15, 2010

We are excited to announce that the Regent of Raja Ampat, Indonesia, Bupati Drs Marcus Wanma, has declared a Shark Sanctuary for the entire 17,760 square mile area of Raja Ampat. This declaration is a direct response to the proposal presented by Shark Savers and our partner, Misool Eco Resort. The Bupati has declared that, in Raja Ampat, it is now: Forbidden to catch fish with poison, bombs etc; Forbidden to catch fish using a compressor, purse seine,“Muroami” and “bubu” Forbidden to catch sharks, manta rays, mobulas, live reef fish for the aquarium trade, dugongs and turtles. Forbidden to catch any fish at all in designated tourism and conservation areas. This is an important milestone, as Raja Ampat enjoys the highest marine biodiversity level on the planet with 1397 species of fish and over 600 species of coral recorded. It has also been the scene of destructive overfishing that has severely threatened sharks, mantas, and other vulnerable species.

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Tags: Shark Sanctuaries Campaign

Sharks, Mantas, and Turtles to be protected in Raja Ampat, Indonesia

Written by: Shark Savers
November 15, 2010

Press Release Misool Eco Resort and Shark Savers announced today that a Shark Sanctuary has been declared for the entire 17,760 square miles of Raja Ampat, Indonesia. Bupati Drs Marcus Wanma, the Regent of Raja Ampat, made this historic declaration, demonstrating leadership in marine conservation. The Raja Ampat Shark Sanctuary provides full protection for sharks, manta rays, mobulas, dugongs, and turtles. Also prohibited are highly destructive practices including reef bombing and the aquarium fish trade. The Shark Sanctuary is the first of its kind in Indonesia, the largest island archipelago in the world.

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Tags: Shark Sanctuaries Campaign

Aggressor Fleet Commits to Ocean Conservation by Sponsoring Shark Savers

Written by: Shark Savers
October 6, 2010

Press Release Aggressor Fleet (www.aggressor.com), one of the largest LiveAboard companies in the world, has announced they will sponsor Shark Savers (www.sharksavers.org), a leading international shark conservation organization. The Aggressor contribution will support Shark Savers’ program to create Shark Sanctuaries to protect sharks in critical locations throughout the world.

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Update on the initiative to create a Shark Sanctuary in Raja Ampat

Written by: Shark Savers
August 30, 2010

Shark Savers is working with the Misool Eco Resort and other tourism companies and NGOs to create a large Shark Sanctuary in Raja Ampat. One component of this effort is our petition in support of the Shark Sanctuary. The purpose of the petition effort is to show broad international support for the Shark Sanctuary, particularly among the very people who are likely to visit Raja Ampat as a result. To date, we have assembled the signatures of over 7,000 individuals, and over 250 NGOs and tourism companies from around the world. This is a great outpouring of attention and support.

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Tags: Shark Sanctuaries Campaign

Sharks Savers first event in Hong Kong: Dive Resort and Travel Expo

Written by: Jonn Lu
August 11, 2010

Shark Savers Hong Kong, our South East Asian beachhead started their involvement with us in early July for the Hong Kong Dive Resort and Travel Expo. A team of Hong Kong, US, and South African Shark Savers worked feverishly to get everything ready for a good show, designing a theme, banners for our booth, the first film from our recent production in Hong Kong, and other materials. With only weeks of lead time, the teams managed to get translation, artwork, video and content ready in record time.

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The freedom to eat shark fin soup. The responsibility not to.

Written by: Jonn Lu - Shark Savers, Hong Kong
August 11, 2010

We recently received this comment on our website: "We like Shark fin so much ... I will eat as long as available in the market ... why push people not to eat ???? this is a freedom society ... we can do and eat anything we like .... stop this !!!" Not knowing the author of the note, we decided to take it seriously (we do get prank or provocative comments, sometimes). The question is a perfectly reasonable one and we all value our liberties. As humans, we also have responsibilities which often restrain some of our freedoms. Jonn Lu, our volunteer team leader in Hong Kong, asked to respond. Here is Jonn's thoughtful reply.

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Help establish a new shark sanctuary in Raja Ampat, Indonesia

Written by: Shark Savers
July 15, 2010

Indonesia enjoys the most biodiverse ocean environments on the planet. Unfortunately, it is also the world's largest shark fishery, having all but emptied its waters of a valuable resource: its sharks. Raja Ampat in Eastern Indonesia is perhaps the crown jewel of this biodiverse region, but its shark populations have been ravaged and its manta populations are now under siege.

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Tags: Shark Sanctuaries Campaign

Preview teaser of our new film on shark fin soup

Written by: Shark Savers
July 15, 2010

As part of our shark fin soup campaign, we recently produced a film in Hong Kong and China that interviews many wonderful people who have pledged not to eat shark fin soup. That film is not done, yet, but we do have a teaser for it. See it now.

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Shark Savers debuts the "Say 'No' to shark fin soup" Campaign in Hong Kong at the Diving and Resort Travel Expo

Written by: Shark Savers
July 15, 2010

(Press Release) Shark Savers launched the "Say 'no' to shark fin soup" campaign in Hong Kong at the Diving Resort & Travel Expo that opens today and extends through July 18, 2010. Shark Savers, a key participant in the Expo's theme of marine conservation, will encourage people to stop eating shark fin soup as a means to protect sharks and improve ocean health.

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Very large shark fin soup campaign billboards are installed in Beijing

Written by: Shark Savers
July 10, 2010

See the new pictures for enormous billboards that have been erected as part of our shark fin soup campaign in China.

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Shark Savers in Hong Kong at the Diving, Resort & Travel Expo

Written by: Shark Savers
July 8, 2010

You may have heard that Shark Savers has been busy in Hong Kong, lately. In June, we produced a short documentary film on shark fin soup, there. And now, on July 16-17, we will be participating at the Diving, Resort & Travel Expo in Hong Kong.

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Banning Shark Fins from Shark Fin Soup

Written by: Shark Savers
July 1, 2010

In the past few days, we have also come across another pioneer who not only has taken a stand against shark fin soup, but he is helping to popularize alternatives to it.

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Significance of Hawaii's Shark Fin bill

Written by: Mary O'Malley
June 13, 2010

As many of you have heard by now, Hawaii's Governor Linda Lingle signed the historic Shark Fin Bill - SB 2169 to Prohibit the Possession, Sale and Distribution of Shark Fins - into law on May 28th. This law will go into effect on July 1, 2010, and restaurants that currently serve shark fin dishes will have a one year grace period to clear out existing inventory.

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Hawaii as a Model for future Shark Fin Legislation

Written by: Shark Savers
June 13, 2010

At a meeting held at the Long Beach Scuba Show last month, Shark Savers joined with Senator Clayton Hee, the Hawaii Senator who introduced SB 2169; Stefanie Brendl, who worked tirelessly to garner support to ensure the bill's passage; Marine Artist and conservationist, Wyland; legendary film maker and Shark Savers Board member Stan Waterman; and several other conservation groups. The purpose of the meeting was to celebrate the success of the Hawaii bill and discuss plans and ideas for pursuing similar legislation in the US and other parts of the world.

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Update on the shark fin soup campaign in China

Written by: Shark Savers
June 13, 2010

The billboard and other public media portion of the "Say 'no' to shark fin soup" campaign that we are conducting together with WildAid and Oceana has expanded to Guangzhou. Guangzhou is the third largest city of China and has traditionally had one of the highest use of shark fin soup.

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Hawaii Shark Fin Ban Bill - SB 2169 Passes Another Big Step!

Written by: Shark Savers
April 21, 2010

The Conference Committee members agreed yesterday on the final draft and voted unanimously to pass the bill. This final version of the bill prohibits all trade, possession and sale of shark fins and all shark harvest in the State and State waters. See the bill here . The amendments added were an exemption for researchers and also a one year grace period to allow restaurants to clear out their existing inventory. Although many restaurants have already decided to remove shark fin soup from their menus voluntarily. The effective date of the bill has been set for July 1st, 2010.

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Shark Savers' "Thank you to Palau" book presented to Palauan President Toribiong

Written by: Shark Savers
April 16, 2010

You may recall that Shark Savers fielded two petitions regarding Palau. The first one opposed a bad shark fishing law and the second one thanked Palau for subsequently protecting sharks by creating the National Shark Sanctuary. We created a book consisting of your signatures and comments for presentation to President Toribiong. Today, our book was presented to the President on our behalf by our friend, Dermot Keane of the Palau Shark Sanctuary.

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Tags: Shark Sanctuaries Campaign

Hawaii SB2169 Shark Fin Ban update (April 16)

Written by: Stefanie Brendl
April 16, 2010

An historic bill is moving through the Hawaiian Legislature calling on a prohibition of shark fin. Since passing the Hawaiian Senate, and then, last week's vote in the Hawaiian House of Representatives, SB 2169 - Relating to Shark Fins - has now moved to the next step in this long legislative process. And once again, it is necessary to rally support to ensure its final passage.

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Hawaii Shark Fin Bill Passes the House of Representatives

Written by: Mary O'Malley
April 8, 2010

Perhaps the most significant legislation involving sharks in US history was passed yesterday by the Hawaiian House of Representatives. This bill will prohibit the sale, possession, and trade of any type of shark fin or shark fin product in the State, including State waters. This bill has stirred up a great deal of political debate, pitting the concerns of ocean health against a lucrative trade. And it has also spurred somewhat of a cultural debate, since the Chinese cultural preference for consuming shark fin soup runs counter to the Hawaiian reverence and respect for sharks as powerful "aumakua", which in Hawaiian is defined as a benevolent guardian spirit or family protector.

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Yao Ming shark fin soup message: CNN's 'Video we love'

Written by: Shark Savers
April 4, 2010

CNN in China posts their favorite Chinese video of the week. This week, they chose the television commercial with Yao Ming that Shark Savers co-funded with WildAid as part of our shark fin soup campaign.

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Reaction to CITES: Sharks in critical trouble

Written by: Wendy Benchley and Dr. Ellen K. Pikitch
April 1, 2010

The world considered fundamental questions in Doha, Qatar this week. Which species should be protected from over-exploitation in international trade and which species should be allowed to disappear forever? CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) held its Conference of the Parties to answer these questions, as it does every 2-3 years.

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Honduras and The Maldives join the ranks of shark sanctuaries

Written by: Shark Savers
March 17, 2010

In the past few weeks, both Honduras and The Maldives have joined Palau in announcing a complete ban on shark fishing in their territorial waters. The ban in The Maldives was expected. One year ago, the Maldivian government announced a fishing ban for reef sharks and stated that there would be a subsequent ban on all shark fishing within their waters within 12 months. That time has now come. Many of you signed our petition to congratulate The Maldives when they announced the earlier ban.

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Tags: Shark Sanctuaries Campaign