Absolutely brilliant. We like smart people doing smart things.
When can we get this button in Times Square?
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Killing Sharks For Fins in New Zealand?
When it comes to sharks, some folks still don't get it. |
When talking about New Zealand the numbers are not pretty. Metric tons of shark fin are exported from New Zealand every year, and no one seems to mind.
Except this guy.
Sam Judd, shark attack survivor, and New Zealand native has penned an op-ed this week about the legal shark fin trade in NZ and it's about as good as it gets.
It's high time for the NGO community and the commercial shark diving industry to put some pressure on New Zealand to stop this trade. Legal or not, it should be banned, and everyone knows it.
Let's see if anyone has the stones to push for it and see it done.
The Sharks and Cancer Video
For some reason we found this amusing, as in Snakes on a Plane amusing.
Skip to 1.04:
"Of course sharks don't get cancer...but man does!"
Hearts in the right place. Not sure about the messaging. Never sure about the messaging.
Skip to 1.04:
"Of course sharks don't get cancer...but man does!"
Hearts in the right place. Not sure about the messaging. Never sure about the messaging.
Labels:
funny,
sharks and cancer,
you tube video
USA. Guy Harvey promotes conservation with All-Release Fishing Tournaments
In
his mission to inspire scientific research and education while
encouraging conservation and best management practices for sustainable
marine environments, Dr. Guy Harvey continues to work closely with
fishing tournament organizers to support and effect long lasting
cultural changes.
As
a result, creators of the upcoming Guy Harvey Ultimate Shark Challenge
(USC) Tournament and Festival and organizers of the World¹s Richest
Tarpon Tournament (WRTT) have announced plans to strengthen and share
their commitment to conservation by cross-promoting their common
messages. The Ultimate Shark Challenge Tournament and Festival takes
place in Punta Gorda¹s downtown waterfront at Laishley Park May 4th
6th followed by the World¹s Richest Tarpon Tournament in Boca Grande May
17th and 18th and the Downtown Tarpon Festival May 19th and 20th.
Both
all-release tournaments feature exciting and innovative high-stakes
competitions that also place an emphasis on best practices when it comes
to the post-release welfare of their respective target species‹sharks
and tarpon.
The
main attractions at both events are the fishing tournaments, but each
will also host festivals that are free to the public and offer
family-friendly fun, excitement, entertainment and education.
While
their marquis species are indeed very different, event organizers are
quick to point out that, "Sharks and tarpon have been coexisting here
for millions of years and that their symbiotic relationship is a matter
of mutual benefit to a healthy marine and coastal environment. In many ways, that relationship is a great metaphor for why we¹re collaborating with our events."
"Our
All-Release, No-Weigh, No-Kill tournaments are an alternative whose
time has come," said Lew Hastings, executive director of the Boca Grande
Area Chamber of Commerce and Tournament Director of WRTT. "Bringing
families together in sport and education strengthens not only our
estuaries and fisheries, but enriches our community as a whole."
USC
Creators, Sean & Brooks Paxton add that, "We're extremely fortunate
to have this uniquely diverse environmental playground right here in
our backyard. The area offers so many choices for not only boaters and
recreational anglers, but also anyone interested in an endless list of
eco and adventure-based activities on land and sea."
The
USC tournament‹created as a model for catch and release only shark
tournament formats‹drew some 3,000 competitors and spectators last year
and paid out over $15,000 in cash and prizes. This year¹s event will
feature an outdoor showing of "This Is Your Ocean: Sharks", a
documentary created by Dr. Harvey, fellow marine artist Wyland and shark
dive operator Jim Abernethy, about sharks in the Bahamas.
"We
applaud the tournament founders and directors for their increased
commitment to promote the catch and release of sharks and tarpon in this
summer¹s tournaments," said Dr. Harvey. "Our goal is to minimize shark
and tarpon mortalities and maximize educational outreach about
conservation."
Following
an extremely successful launch of Guy Harvey's new Armed Forces
Collection, a portion of the proceeds from this year¹s USC will benefit
charitable organizations dedicated to supporting America¹s military and
their families. There will also be two teams of veterans fishing in this
event.
Dr.
Harvey, founder of the Guy Harvey Research Institute at Nova
Southeastern University and the internationally regarded Guy Harvey
Ocean Foundation (GHOF), in recent years has joined the growing ranks of
individuals and organizations calling for strict regulations to ban the
commercial fishing of sharks in the quest to supply the world¹s
insatiable taste for shark fin soup, an expensive delicacy.
Scientists
with the International Union for Conservation of Nature have estimated
that 30 percent of shark and ray species around the world are threatened
or near threatened with extinction. The loss of these
animals could cause irreversible damage to the ocean¹s ecosystem and
result in the loss of hundreds of millions of dollars in the tourist
trade.
Last
July, Dr. Harvey, who holds a PhD in fisheries science and biology,
helped lead an international effort spearheaded by the Bahamas National
Trust to convince the Government of the Bahamas to prohibit all
commercial shark fishing in its more than 240,000 square miles of
territorial waters.
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