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Miracle March for Lolita
I am excited to share with you that I've been invited to be a guest speaker at the Miracle March for Lolita in Miami (Florida) January 17, 2015! It is a huge honor to be able join in the walk and to stand before thousands at this historic event honoring Lolita and supporting her release from captivity.15th Nov 14
IWC to consider imminent extinction of Maui’s dolphins
New research confirms that New Zealand’s Maui’s dolphins could face extinction by 2031. In the past two years, the Scientific Committee of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) had issued urgent recommendations about the need to protect the dolphins’ from fishing nets. New Zealand has failed to implement this advice. IWC scientists are scheduled to discuss the plight of the last 50 Maui’s dolphins again at their meeting in Bled, Slovakia this week.29th May 14
Whaling
During the 20th century alone, more than 1.4 million whales have been killed. In the process, commercial whaling systematically depleted whale population after whale population. Estimates indicate that the impacts of previous commercial whaling led to the reduction of whale populations, leaving species such as the Humpback Whale down to 10%, the Blue Whale down to less than 4% from "pre-exploitation numbers", the Gray Whale down to 12%, the Right Whale down to 6%. All of these whales are among at least 7 whale species listed as Endangered. These numbers may be shocking, but also disturbing is the fact that scientists from outside of Japan have purchased whale meats from Japanese markets to find DNA results indicating that Humpback, Blue, and Sei whale meats are still being sold.1st Apr 14
Threat Management Plan from a government with deaf ears!!
The NZ government has again failed to adequately protect the ever-declining population of Maui's Dolphins, now at 54 or less (adults over age of 1 year) There is very little question that current government is bowing to the commercial fisheries, seabed mining, and deep sea oil industries instead of doing the right thing to save the dolphins.17th Dec 13
Slash (musician)
Saul Hudson (born July 23, 1965), better known by his stage name Slash, is a British-American musician and songwriter. He is best known as the former lead guitarist of the American hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom (Slash achieved worldwide success in the late 1980s and early 1990s.3rd Dec 13
Join us in supporting our friend Ric O'Barry's Dolphin Project
“Ric O'Barry's Dolphin Project” KINGS OF CHAOS--the new touring project featuring former Guns N’ Roses members Slash, Matt Sorum and Duff McKagan, along with Glenn Hughes (Black Country Communion/Deep Purple), Corey Taylor (Slipknot/Stone Sour) and Steve Stevens (Billy Idol)--will perform a special concert on Monday, November 18 at Avalon Hollywood in Los Angeles. They’ll play a two-hour set spanning the greatest hits from all of its superstar members and additional special guest performers.15th Nov 13
Marco Morgan, The National Skate Collective, South Africa
The group of skateboarders united in the celebration of the lifting of the ban of skateboarding on a Promenade in Cape Town, and last week we united to support the Lets Face It campaign. It was featured in the local papers as well. I wish you the best of luck with the cause and I hope that we are able to support in the future.9th Nov 13
From Across the World With Love for "Our" Maui's & Hector's Dolphins
25 NGOs representing across the globe, backing concerns of over 2,000 marine mammal scientists, a "sign on" letter is sent to the New Zealand government during the re-opened Threat Management Plan (TMP) submissions period.21st Oct 13
ACTION ALERT: Submissions for TMP (Threat Management Plan) reopened for Maui's Dolphins.
Send your own submission directly to the NZ government.... DOC (Department of Conservation) NZ is now seeking submissions on the Minister’s intention to vary the West Coast North Island Marine Mammal Sanctuary to prohibit commercial and recreational set net fishing between two and seven nautical miles offshore between Pariokariwa Point and the Waiwhakaiho River, Taranaki.19th Sep 13
Your Voice Urgently Needed Against High Risk Exploratory Drilling in NZ Waters!
On the heels of the controversial Anadarko Amendment (criminalizing aspects of protesting at sea), the New Zealand government has proposed a law change to the Marine Legislation Bill, currently before Parliament. If passed, the public's right to oppose deep-sea oil and gas exploration will be removed. 3rd Sep 13
Voices from Auckland Sounding Loud & Clear for the Maui's Dolphins
Quotations and comments from Wayne Walker, Albany ward councillor and Auckland Council environment and sustainability forum chairman back the (IWC Scientific) committee's recommendations for saving the last 55 Maui's dolphins. And Auckland council coastal specialist Bill Trusewich chimes in too. 18th Jul 13
Music to the Ears about Too Much Noise for Maui's Dolphins
After numerous e-mails and phone calls by Peggy Oki (Coordinator of "Let's Face It" Visual Petitions) since February (2013) pushing to formulate a group letter of concern to DOC with request for protocols including necropsy to determine cause of death in any cetaceans found in proximity to zones of seismic testing we gladly announce that the Society for Marine Mammalogy (SMM) is urging the New Zealand government to halt seismic testing in Maui’s dolphin habitat immediately. In a letter to New Zealand’s Prime Minister the SMM expressed concerns about seismic surveys in the home of Maui’s dolphins, the rarest dolphin species on earth. The President of the Society Prof. Helen Marsh said that "allowing seismic testing in the dolphins’ habitat may harm their hearing and push them into unprotected areas, where they are more exposed to fishing nets. The impact on the 55 remaining Maui’s dolphins could be devastating. Allowing this seismic testing appears inconsistent with the New Zealand Government's stated goal of enabling this subspecies to recover..."28th Apr 13
Dave “Rasta” Rastovich returns to paddle for the Maui’s Dolphins and New Zealand coastal habitat!
Congratulations and much gratitude to Dave “Rasta” Rastovich’s on returning to New Zealand for his 350km, two-week solo paddle from Cape Taranaki to Piha, west of Auckland, in New Zealand. The paddle aims to draw international awareness to the seabed mining proposed for the coastline.29th Nov 12
Love Letters and
A group letter of concern with 50 national and international organizations, representing over 20 million concerned citizens globally, for the critically endangered Maui’s dolphin was signed on 24 October, 2012, and will be sent to Hon. John Key, Prime Minister of New Zealand. While this is impressive, we are still very concerned. Why? Earlier this year, more than 32,000 people having submitted on the measures around Taranaki, with 76 per cent of submissions calling for greater protection of Maui’s dolphins. Despite this, in September during the largest international conference on conservation (the IUCN) the NZ government was the ONLY member nation among 576 that voted against a motion to stop the extinction of the Hector's and Maui's Dolphins. So we need to do everything we can now to ensure that protections necessary for the survival of the Maui's and Hector's Dolphins will be included in the Threat Management Plan (TMP). 8th Nov 12
Team up as "Let's Face It" Visual Petition Collectors
Peggy Oki will be collecting "Let's Face It" Visual Petitions at the American Cetacean Society XIII International Conference, San Diego, California, 9-11 November. Please contact us if you would like to help us in these last few days toward our goal of 5,500 VPs before 12 November.5th Nov 12
Unicorns, Maui’s Dolphins, Sumatran Rhinos, New Zealand Sea Lions, Yellow-eyed Penguins, and Irrawaddy River Dolphins, ...Oh My!!!
The New Zealand government has been making news, ...but not in a nice way. As the veil of “green” is raised, the dark truth of New Zealand’s current environmental policy is revealed. Is there light at the end of the tunnel?23rd Sep 12
Peggy Oki, "Paints for the Porpoise"
Peggy Oki, artist and Coordinator of our "Let's Face It" Visual Petition campaign painted this bench as a contribution to the Carpinteria Valley Arts Council "Artniture" fund-raising event. And she's spreading the word at the same time with her creation which is also embellished with some art by students from her Whales & Dolphins Ambassador Program. 7th Sep 12
You can do something fun & easy to SAVE DOLPHINS in TWO COUNTRIES, in ONE DAY!
Japan Dolphins Day 2012 is just around the corner, 31 August or 1 September (depending on location). If you’ve watched “The Cove” you may already be planning to attend one of over 80 Japan Dolphin Day rallies across the world.17th Aug 12
Extinction is imminent for two marine mammal species unless their habitat is immediately cleared of gillnets
Research considered by the IWC's Scientific Committee shows that protected areas are too small to be effective, and progress in extending gillnet and trawl net free areas has been too slow to achieve recovery as part of New Zealand's national and international obligations.12th Jul 12South Korea unveils 'scientific' whaling proposal
"South Korea is proposing to hunt whales under regulations permitting scientific research whaling, echoing the programmes of its neighbour, Japan. ...There are several different stocks, or groups, of minke whales in the region, and one of the them, the so-called J-stock, is severely depleted."4th Jul 12
Whale Meat Doesn't Sell: The ICR Reports Miserable Result of Auction
"900 tons, an astonishing 3/4 of JARPN II meat, is left unsold from the auction. Nisshin-Maru returns from Antarctica (whose “mission was cut short by SS”) bringing back over 1000 tons. Now with the whale meat silently mounting in their warehouses, the future of the ICR is uncertain…"22nd May 12
March for Maui - Maui Dolphin March on Parliament
Peaceful rally walking from Allen street to Parliament builidngs. We invite all people to walk with us and ask that our MP's use their special emergency powers and immediately stop the use of SET/Gill Nets.This march is supported by all New Zealand conservation groups. 22nd Mar 12
Great news! Thanks to the many people across the world who have been participating, we have over 1,000 "Let's Face It" visual petitions!
We are hard at work to meet our print deadline for banners and posters to be presented to the New Zealand government in early April. While we won't be able to include any additional visual petitions (VPs) for this print run, our campaign will continue.21st Mar 12
