10 Ways To Save Sharks
“Think you can only save sharks by being on the front lines? Think again. While some of the Shark Angels are busy in the field, there are things you can do from your home and daily lives, without heading to join us in some remote destination. Or dedicating your entire life to shark conservation.”
#1)Do not consume or purchase shark - it’s dangerous
- Do not eat shark steaks or meats, imitation crab, lobster, or shrimp (it often contains shark), white fish, rock salmon, or other names for it. - Shark meat (including fins) carries warnings due to its high mercury levels from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the Environmental Protection Agency, the Environmental Defense Fund, and the World Health Organization
#2)Be aware, informed consumers
- Know what you are buying. Often shark is relabeled as other types of fish, like rock salmon, included in fish patties like pollock, or hidden from consumers – as shark ingredients are not always labeled like chondroitin which can be made from shark cartilage.
#3) Take your business elsewhere
- Do not support any restaurant or store that sells shark or ray products or shark fin soup. This includes shark cartilage, squalene (used in many beauty products), shark meat, shark leather, shark teeth/jaws, and shark fins.
- Inform them of your concerns.Be sure to tell the business owners exactly why you are boycotting their restaurants/stores. Educate them and give them a chance to do the right thing by publicly denouncing the sale of shark and ray products.
#4)Speak Out. And defend sharks
- Always report, to the proper authorities, anyone you witness mal-aligning or abusing this incredibly valuable animal.
#5) Don’t eat any fish
Since over ½ of the 100,000,000 sharks caught yearly are caught as by-catch, and the commercial fisheries are headed for collapse in a few short decades, we do not believe you should be eating anything from the seas.
- If you must eat fish, then download a seafood card and carry it with you.
- You can also download a cool iPhone app.
#6) Spread the enlightenment
- Increase your Shark IQ. Learn more then teach others.
- Host a local screening of Sharkwater then have a discussion afterward. You can show Shark Angels as an introduction.
#7)Keep sharks out of your cosmetics
- Never use any productions ( including makeup, lotions, deodorants) that contain Squalene- shark liver oil. Buy cruelty free.
#8) Develop a voice
- Be heard. Blog, write articles, appeal to media outlets and help dispel the myths. Don’t support media outlets that demonize sharks.
#9) Make your vote count
Even if you aren’t living in a country that is heavily consuming sharks, chances are, your country is part of the problem. The US and many countries in the EU are responsible for catching more sharks than most other countries in the world.
- Support legislation that stops shark fishing, protects shark habitats, and ends overfishing.
#10) Become an Angel
- Earn your wings and become a Shark Angel, serving as a spokesperson and local campaign activist.
- Give a presentation at a school or event. Swimming Towards Extinction and more presentations here.
03 Aug 2012 @ 02:00PM / 
