Oceana and Discovery Channel have announced that they will work together again to protect the true stars of Shark Week: sharks of course!
Oceana, an international nonprofit focused on conservation of the oceans and ocean wildlife, sent out a press release today announcing the partnership. The two paired up in 2010 and will be back again for this year’s Shark Week, beginning Sunday, July 31 on Discovery Channel. We recently told you about some of the human stars of Shark Week 2011 including Lady Gaga and Andy Samberg, but this year the spotlight is on sharks and the ever-growing need to protect them.
According to Andrew F. Sharpless, CEO of Oceana, “This year, Discovery’s Shark Week is especially important as we are finding more and more opportunities to win protections for sharks all over the world…Oceana has already won two big victories for sharks this year: in January, the U.S. Shark Conservation Act became law, and just this month, Chile joined a growing list of countries to ban shark finning. With Discovery’s help, we can put in place more protections for sharks around the world.” Each night of the week, a PSA will air encouraging viewers to go to Discovery’s Shark Conservation page where there is also a link to Oceana and information on how you can help preserve shark populations. Also included is this frightening fact: 73 million sharks are killed by humans each year.
“With shark populations in serious decline, Discovery Channel is proud to once again partner this year with Oceana on a PSA campaign as well as joining them in encouraging people to take action and help protect the most vulnerable shark species on the brink of extinction,” said Clark Bunting, Discovery Channel president. Oceana and Discovery Channel will also be using blogs and social media to encourage people to get involved with shark conservation.
About Jennifer Mishler
Jennifer is an animal advocate and activist. She is a volunteer coordinator with The Girls Gone Green, a nonprofit organization advocating for animals rights, veganism, and environmentalism. She is also an Onshore Volunteer with the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, and a volunteer with CJ Acres Animal Rescue Farm, a nonprofit that rescues and rehabilitates farm animals. Along with writing for Ecorazzi, she writes about veganism and animal rights on her blog, A Dog's Eye View. She lives in Jacksonville, FL with her husband and their three animal friends. Follow Jennifer on Twitter: @jennygoneveganView all posts by Jennifer Mishler →
