Dolphin Activism 101: First steps to becoming a real Dolphin Defender

Do you love dolphins and want to help them in any way you can?

Good, you are in the right place. Today we want to give you some tools to becoming not only a Dolphin Defender but a conscious activist. Let’s talk the talk and walk the walk. No more BS.

These are the 10 basic rules.

  1. Do not eat canned tuna or seafood.

If you truly love dolphins and ocean creatures then the first step is to stop eating their food. Primarily the fish in the sea sustained the inhabitants of the ocean. This is true before humans ever came into the picture.

We have trashed our ocean and its resources. The amount of wasted, dead ocean creatures in by catch alone is astonishing. This sacrifice is perhaps the hardest of them all. It has been for me since I grew up by the ocean eating its fruits almost daily until a few years ago. If you can’t stop eating seafood you must decrease your intake. Think supply and demand. You can help tremendously with your everyday actions. NO seafood for you.

  1. Never attend a dolphin show!

Do not support Marine Parks, dolphinariums or hotels that keep dolphins in captivity.

The dolphins are suffering and their lives are shortened by many years. Please watch the movies “Blackfish” and “The Cove” to learn more details about the plight of the captive dolphin. If there is a protest near your town, please participate, but don’t get arrested, we need you free in the world to educate your community about this problem and you can’t do that from jail effectively.  

dolphins

  1. Do not use plastic bags.

Plastic bags is a silent killer and they affect not only the life of our ocean creatures but also the PH of our oceans.

You must take your own bag when shopping and recycle all plastic products. Don’t buy products that you can’t recycle. If you don’t see the symbol, don’t buy it!  Help create a plastic bag ban in your town if there isn’t one existing. We can help you with that.

  1. Educate your friends and family by sharing your knowledge as much as you can without offending anyone.
  1. Sign petitions on line and attend community meetings regarding laws that protect dolphins or issues that are hurting dolphins in your area. Get involved and Be their voice. They need you.
  1. If you visit wild dolphins and you get to swim with them do it with respect.

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They come to rest in the day time and you must be conscious and respectful of their natural behavior and habitat.  Don’t dive down to them, if you do, stay at least 20 feet away from them. Don’t try to touch them. Don’t chase them. Just float! They will come to see you if they want to. Read more about Dolphin Etiquette in this blog post.

  1. Get involved in reef and beach clean ups as much as you can.

Dolphins are often caught in fishing lines and fishing debris. If we help get rid of these we are helping the dolphins by keeping their habitat debris free.

  1. Respectfully educate your friends who do any type of fishing about retrieving lost gear.

Now this you must do very tactfully because you don’t want to offend anyone. You can agree to disagree and still have respect for each other.  Lines, hooks, lead do not belog in the ocean. If people go fishing and they lose their gear and have to cut a line loose, then they must retrieve it. The reef, reef fish, turtles, sharks, rays, dolphins, whales and many others can potentially die from this type of pollution.

Speak up, Be the Voice.

  1. Refuse, reduce, reuse and recycle ALL plastics.

Go beyond the bag and make your life as plastic free as it can be.

Eliminate single use plastic items at all cost. This helps the dolphins a lot, believe it or not.

  1. Help reduce the ocean’s acidity by only using organic biodegradable products not only at home but at the office as well. This includes personal hygiene and cleaning products.

Little by little we can make a difference. Our actions, when multiply by thousands can have a great impact on our planet and our ocean. It’s our turn to give back, its our turn to take care of our precious ocean and all its creatures.

 

Aloha

The Ocean Defender Ohana