Planet in Peril host Lisa Ling and Peter Knights, discuss Shark-finning.

CNN has been running environmental interest stories in a series called Planet in Peril. Unless you are one of those effete New York intellectual types, you have probably at least seen advertisements for the series. Sharks and Shark conversation play a starring role in Planet in Peril, the plight of the over 100 million Sharks that are killed each year being fairly awesomely publicized by Anderson Cooper's cageless Great White dive off South Africa. There is so much on Anderson Cooper and his adventure-reporting, we don't need to rehash it all. A much less publicized story--which also happens to be the foundation of the Shark conservation movement--is WildAid and their fight to get Shark fins banned globally. What is WildAid? It is the leading NGO that monitors and campaigns against the illegal wildlife trade. Peter Knight is their executive director.

On the latest episode of Planet in Peril, CNN travels with Peter Knights to Kaohsiung, Taiwan--one of the world's largest Shark fin hubs. They film tons upon tons of Shark fins being unloaded on the docks. We can go on and on here about the Shark fin industry and their apocalyptic rape of Shark populations, but if you are reading this, you are probably aware of the Shark Fin Soup problem. The new focus of Peter Knights and WildAid is to educate as many people in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, and all the other prime consumers of Shark fin. Most eaters of Shark Fin Soup, or Fish Wing Soup as it is known in China, don't even know that the soup is made from Shark fins. They also don't know that Shark populations are in danger, or that eating the soup is environmentally irresponsible. This is where--much to the chagrin of many serious people in the conservation community--celebrity presence in these campaigns is so important. When Yao Ming, quite possibly the most respected and well-known Chinese Athlete ever, says that he will never again eat Shark fin, people listen. People that don't know a thing about wildlife, often know everything there is to know about their favorite celebs...go figure. Check out this Ecuadorian WildAid public service announcement:

Yes, that is Paris Hilton's face in Shark blood, but more importantly, in Spanish it reads: "Although less popular, our problems are more important.
Shark killing can kill the Galapagos Islands. Be careful."

Peter Knights writes a commentary for CNN that is so dead on in describing the dangers posed to Sharks and why the Shark fin trade should be globally banned that I can't crib it, you should read it yourself. Only China can save our Sharks: READ IT.

"Can you imagine if it was Yellowstone Park and people were shooting up grizzlies? No one would ever get away with it. But this ocean, because it's out of sight, out of mind, shark finning] carries on."-- Peter Knights

[CNN]

Not yet disgusted yet made-happy-because-there-is-at-least-one-White Knight-out-there, read about another issue that WildAid has championed and China needs an education on--the business of Bear "milking."

--Sharky

technorati tags: , Sharks, Shark Finning, Anderson Cooper, Lisa Ling, CNN, Planet In Peril, Peter Knights, WildAid, Taiwan, China, Hong Kong, Paris Hilton, Shark Fin Soup, Chinese Food, Yao Ming, Shark Finning, Shark Fishing, NGO, New York, Kaohsiung, South+Africa, Shark Diving, Great White Sharks

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