If you’ve supported our work, signed our shark petition or rallied shark support in your community – then this message is for you. We couldn’t have done it without you.

Countries propose to list ten shark and ray species under international wildlife treaty.

Aquatic and timber species top on the agenda, including sharks and rays.
The deadline for submitting proposals to change the lists of species protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) ended at midnight yesterday 4 October. The CITES Secretariat has received 67 proposals from Parties to the Convention to adjust the rules governing international trade in wildlife species.

Last week, Project AWARE attended an international, shark-focused meeting of more than 50 nations, all convening under the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS). While at the meeting in Bonn, Germany, nations adopted a global conservation plan for great white sharks, porbeagles, basking sharks, spiny dogfish, whale sharks, and two species of makos.

September's Debris Month of Action saw thousands of divers across the world gear up and dive in to remove dangerous rubbish, nets, fishing traps and household waste from our ocean. From the islands of Fiji up to the waters of Devon, UK and all the way back to Brazil and South America, divers everywhere rallied together for one month of action to draw attention to our ocean’s silent killer: marine debris.

Research scientist, Bonnie Monteleone, from the University of North Carolina, Wilmington, USA knows all about plastic. She's been studying the negative affects of plastics in the marine environment for several years.
More recently, she's visited three of five ocean gyres and collected plastics hundreds to thousands of miles from land. Using the well recognized, "Great Wave" by Hokusai circa 1830s, Monteleone illustrates a very different ocean from what Hokusai saw 180 years ago.

As the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) World Conservation Congress opens in Jeju, Korea, Project AWARE, an IUCN member organization, and more than 35 government agencies and NGO partners issued the call to take immediate steps to save sharks and manta rays from the ever growing pressure of overexploitation. Specifically, we’re advocating the listing of sharks and rays under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).

Let the action begin. More than 5,500 of you voted for your favorite Ocean Action Project, a new Project AWARE program to support grassroots conservation projects, and now five projects will receive funds to make their actions a reality.
The projects that received the most votes include shark and manta ray protection and marine debris projects to combat the onslaught of trash underwater.
 
The Ocean Action Projects are:

You don’t expect to find a baby stroller on the ocean floor. It makes you wonder what happens to zillions of baby strollers and many other consumer products from our everyday lives. But what happens to all these strollers? In fact, what happens to all our stuff? 
Everyday we’re faced with thousands of choices, especially when we’re shopping. In an effort to shop smarter and greener we look for labels like earth friendly, BPA free, natural, organic, locally grown, ethical and eco. But we’re lucky if the labels even tell the whole story.  

Recently, thousands of Project AWARE divers called for new marine reserves in Australia. The Australian Government heard our voice and in June, announced a major new network of marine reserves including the world's second largest marine national park.
This was a major victory for the ocean and its wildlife, and showed the collective power of AWARE divers worldwide.