Demand an End to Recreational Shark Hunting

Sharks are a keystone species. That means that if they are removed from an ecosystem, by humans for example, the ecosystem cannot continue to function and is essentially destroyed. Some of these ecosystems include sea grass meadows and coral reefs. Coral reefs are among the most biologically diverse and amazing ecosystems on the planet as they support ¼ of all known ocean species.

Currently, we humans are brutally killing sharks, which are arguably one of the most important animals on the planet, at a rate of 100 million every year. As a result, 1/3 of all shark species are threatened with extinction and shark populations have dropped by 70 percent since 1970. To compare, sharks kill about 5 people each year, which while sad is far less than the kill count of cars. Approximately 1.3 million people die from car crashes each year globally.

However, why are sharks being killed at such a ridiculous rate? Multiple reasons. For their tasteless fins in famous shark fin soup, for their squalene which is put in various products such as cosmetics even though it can be produced by certain common plants like sugar cane, and then simply for fun. That's right, sharks out there are being killed for no other reason than for sport. This brutal practice includes finding the biggest shark and presenting it at a tournament in some kind of horrific contest, and of course tossing all the other dead sharks that just happened to be too small back into the ocean. These tournaments and contests are still legal in some states in the US and the exact number of sharks killed is unknown as many of the sharks that are dumped remain unreported. Current estimates conclude that around 70,000 sharks are killed each year as a result of recreational hunting just on the eastern side of the US.

But you can do something to help these sharks, stop these horrible shark tournaments, and save countless ecosystems from destruction. First sign this petition which will urge various governmental commissions such as the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to end recreational shark hunting. You can also sign a similar petition at this site: Petition · End shark tournaments - United Kingdom · Change.org. Then, share this petition among friends and family if you truly care about the plight of the sharks and the oceans as a whole. To go even further, you can raise awareness about these essential animals and their plight to the general public.

This petition was created by the youth organization In Our Generations Hands or IGH. It focuses mainly on raising awareness in schools about climate change and other important environmental issues and inspiring others to take action for the planet. If you would like to join or would like to learn more, please contact us at inourgenerationshands@gmail.com.