Sunday, January 30, 2011

Thank you Portland, OR!

Thank you to everyone who came out to our screening of The Cove at PSU in Portland! We raised $200 in donations, handed out some literature and had some great questions asked!

Special thanks to Student Animal Liberation Coalition (SALC: http://tinyurl.com/4aw2u8q) for collaborating on this event with us and all the awesome work that they do here in Portland!

Stay tuned for more Portland based events next month!!



Thursday, January 27, 2011

An Evening for the Dolphins at Armani's

Come join us on February 23 for good food, good company, and a good cause! There will be a silent auction with a variety of great items to bid on, and all proceeds go towards covering our accommodation costs while in Taiji.

Armani's has been kind enough to reduce the menu prices so the patrons will have the ability to spare a few dollars for donations. This trip wouldn't be possible without the kindness our community, so anything you are able to share is greatly appreciated!

Seating is very limited so RSVP soon as possible. We hope to see you there!!

Saturday, January 22, 2011

Thank you Nanaimo!

We would like to thank everyone who came out for An Evening for the Dolphins on January 17th! Over 80 people attended our screening of The Cove and listened to past Cove Guardian Tarah Millen speak about her experiences.  It was a huge success and we were able to raise $1500!!  We have now raised more than enough money to buy our tickets to Japan but are still fund-raising to pay for our hotel, travel and food expenses for the three weeks we are there.

Thank you again to every individual and business who donated time, money, ad space and raffle gifts.  We appreciate your generosity towards this cause, it's heartwarming to see so many people who want to help protect the Taiji dolphins!

Thursday, January 13, 2011

Article from the Nanaimo Daily News! January 13th, 2011


Movie inspires locals to fight against a fishery

Movie and speakers will raise funds for an awareness campaign

Jennifer Squires, Daily News

Published: Thursday, January 13, 2011
Every once in a while in life a piece of art inspires people to take action and help incite change.
When Oscar-winning documentary film The Cove came out in 2009, eyes were opened to the capturing and slaughter of 23,000 dolphins a year in a small fishing community in Taiji, Japan.
In the film, a group of activist filmmakers and freedivers go undercover to infiltrate the hidden Japanese cove to expose the horrors of the annual fishing expedition and make people aware of the animal abuse and cruelty sanctioned by the Japanese government despite international laws against commercial whaling implemented in 1986. Many dolphins are sold to aquariums and resorts and others are killed for their mercury-tainted meat, which is sold on the Japanese market.

The trio will travel to Taiji the first week of March, where they'll protest and raise awareness as part of the Sea Shepherd Cove Guardians' ongoing efforts to stop the slaughter of dolphins in Japan. Daviduk, who has worked as an animal-rights activist for about 12 years with groups like Deer Aware and the Vancouver Island Animal Defense League, said they'll be there for the last three weeks of Japan's dolphin-hunting season.When Nananimo's Carisa Webster and Marley Daviduk, and Mike Vos from California saw The Cove, rather than just sit back and discuss the atrocities, they decided to jump on a plane and help fight for the cause.
"We'll be driving into the infamous cove every day and we're going to be documenting with film and stills the fishermen driving in the dolphins and slaughtering them," said Daviduk.
"Our goal is to continue documenting this hunt because it's hard for people to take action against something they can't really see."
As well as filming the hunt, they hope to educate locals about toxic dolphin meat served in elementary students' school lunches and sold as sushi. Daviduk said many Japanese people aren't really aware of the situation.
"There are 26 fishermen there that are involved with this slaughter, 26 fishermen that are leaving this huge blood stain on Japan's international reputation."
When The Cove is screened at Vancouver Island University this Monday, it will be accompanied by a talk with the future cove guardians. Also speaking at the event is cove guardian Tarah Millen, who returned to the Island from her Japanese expedition in November. Tickets to the screening are $10, available at Tourism Nanaimo, Boston Pizza and Thirsty Camel. The movie will be shown at VIU, 900 Fifth St., building 356, room 109 on Monday from 6:30-9:30 p.m.
In addition to the film screening the cove guardians are running a 'bottle nose dolphin drive.' People can drop off bottles for their account at either Nanaimo bottle depot or at 5977 Broadway Rd. in North Nanaimo. Those who want to help with their plane tickets can also donate air miles to account 85008048848.
For more information on their trip or fundraising, you can visit the cove guardians blog at thecoveguardians.blogspot.com, which they'll be updating every day while they're overseas.
Daviduk hopes people will be similarly inspired by The Cove and stressed that although some might fear it's too graphic, it's a beautifully made film and won an Oscar for a reason. "It really changes people's lives."
jsquires@nanaimodailynews.com