Social media has helped to beat back efforts by pro-whaling countries, like Japan and Norway, to legalize commercial whale hunting.
At the International Whaling Commission meeting held in Morocco in June, web campaigner Avaaz.org, delivered to Australian environment minister Peter Garrett, an anti-hunting petition signed by more than 1.2 million supporters. This helped to galvanize supporters of the 24 year old whaling ban, which they managed to uphold again. Meanwhile, evidence continues to grow of the intelligence and social networks of whales.
The battle will undoubtedly be resumed again next year. Pro-whaling nations continue to court support from other countries, and to press for establishment of a whaling quota. Meanwhile, Japan continues to kill whales with impunity, under the alleged rubric of “research”.