Just prior to a United Nations endangered species conference that begins this week, a government official has announced that Maldives, an island country in the Indian ocean, is banning shark fishing in its waters. “We’ve decided to go ahead with a shark fishing ban,” Ibrahim Didi, the fisheries and agriculture minister, told The New York Times. “Beginning July 1 there will be a total ban on exports.” Maldives is one of the world’s top scuba-diving destinations. Researchers from James Cook University in Australia last year estimated that a single gray reef shark was worth $3,300 a year to the Maldivian tourism industry, compared with the one-time value of $32 that a fisherman would get from the same shark. Didi said his government began planning the ban last year, but was delayed due to objections from fishermen, who were catching the sharks and killing them for their fins. Now, he says, “They understand that it isn’t a sustainable fishery.” The government is planning to provide the fishermen with financial support and retraining. The Maldivian waters are home to over 26 types of sharks, including the whale shark, tiger shark and hammerhead shark.

Mad Men actress January Jones went to Washington, D.C. this week to lobby for the Shark Conservation Act of 2009, saying, “We should be scared FOR sharks, not of them. The survival of sharks and the health of our oceans depend on it.” Jones became a spokesman for Oceana’s Save Sharks campaign earlier this year. The Shark Conservation Act would outlaw shark “finning,” a cruel practice in which sharks’ fins are cut off, only to be dumped back into the sea to suffer a slow death. The law would require that sharks be brought in to land in one piece and would stop the massacre of hundreds of thousands of sharks each year by fishermen who make enormous profit by just getting the fins. Jones recently swam in the ocean with sharks while in the Bahamas with Oceana, an environmental group that works to protect the oceans of the world. “It’s exhilarating,” Jones said at the Variety Power of Women luncheon last Friday, where she was honored for her work with the environmental group. “They’re beautiful creatures and to be in that close proximity with them was a dream come true.”

On March 3rd, 2009 Rob Stewart addressed over 1,000 school students in a North America wide web conference. Over 30 schools held private screenings of Rob’s award-winning film Sharkwater and spent several days engaged in numerous educational activities surrounding the movie and the conservation of the world’s oceans.

This rare opportunity brought students together from Hawaii to Ontario and allowed them to communicate directly with Rob to ask many of the burning questions they had collected after researching sharks and watching the movie. Rob did not disappoint! Not only did Rob answer the student’s questions, he inspired a generation of kids to stand up for what they believe in and guided them in how to make positive changes in their world.

Like a true hero, Rob empowered, taught and shared and made a real difference in the lives of those who he spoke with.

To see the interview click here.

Rob Stewart, director of the award-winning film Sharkwater has been invited to participate at the inaugural Environmental Film Festival at Yale (EFFY) April 16-19, 2009!

The festival showcases cutting-edge documentaries and short films to raise awareness of current environmental issues. It also offers an opportunity for the audience to interact with the filmmakers and other experts in an intimate setting. Sharkwater screens Saturday April 18th at 7:30pm followed by a discussion with Rob Stewart. This is an amazing opportunity to not only see the film with fellow environmental enthusiasts but will provide a chance to speak with Rob about the film and what we can all do to help save sharks!

In addition to Sharkwater there are some amazing films screening - and best of all, all screenings and special events are FREE and open to the public! Bring your friends, family, colleagues and share this experience with them!

For more details on EFFY visit
http://environment.yale.edu/film/Home.html

To learn more about Rob Stewart and Sharkwater visit
www.sharkwater.com

The 16 foot long fibreglass shark that was used to promote Sharkwater at various functions, including film festivals and movie premieres, is up for auction at eBay. Rob’s willing to part with this valuable piece of movie memorabilia to order raise funds for his new film, Rise Again. Check out the shark at by clicking on this link, which will lead you straight to the auction.

Toronto Life March 2009 –
When power couple Galen and Alexandra Weston saw Sharkwater, Rob Stewart’s debut doc about murderous Guatemalan shark poachers and other oceanic abuses, they were moved to call the guy up and pledge their support for his cause. They even invited Stewart to dinner at the Spoke Club, where Alex revealed she had all but cut out seafood. You can imagine, then, Stewart’s shock when he discovered Real Canadian Superstores (a Loblaw chain) advertising shark’s fin soup in the days leading up to the 2009 Chinese New Year.

Stewart took swift action on his blog, advising supporters to sell their Loblaw stock and write or call CEO Galen Weston Jr. He then fired off an e-mail to the grocery titan, expressing his strenuous objection. Weston, a recent recipient of a national PR award, jumped faster than you can say “five cents a bag,” pledging to look into the matter ASAP. Stewart pushed back with a request for an exact date when he could expect the soup to be sacked. In an e-mail exchange, he insisted, “You, as CEO, should be able to remove shark’s fin soup from your stores almost immediately.” He wasn’t afraid to play hardball, either: “As you know, we have amassed quite a following in the public and press, and will be doing our best to bring this issue to light.”

Weston, for his part, saw fit to reveal a little domestic detail: “My wife still rarely eats fish because of your film… So the drum beats in my home every night.” Five days after Stewart’s first e-mail, the Asian delicacy was off the shelves. A good move, considering Loblaw has marked 2009 as a year for progress in “sourcing with integrity.”

Humane Society International is targeting Chinese restaurants in Toronto and other cities during New Year celebrations this week with its campaign against shark finning. Shark fin soup, once prized as a symbol of wealth, is a highlight at Chinese New Year festivities and major gatherings. But environmental groups say millions of sharks are dumped back into the ocean after their fins are cut off, leaving them to die a slow and painful death. Toronto filmmaker Rob Stewart, whose award-winning documentary Sharkwater chronicles the plight of the world’s sharks, said the message is slowly getting out.
Last week, food distributor Loblaws stopped selling shark fin soup at its Great Canadian Superstore outlets after a campaign by Stewart’s group Saving Sharks. - 24 Hours News Services, Thursday, January 29, 2009.

Canadian-born director Rob Stewart has been winning praises for his critically acclaimed movie Sharkwater for quite some time, and now has another award to add to his collection. Joining past recipients such as Oliver Stone, Steven Spielberg and Tom Cruise, Stewart received an award for Environmental Vision at the 35^th Annual Vision Awards in Los Angeles. The Vision Awards recognize members of the Hollywood creative community – producers, directors, actors, musicians, and sportscasters – who have used their “sight, foresight and insight” to create projects which bring special enjoyment and/or educational value to audiences around the world. Sharkwater explores historical stereotypes and media depictions of sharks, debunking myths and revealing truths. Not just about sharks – the film is filled with corruption, espionage, attempted murder charges and mafia rings, forcing Stewart and his crew to not just stay behind the camera, but move in front of it.

Having enjoyed a successful theatrical run and DVD release, Sharkwater is now available for a limited time only on Pay-Per-View. For High Definition, check Channel 833 and for Standard format, it can be seen on Channel 377. The times are as follows: Friday August 1 - 7 p.m. ET; Saturday August 2 - 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. ET; and Sunday, August 3 - 3 p.m. and 7 p.m ET.

The groundbreaking film Sharkwater has been garnering worldwide praises for its portrayal of the ecologically crucial, but highly endangered, shark. Most recently, the film won Outstanding Documentary at the 22^nd annual Genesis Awards, produced by The Humane Society of the United States and held in the International Ballroom of the Beverly Hilton Hotel. The event, hosted by actor Bill Maher, honors those within the media who have raised awareness for animal rights. As Sharkwater’s executive producer, narrator, writer and director, Rob Stewart accepted the coveted award for his debut documentary. “Sharks are being killed everywhere and people have no idea, largely because everyone’s afraid of sharks, so I figured if I could give people a new impression of sharks to counter to Jaws, counter to the media’s perception that they’re mindless predators, then maybe they’d want to fight for their protection like they fight for elephants, and pandas, and bears.”