Our fight against climate-wrecking fossil fuel developments
Protecting the Ocean from Climate Change
We see one of the key threats to our ocean as climate change and It’s no secret that its truly threatening our blue planet.
Big polluting companies are causing the world's ocean to warm at a rapidly increasing pace and altering the basic chemistry of the ocean with waters becoming more acidic. This is having devastating impacts on marine life; from mass coral bleaching to making vital marine habitats too hot for many species to survive.
We're taking action to mitigate the impacts of our changing climate on marine species like corals, whales and turtles because the survival of our planet - and ourselves - depends on it. Will you join us?
"People ask: Why should I care about the ocean? Because the ocean is the cornerstone of earth's life support system, it shapes climate and weather. It holds most of life on earth. 97% of earth's water is there. It's the blue heart of the planet — we should take care of our heart. It's what makes life possible for us" - Marine Biologist and Oceanographer, Sylvia Earle
The mining, burning and exporting of coal, oil and gas are one of the biggest causes of the climate crisis. And that’s why we’re fighting back against the expansion of dirty fossil fuel projects and instead, calling on our elected representatives for a rapid and just transition to clean, renewable energy.
Together, we’ve already had some amazing wins including:
Stopping BP, Chevron, Karoon Gas, Equinor and most recently, Santos, from risky deep-sea mining in the Great Australian Bight: home to endangered Australian sea lions and Southern right whales.
Protecting Walmadan/James Price Point in Western Australia from fossil fuel companies who were planning to build a gargantuan gas hub through the world’s largest humpback whale nursery.
But the fight isn't over. Australia's decision makers continue to give new climate-wrecking coal, oil & gas projects the green light. This is a disaster for our precious marine life and coastal communities, and the opposite of what scientists say we should be doing to avoid runaway climate catastrophe.
Our climate campaigns
Sea Shepherd is dedicated to conserving, defending and protecting our oceans from all kinds of man-made threats.
Because all our campaigns aim to restore ocean health or are directly linked to climate fights, the reality is that all Sea Shepherd campaigns are mitigating the climate emergency at hand, but here are some key areas that we have an impact in the fight to mitigate climate catastrophe.
You can read more about how our campaigns mitigate the climate emergency here
A nationwide movement for change
Everywhere and every day, ordinary people are taking extraordinary action to protect our much-loved ocean environment from industrialisation and ensure a liveable climate for generations to come.
Sea Shepherd is proud to support grassroots campaigns and actions all around the country - and we encourage you to get involved too.
Together, we can help leave a healthy, flourishing ocean for future generations. We might each only be a drop in the ocean, but together we are a tsunami of change for a better world. So, let’s get started.
While collective action is the most powerful way that we can protect our oceans for future generations, there are individual actions we can also take to help.
Sea Shepherd strongly encourages avoiding single-use plastics, and encourages you to go vegan for the ocean - as we have witnessed firsthand the devastating impacts of industrial fishing and marine debris on our oceans and their inhabitants.
While the fight may seen huge, it's important to remember that the crisis is solvable - and action starts with us.
In 2019, thousands of people from around the country came together at over 50 locations to tell oil-giant Equinor that they did not have social license to conduct risky deep-sea drilling in the Great Australian Bight. Experts believe that this extraordinary public opposition to the project was a contributing factor in Equinor abandoning its plans in February 2020.
The power will always reside in the people.