Shannon Richards a third grade, teacher and triathlon athlete did a fantastic job of sharing her passion as she participates in grueling triathlons in support of dolphins in captivity. In her bio this is what she said: “I feel like I am just an ordinary person who wants to make the world a better place, like many of us do. I love being inspired by others, and I strive to inspire others to find their passions and fulfill them, no matter how silly or insignificant they may be. My passions are teaching, loving animals, and competing in triathlons. I got this crazy idea to combine them all after seeing Blackfish and The Cove. Why not raise awareness for cetaceans in captivity while I am training and racing? In doing so, I feel like I am helping these dolphins and whales in some small way by causing people to stop and wonder why captivity is so wrong for these beautiful animals. If I can reach one person by running down the street, or riding my bike with “Ric O Barry’s Dolphin Project” logo on my back, I feel like I am one step closer to helping end captivity for them. Ending cetacean captivity is something I feel very strongly about, and I am so glad I have found such a great cause to help keep me motivated! I have made some wonderful new friends around the world, and I have also helped educate my family and friends, who in turn pass this information on to others. My plan is to continue to race for dolphins and whales and reach all the people I can until all the tanks are empty” (Shannon Richards, Tri for Change) Listen to Shannon’s story HERE!
Jennifer Wolfsong an attorney spoke about her drive to help dolphins after seeing the 2009 documentary on Netflix called, “The Cove”: I happened upon the movie, “The Cove” about 3 and a half years ago when I was surfing Netflix. It disturbed me so much that I couldn’t think about anything else. I didn’t sleep for weeks because I couldn’t get those horrible images out of my head. I decided I had to do something, something drastic to catch people’s attention. I have been a runner since high school so a running event seemed the natural choice. In 2011 I started training to run 100 miles on Sept. 1, 2012, the start of Taiji’s dolphin hunting season. I ended up shortening my goal to 100k (61 miles) but with the hopes of running 100 miles in the future. I did successfully run 100km in Sept 2012 and raised more than $3,000 for Save Japan Dolphins. I was unable to do a 100 mile run in 2013 but late in 2013 I started training again, this time to complete a 100 mile race this September.
” In watching the Cove, there is one thing that Ric O’Barry said that stays with me. He said (and I’m paraphrasing) that if we can stop this one brutality in the world, there is hope that we can save the planet. This is what I hold onto during my long, grueling training runs, that I’m running to keep hope alive”. (Jennifer Wolfsong) Listen to Jennifer’s story HERE. Follow the link and listen to their creative activism to help dolphins worldwide!
Champions for Cetaceans 
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Thanks Ryan you rock!
Aaron Paul (from ‘Breaking Bad’), Marcia Hines, Sia, Tyson Beckford, The Veronicas, Former Miss Universe Australia Laura Dundovic and Cheyenne Tozzi, Silvana Philippoussis, Chloe Lattanzi all say:
OUR AUSSIE DOLPHINS HAVE BEEN STOLEN FROM THE OCEAN AND SOME BRED IN CAPTIVITY BUT ALL ARE FORCED TO PERFORM DAILY AT SEA WORLD ON THE GOLD COAST, QUEENSLAND.
“The whole world is up in arms about Sea World and other aquaprisons. It’s time that Australians opened their eyes and became educated to the cruelty of trapping and keeping captive dolphins”. June Bird Killington – Founder of SEAWORLD SHUT DOWN on Facebook.
‘SEAWORLD SHUT DOWN on Facebook. The First & Only Campaign Against Sea World in Australia’
Please help us to speak up for the captive performing dolphins at Sea World on the Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia.
We love them rescuing cetaceans but we loathe them keeping dolphins as captives in their aquaprison.
The dolphins need to be rehabilitated and freed or taken to a safe sanctuary/bay/cove paid for by Sea World to live out their lives without human interference.
Greece, India, Croatia, Hungary New York, South Carolina, Bolivia, Chile, Costa Rica, Cyprus, Nicaragua, Slovenia, Switzerland, Brazil, Luxembourg, Norway and the U.K have already banned cetaceans in captivity and so far I have over 12,000 signatures on the petition and a Facebook page with over 4,000 followers.
The dolphins are caught from the ocean and brought to tanks/lagoons where they are forced to perform for paying customers and given dead fish if they do the tricks. They also breed dolphins in captivity to make money for greedy Sea World business people.
“Seaworld Gold Coast – Keeping dolphins as prisoners since the 70s”
http://www.change.org/en-AU/petitions/seaworld-australia-please-tell-seaworld-that-we-demand-the-closure-of-their-foul-aquaprison-sea-creatures-forced-to-do-tricks-in-swimming-pools-it-s-time-to-say-no-to-animal-cruelty-in-all-forms