Program Term Archive
Marine Wildlife
Responsible Whale Watching
Marine WildlifeThere is something magical about seeing a wild animal up close—especially when it’s as big as a bus! Humans have an understandable fascination with whales and dolphins, and the best...
The Case Against Marine Mammals in Captivity
Marine WildlifeThe Case Against Marine Mammals in Captivity was first produced in 1995 as a comprehensive resource for the public, the media, scientists, students, and policymakers to learn the various arguments...
“God Squad” Seeks to Override Protections for Vulnerable Species
Endangered Species, Marine WildlifeThe Department of the Interior recently convened the Endangered Species Committee, aka the “God Squad,” for the first time in more than 30 years. During its meeting, the committee unanimously...
Strengthening Welfare in Marine Settings (SWIMS) Act
Marine WildlifeThe SWIMS Act, first introduced in 2022 and most recently in 2024, would phase out the captive display of the four larger cetacean species held by US marine theme parks...
Trump Administration Signals Potential Rollback of Lifesaving Protections for Critically Endangered North Atlantic Right Whale
Press ReleaseMarch 4, 2026Marine WildlifeThe Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) today expressed deep concern following the publication of a Federal Register notice indicating that the Trump administration is considering weakening the 2008 vessel speed rule, one of the...
Act Now to Prevent Inhumane Octopus Farms in the United States
Farmed Animals, Marine WildlifeGrowing interest in commercial octopus farming threatens to subject these cognitively complex, sentient animals to inhumane conditions and prolonged suffering. To prevent this unsustainable and cruel practice from expanding, Sens....
Mexico’s Proposed New Regulations May Doom the Vaquita Porpoise to Extinction
Press ReleaseFebruary 5, 2026Endangered Species, Marine WildlifeMexico is on the brink of publishing new rules that will significantly weaken protections for the vaquita porpoise—the world’s most endangered cetacean—potentially leading to the extinction of the species. The...
SPEEDing Environmental Destruction
Marine Wildlife, Terrestrial WildlifeIn December, the House Natural Resources Committee voted to advance HR 4776, the Standardizing Permitting and Expediting Economic Development (SPEED) Act. Targeting the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), our country’s...
Making the Case for Marine Mammal Protection
Marine WildlifeFor more than half a century, the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) has played a crucial role in safeguarding marine mammals from myriad threats—from entanglement in fishing gear to human-caused...
CITES CoP20 Confers Wildlife Protections
Endangered Species, Marine Wildlife, Terrestrial WildlifeThe recently concluded 20th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES CoP20), held in Samarkand, Uzbekistan,...