Earth Protect Blog

Thousands of dolphins are killed there every year, right around this time. Countless others are captured and sold to marine parks. If you’ve seen The Cove, an Academy Award-winning documentary about the hunt in Taiji Cove, you know just how gruesome it is. The water turns bright red in a site that will surely make you give a damn about dolphins if you don’t already.

Photo: (Getty)

Although you probably can’t pull a Hayden Panettiere and go to Japan and directly stop the hunt, there’s so much you can do from right where you are now. Yep. Right from your couch or your classroom (checkin’ your phone during class, huh?). Here are four ways to save the dolphins in 30 seconds or less:

+ Avoid Marine Parks

One of the best ways to save dolphins is to avoid all industries that exploit sea life. You can also support organizations like Ric O’Barry’s Dolphin Project, which The Cove was based on. The Dolphin Project aims to stop dolphin slaughter and exploitation around the world, and their primary goal is to keep dolphins out of captivity, where a large percentage of them die from capture shock, chlorine poisoning and other stress-related illnesses. They’re asking people to save dolphins’ lives by pledging not to go to dolphin shows. Making the pledge is one of the fastest and easiest ways you can make a difference.

+ Save Our Oceans

We can’t just protect the dolphins; we also have to preserve the oceans they live in. Founded in 2001, Oceana is the largest international organization focused solely on ocean conservation. It’s their goal to return our oceans to their former levels of abundance, so that all marine creatures can live their lives to the fullest. Follow Oceana on Twitter to keep up with and join in on their conservations efforts all around the world.

+ Sign a Petition

You can help save the dolphins from your couch! Global Olympic Dolphins is taking a very interesting approach to saving dolphins. Rather than confronting Japanese officials, who’ve shown very little love for our marine mammal friends, they’re asking the International Olympic Committee not to even consider Tokyo for the 2020 Olympics unless the country stops killing dolphins and whales.Sign their petition if you also agree — ’cause a country that profits off of dolphin hunts shouldn’t also be allowed to profit off of something as amazing as the Olympics.

+ Tell Somebody

You have the power to spread the word and save the dolphins all up in yo’ fingertips! Tweet, Facebook and Instagram to let your friends know what’s going on and how they can help out. Follow the Action Links below to help save the dolphins.