The year 2007 (extended to 2008)Year of the Dolphin: Home
/ref> was proposed and declared as the (International) Year of the Dolphin (YoD) by the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

and

United Nations Environment Programme The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is responsible for coordinating responses to environmental issues within the United Nations system. It was established by Maurice Strong, its first director, after the United Nations Conference on th ...

(UNEP), along with the UN

Convention on Migratory Species The Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals, also known as the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) or the Bonn Convention, is an international agreement that aims to conserve migratory species throughout their r ...

, and its specialized agreements on dolphin conservation ACCOBAMS and

ASCOBANS Agreement on the Conservation of Small Cetaceans of the Baltic, North East Atlantic, Irish and North Seas, often abbreviated to ASCOBANS, is a regional agreement on the protection of small cetaceans that was concluded as the Agreement on the Con ...

and the WDCS.

Background

Dolphin A dolphin is an aquatic mammal within the infraorder Cetacea. Dolphin species belong to the families Delphinidae (the oceanic dolphins), Platanistidae (the Indian river dolphins), Iniidae (the New World river dolphins), Pontoporiidae (the ...

s are threatened marine

mammal Mammals () are a group of vertebrate animals constituting the class Mammalia (), characterized by the presence of mammary glands which in females produce milk for feeding (nursing) their young, a neocortex (a region of the brain), fur or ...

s with close ties to human history and culture. Living in

ocean The ocean (also the sea or the world ocean) is the body of salt water that covers approximately 70.8% of the surface of Earth and contains 97% of Earth's water. An ocean can also refer to any of the large bodies of water into which the wo ...

s and

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...

s, their survival is becoming increasingly difficult. Dolphins need clean and quiet oceans and protected areas. With their variety of almost 40

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

, dolphins are quintessential flagship species for their ecosystem. An ocean in which dolphins can do well is an ocean where all other lifeforms can do well too. The Year of the Dolphin was part of the

United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development The Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD) 2005–2014 was an Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) initiative of the United Nations. The Decade was delivered by UNESCO as lead agency, and gave rise to Regional Centres of Ex ...

. The campaign was also a tangible contribution towards meeting targets to reduce the loss of

wildlife Wildlife refers to domestication, undomesticated animal species (biology), species, but has come to include all organisms that grow or live wilderness, wild in an area without being species, introduced by humans. Wildlife was also synonymous ...

by 2010 which all Governments have agreed through the

Campaign

The United Nations, member Governments, intergovernmental organizations,

NGOs A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...

and the private sector (e.g.

TUI Group TUI Group is a German leisure, travel and tourism company. TUI is an acronym for ''Touristik Union International'' ("Tourism Union International"). TUI AG was known as Preussag AG until 1997 when the company changed its activities from mining to ...

) are building a strong alliance to achieve a common objective: to protect dolphins.
A crucial factor in achieving the protection of dolphins is to create awareness of dolphin species, educate, inform decision makers and involve local communities. The main focus of the campaign was on educational activities and awareness raising. The educational activities were aimed first and foremost at children, with numerous educational manuals, leaflets, posters etc. being distributed to schools and young tourists, e.g. through the network of YoD partner TUI. Numerous NGOs also played an important role in the raising of awareness for the plight of the

dolphins A dolphin is an aquatic mammal within the infraorder Cetacea. Dolphin species belong to the families Delphinidae (the oceanic dolphins), Platanistidae (the Indian river dolphins), Iniidae (the New World river dolphins), Pontoporiidae (t ...

. Some outstanding contributions were made by dedicated individuals, e.g. a young teacher in Mumbai, India visited schools in his city, spreading the word on dolphin conservation to approximately 3000 schoolchildren, their teachers and, by extension, their families. The YoD partners supplied him with educational materials and prizes to give to children who had made special contributions. Kenya was certainly a hotspot of YoD activities, with a large number of educational events, the dedication of a boat to the patrolling of

Marine Protected Area Marine protected areas (MPA) are protected areas of seas, oceans, estuaries or in the US, the Great Lakes. These marine areas can come in many forms ranging from wildlife refuges to research facilities. MPAs restrict human activity for a conserv ...

s and an exchange of old fishing gear for sustainable, dolphin-friendly gear, to name only a few. The website featured in-depth information on the almost 40 species of dolphins, as well as several outstanding conservation projects and articles on some of the activities undertaken in YoD 2007/2008. A more complete view of the YoD's activities and achievements was given on the YoD website.

Patron and ambassadors

The designated Patron of the Year of the Dolphin was H.S.H.

Prince Albert II Albert II – Website of the Palace of Monaco (Albert Alexandre Louis Pierre Grimaldi; born 14 March 1958) is Prince of Monaco, since 2005. Albert was born at the Prince's Palace of Monaco, and he is the second child and only son of Prince Rai ...

Monaco Monaco (; ), officially the Principality of Monaco (french: Principauté de Monaco; Ligurian: ; oc, Principat de Mónegue), is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Lig ...

, who formally launched the year on 17 September 2006. The Prince released a statement reading, "The Year of the Dolphin gives me the opportunity to renew my firm commitment towards protecting marine biodiversity. With this strong initiative we can make a difference to save these fascinating marine mammals from the brink of extinction." The YoD had several ambassadors, among them several swimmers and sailors, as well as the author of the book "In defense of Dolphins", a book highlighting the complexity and many fascinating aspects of dolphin social structure and behaviour. It focuses on the definition of 'personhood' and the implications this definition has for the classification of dolphins as persons and their legal and moral standing. The book's author is Prof. Thomas White.

Partners

* ACCOBAMS *

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society Whale and Dolphin Conservation (WDC), formerly Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society in the UK, is a wildlife charity that is dedicated solely to the worldwide conservation and welfare of all whales, dolphins and porpoises (cetaceans). It has ...

Public perception and opinions

The following is the opinion of Welsh

NGO A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...

''Sea Trust'': ''(see discussion forum)''

References

External links

Year of the Dolphin at the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals

Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society
{{UN International Years

Dolphins and humans 2007 in international relations 2008 in international relations