About us
Our mission is to safeguard the future of sharks through positive change. We achieve this through science, education, influence and action.
Established in 1997, the Shark Trust was initially set up to be a voice for UK sharks, skates and rays. Twenty years on we've grown a little in size and a lot in terms of reach and influence. Still based in Plymouth (Britain’s Ocean City), our office now accommodates a team of 8.
From here we work at an international level to safeguard the future of sharks and their close relatives – the skates, rays and chimaera.
All of our projects, campaigns and policy actions aim to drive progress towards:
- SPECIES PROTECTION - protecting endangered species through legislation and effective conservation action. In 2019, we collaborated to develop action plans for Critically Endangered angel sharks in the Mediterranean.
- FISHERIES MANAGEMENT - we're working to transform fisheries to prevent population declines through overfishing. In 2019, Blue Sharks finally received the first ever catch limits at ICCAT – something we've been advocating for, for many years.
- RESPONSIBLE TRADE – we also promote responsible trade and work to reduce demand for non-sustainable shark products. In 2019 we helped secure listing of giant guitarfishes and wedgefishes under CITES Appendix II.
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