"A Lifetime of Once in a Lifetime Experiences"; Ric O'Barry, World Famous Dolphin Activist Shares His Story with Investorideas.com
Video interview with Ric O'Barry discussing updates from Japan and around the world on dolphin captivity and the slaughter; changes since Blackfish airing and tips on how to unleash the activist within you
NEW YORK, Nov. 6, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Investorideas.com (www.investorideas.com), a global news source covering leading sectors including the environment and water recently conducted an exclusive video Q&A interview with Ric O'Barry, author of Behind the Dolphin Smile and founder of the Dolphin Project (www.Dolphinproject.net). He is also the recognizable face of the award winning documentary, The Cove. Ric discusses recent updates from Taiji, Japan and from around the world on the current state of cetaceans in captivity and dolphin slaughter.
The interview was conducted by the Investor Ideas team, led by Cali Van Zant in Miami, FL at Ric O'Barry's home following his return from Taiji and the Dominican Republic.
Investorideas.com interview with Ric O'Barry:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HRoQmGU4fUQ
Editorial Intro:
Cali Van Zant
As we walked across the street after finishing the interview to grab lunch with Ric, I could not help but comment on his amazing and interesting life. His response; "I have had a lifetime of once in a lifetime experiences".
I couldn't agree more with such a fitting quote to describe the 75 year old academy award winning activist who has changed how the world sees cetaceans in captivity and brought light to slaughter in Taiji. Only recently back from Japan and the Dominican, we had the chance to sit down with him for an hour for lunch before he was getting ready to jet off to Vegas for the protest at the Mirage on October 2nd and 3rd and then back to Japan.
There are not many people you get to meet in life who surpass your expectations, but Ric is one of them. I had him on a pedestal before we came to conduct the interview and he won't be falling off it anytime soon. Not only is he a hero for whales and dolphins all around the world; he is equally as compassionate towards people. He told us at lunch that one of his most rewarding and meaningful acts in life was when he and his wife adopted his daughter Mai Li from China 9 years ago. He had learned of the many young girls in orphanages on his treks to China to rescue dolphins; so ironically dolphins played a fateful role.
Showing up at his home he was friendly and welcoming to us despite flying half way around the world only a day before. His house was filled with eclectic pieces from around the world that speak to his life and love of dolphins and adventure (our favorite the teak umbrella in the living room) and his garden is full of butterflies and bamboo. It is a tropical oasis that you immediately feel relaxed and calm in. The artwork in the house was created by friends, himself and his daughter, mostly dolphins of course.
We sat down in his living room to conduct the interview and began with asking about updates from Taiji and the Cove this year and any changes he could see. He told us, "Well this was my 12th year in a row returning to Taiji, The Cove on September 1st, and we will have a team of people there for 6 months. What's different? When I first started going there 12years ago they were killing 2300 dolphins a year, slaughtering them and very few were being captured. Now the number went from 23000 down to 700, so the demand for dolphin meat is dropping dramatically but the capture is increasing dramatically. That's one thing that has changed. There are more people and protesters there. There are many, many more police maybe 60-70 and coast guards so there is a lot of attention at the cove. And the fishermen who are doing this, their circle is getting smaller, and smaller. They used to do this right in the open, now they drive them into this hidden cove and they have police barricades and barbed wire so you really can't see what they are doing. They cover it up with tarps, so I think their days are numbered. The most important thing is that more Japanese people are stepping up and they are the only ones that can save the dolphins in Japan. And it's really about empowering them and hopefully they will take ownership of this issue"
My second question to him was one I was personally driven to ask, as I myself would like to do more on the activist side. I am more what Ric would call an "armchair activist", as I have only gone to a few protests and my main source of activism comes through posting on social media and sharing documentaries and articles I have found with friends and family.
My question was, "What's your best advice to someone who wants to become an activist but isn't sure where to start?" He replied it was his favorite question to answer to my delight.
He shared, "Well I started with dolphins but you know I have come to realize there's no point in saving dolphins without saving their habitat. And I should have figured that out a long time ago. So people want to get involved and don't know where to start. I tell people to find out what your passion is and then find out everything you can about that issue. It could be plastic in the ocean, it could be women rights, toxic waste, it could be dolphins and the whaling industry. There are so many problems and so many causes. You have to find out what it is you can get excited about and find out everything you can about that subject and that will empower you. And nobody will have to tell you what to do: you will know what do, it will be real obvious."
We talked about the "Blackfish" documentary effect taking place around the world and how there has been such an awakening to the cause since its extensive mainstream media coverage.
Films like Blackfish and the Cove have changed the viewpoints of millions of viewers.
The Cove won Best Documentary Feature at the Academy Awards in March of 2010. The Cove has now won more awards than any other documentary in history.
I asked him what he would say to people that did not watch the Cove because they say it's too upsetting or difficult to watch; they don't want to watch the bloody footage of the slaughters.
He told us, "I have a lot of friends like that, really good friends who have not seen The Cove. And they just don't get it. They think they know what it's about because of the way it was marketed. They think it's about a dolphin slaughter and they don't want to go there. But it's actually about a lot of things. And everybody should see it. Everybody should have that information. It might be too hard for a 9 year old to watch. My 9 year old daughter hasn't seen it and I don't want her to see it because it builds up to a 2 minute clip that's pretty horrific. But you can close your eyes for those 2 minutes and still listen because it has a beginning, a middle and an end and there's a story there. And by the way, that film has been entered into the Guinness book of world records for winning more awards than any other documentary in history. That's what I would tell those people. Because it won those awards, the Academy Award, and all the others for its Entertainment value. So it is entertaining obviously if it won all those awards. So for that reason alone they should see it."
I concluded the interview with a final question: "If you could ask everyone who is following you to do one thing tomorrow for your dolphin project what would it be?"
His answer was simple. "Support. The Dolphin Project, while well known worldwide, still needs help with funding their campaigns to end captivity and to educate people on the slaughter that goes on behind the scenes. When you're up against companies as big as SeaWorld and the Mirage and flying back and forth between the US, Japan it's an upwards battle. "
He went on to say, "Support is what we need most. That's most difficult. If you go to our site, www.Dolphinproject.net and make a donation and sign the petitions. Lots of people don't have the time to do the work; I'll do all the work but I need the support. That would be very helpful".
Donations help him stay in the 40 year long fight he has been in against the industry
We concluded the interview and we were amazed with how compassionate and brutally honest his answers were. We had to hold back our laugh every time he referred to the "stupid dolphin tricks" in aquariums.
For someone that has been doing this for over 40 years Ric still has the energy and compassion you would expect from a new recruit. As we walked down the street to grab lunch with him, not knowing if we would be taken to an all raw vegan restaurant as many animal activists do, we ended up a small Italian restaurant enjoying a glass of wine and vegetarian pizza and great company.
Over lunch he told us all about his wife and how they met in Paris after an interview. His quote about his lifetime of once in a lifetime experiences seemed true to heart after every story about his life and encounters was shared.
As we talked over the lunch it felt like we had known him for years.
Ric, in spite of all of his interviews, films, books and awards doesn't have an inflated ego. He is easy to speak with and direct with all his answers.
I had a million questions for him and asked him about half of them. He was happy to answer them all and gave great insight into the cetacean captivity industry, its lies and what life is really like being an activist on the road all the time.
I asked how he deals with hard days that are less than triumphant and laughed when he said with wine. At least there seems to be one thing in common between the life of an activist and life in the financial markets.
One thing at lunch he said stuck with me "Show up. I may not always know what do when I get there but at least if you show up you can do something"
Perhaps if we all lived by those words, the world would be a better place.
At 75, Ric still shows up no matter what he has to deal with, no matter what side of the world it's on; he always shows up. And even more he shows up with energy, compassion and his own truth to carry out his mission of righting the wrongs for dolphins and whales in captivity.
The couple of hours spent with Ric were inspiring. My most prized possession now is a signed copy of "To Free a Dolphin", his sequel book to "Behind the Dolphin Smile".
By: Cali Van Zant
To Donate to The Dolphin Project: http://dolphinproject.net
Ric O'Barry's Dolphin Project
The goal of Ric O'Barry's Dolphin Project is to put an end to dolphin exploitation and slaughter once and for all. Dolphins are regularly captured, harassed, slaughtered and sold into captivity around the world – all in the name of profit. The Dolphin Project works not only to halt these slaughters in countries around the world, but also to rehabilitate captive dolphins, investigate and advocate for economic alternatives to dolphin slaughter exploitation, and to put a permanent end to dolphin captivity.
The Dolphin Project has achieved many important victories for dolphins over the years. We brought the world's attention to brutal drive hunts taking place along the coast of Japan, as seen in the 2009 Academy Award-winning feature documentary "The Cove," ; we successfully negotiated for an end to dolphin slaughter in the Solomon Islands; we and we continue to raise awareness that captivity is cruel.
Ric O'Barry has been working towards their goals for over 40 years, and he continues his quest to put an end to dolphin suffering
About Ric O'Barry
Richard O'Barry has worked on both sides of the captive dolphin issue, making him an invaluable asset in the efforts to end exploitation. He worked for 10 years within the dolphin captivity industry, and has spent the past 40 working against it.
In the 1960s, O'Barry was employed by the Miami Seaquarium, where he captured and trained dolphins, including the five dolphins that played the role of Flipper in the popular American TV-series of the same name. He also trained Hugo, the first orca kept in captivity east of the Mississippi. When Kathy, the dolphin who played Flipper most of the time, died in his arms, O'Barry realized that capturing dolphins and training them to perform silly tricks is simply wrong.
From that moment on, O'Barry knew what he must do with his life. On the first Earth Day, 1970, he launched a searing campaign against the multi-billion dollar dolphin captivity industry and has been going at it ever since.
Over the past 40 years, Ric O'Barry has rescued and rehabilitated dolphins in many countries around the world, including Haiti, Colombia, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Brazil, the Bahamas Islands and the United States. He is a leading voice in the fight to end brutal dolphin hunts in Japan, the Solomon Islands, the Faroe Islands, and wherever else they occur.
O'Barry has been recognized by many national and international entities for his dedicated efforts, such as being voted Huffington Post's 2010 Most Influential Green Game Changer, and being listed on O Magazine's 2010 Power List – Men We Admire for his "Power of Passion." O'Barry received an Environmental Achievement Award, presented by the United States Committee for the United Nations Environmental Program. He has done countless interviews with such prestigious news programs as Larry King Live, Anderson Cooper 360, the Mike Huckabee Show, and the Oprah Winfrey Show.
His book Behind the Dolphin Smile was published in 1989; a second book, To Free A Dolphin was published in September 2000. Both of them are about his work and dedication. He is the star of the Academy Award-winning documentary The Cove and the Animal Planet television series Blood Dolphins.
See also: Investor Ideas recent commentary on the park board decisions after speaking at the board meeting about the Vancouver Aquariums cetaceans in captivity (Vancouver aquarium and park board article http://www.investorideas.com/news/2014/main/07303.asp)
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Video - http://youtu.be/HRoQmGU4fUQ
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