Taking part in the campaign
Every individual, every organization is invited to take part in the World Day for the End of Fishing and Fish Farming by organizing events - online as well! All contributions are important and appreciated.
Take action
- Organize a public event and get media coverage: a happening, a vigil, a Save square, a march; a screening, an exhibition, a conference or even a symposium; set up a stand, a press table; hand out leaflets, put up posters in your city, etc. You can find a variety of examples by looking at the videos and pictures taken during the previous editions. For such actions, what matters most is media coverage: if one or two media outlets are talking about it, your message will have a much wider reach!
- Create an artwork on aquatic animals, whether you are a singer, musician, sculptor, illustrator, painter, graphic artist, video maker, choreographer, dancer, cook, YouTuber, actor, comedian, etc., and promote it online or in local media. You can find examples on our Artists for aquatic animals page.
- Publicize this initiative, by spreading the word on social media, in vegetarian and vegan circles, among animal rights activists, in the environmental movement, etc.; by writing a press release for the media explaining that you support this World Day and why it matters (this is one way of publicizing it: journalists may want to interview you or the organizing team).
- Look for and share awareness-raising and educative content on social media: videos, photos, articles, websites, etc.
- Initiate cultural campaigns to raise awareness of aquatic animals and the harms that are inflicted upon them. For example, we have an exhibition on this topic, which you can contact us about at info@end-of-fishing.org if you are interested. You can see some examples of the posters on our Fishing and fish farming, Sentient Aquatic Animals, and Speciesism pages.
- Launch a pressure campaign against a specific form of exploitation: against transporting and keeping live lobsters or crabs for months to cook them later; against live-bait fishing; against new octopus farms; against recreational fishing; against shrimp eating, etc. Some of these campaigns, when run well, can lead to partial or total success, and in all cases, they help to raise public and media awareness of the issue of aquatic animals, or even invertebrates. Campaigns can be local (boycotting particular shops, putting pressure on town councils, etc.) or national (putting pressure on supermarkets, on commercial chains, on legislators, on political parties, etc.).
- Aim to include aquatic animals in your year-round advocacy. Discuss their sentience and their exploitation when it is pertinent, keep an eye on the fishing and aquaculture industries in your country, to be able to denounce the harms that they cause to animals, and do not exclude them from the estimates of animals exploited by humans or killed for food every year.
- Help us financially: La Question aquatique association deals with the campaign (creating the website, producing activist media like leaflets and exhibitions, and contacting other associations). Any financial help is useful. We would like to have a full-time employee to strengthen the campaign year-round.
- Invest time in the campaign: spreading the word on social media, helping us in translations, office work, etc. All volunteer work is welcome!
Announce an action!
5 tips for WoDEF participants
Images are crucial
Take pictures of your event, no matter how barebones it may be. Yes, even if there are only 2 of you! You may reach a few people in the street or at your event, but thanks to your pictures we can spread the word to hundreds or even thousands of people and inspire lots of new activists to join the movement. Make sure you have a good camera or, even better, a professional photographer/videographer. Show the setting of your event – posters, banners, costumes: all aspects of it are interesting! And don’t forget to send your best footage and images to info@end-of-fishing.org after your event so we can add them to our albums and posts.
Words matter
Although the media sometimes mentions "animal-rights activists" notions such as speciesism and sentience are still largely unknown. And some terms need to be redefined, such as "Marine Animals" which should be "Aquatic Animals" and "Fish Farm" which should be "Aquaculture Farms". Make sure to use these terms widely on your flyers, posters, banners, etc. along with the expression "World Day for the End of Fishing and Fish Farming", in your own language, of course.
Help us to spread the word about WoDEF by using hashtags like #EndFishing and #WoDEF on social media.
Publicize your event
Don't forget to advertise your event widely: in mainstream media, in specialized animal-rights and vegan media and on social media platforms. Actions are important in themselves but the information underlying them is also a way of getting ideas across and publicizing issues.
Send out press releases
Social media spreads ideas widely but other forms of publicity (newspapers, online media, TV, radio etc.) can reach even more people and lend credibility to your actions and ideas. You can also ask us if you need help to write and send a press release, both before and after your event, and we already have a model at your disposal. Send us a copy of your press release, but also cuttings and links to media coverage of your event.
Keep in touch
Although there are only a handful of volunteers working for international WoDEF, we love hearing from you! It is vital that we know what you are planning, have a link to your event and website, know how your event is going and how we can help you. Afterwards, remember to send us a brief account of what you did and how the public reacted.
Contact us : info@end-of-fishing.org