She's 18 and a shark crusader

Meet Madison Stewart. She was just a teenager when she started to make a name for herself in the world of marine conservation because of her passion for sharks.

She is 18 now, so even better informed about the subject, and still just as energetic when it comes to informing people and asking everyone to sign petitions against shark killings in assigned Australian Marine Conservation areas.

Because of her young age, her dedication, and her apparent total lack of fear for the sharks she follows underwater, she makes one hell of an impression! From now on we’ll be following her a bit on this blog spot and Madison has given us permission to share her movies, Facebook page for the cause and blogs about this subject.

Here is an excerpt from a piece Madison wrote earlier, to get attention for this cause: “It started with the steel cage… then we developed chainmail, a steel suit from medieval days designed to take the force of a bite and the sharp teeth yet inflict no injury on the human flesh… now there are nets (which do not discriminate and succeed to kill every animal in their path), electrical devices, repellants they are called, all measures to protect us form sharks, to go into their home and remove them from our presence...

So I wonder now, what has been done, to protect the sharks... from us?”

Did you know shark fishing is still allowed within the protected waters of the Great Barrier Reef? According to Madi and her peers who looked into this: 200 commercial gillnet vessels target sharks within the GBR Marine Park and World Heritage Area, 600 tonnes of shark is removed each year, exporting the fins and selling the body for meat in this country...

Which species are caught, but endangered? Find a list here

Want to help Madison? Sign the petition! You can help stop shark fishing within the Great Barrier Reef boundaries, by sending a letter to the government before the review in Feb 2012.

Sign the petition on the Taasfa website

All photos by Ernst Stewart

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Also watch this impressive YouTube movie that Madi made (warning: some may find some of the images shocking):

ABOUT THIS FILM: People who fear sharks in this day and age, fear only knowledge. Most lack the education to understand the truth about sharks and their place in the ocean and that fear of them will lead to the oceans fall. If there is going to be hope for survival in the future, those who fear sharks, will need to be taught to fear for them...

Filmed and edited by Madison Stewart, 17 years old at the time, in an attempt to make a voice for the sharks and shed light on the legal GBR fin fisheries: “Because the law and justice are distant. follow the fight...”