For the very first time in the UK dozens of digital billboards will carry a shark conservation message as Bite-Back Shark & Marine Conservation launches an innovative and bold nationwide advertising campaign highlighting the importance of sharks to life on earth.
Created by award-winning London advertising agency, GOOD, and featuring the photography of Christian Vizl, the eye-catching campaign communicates a three word headline to groups and individuals in a bid to highlight the vital role of sharks in the oceans and the importance of the oceans to humanity.
To emphasise the wide reach and connection that sharks have with us all, the campaign features 26 occupations and hobbies – one for each letter of the alphabet.
Campaign director for Bite-Back, Graham Buckingham, said: “Our ‘Sharks Save …’ campaign directly answers the question ‘why should I care about the survival of sharks’ with a clear message that – regardless of profession or pastime – we’re all in debt to sharks and the oceans. Saving sharks isn’t just about saving a marine species, it’s about protecting the world’s largest ecosystem that makes our planet liveable.”
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According to Bite-Back upwards of 73 million sharks are being killed every year. As a result one in four sharks are listed as threatened or endangered. The charity says without urgent action to end the global slaughter of sharks, the oceans could collapse ‘like a house of cards’ severely compromising the way we live.
TV presenter, naturalist and patron of Bite-Back, Steve Backshall MBE, said: “This campaign isn’t about making people fall in love with sharks, it’s about making people understand that we need them. The hope is that, once people know and appreciate how important they are to life on earth, they’ll be more motivated to participate in their survival. Bite-Back has done some amazing things to champion shark conservation and I urge everyone to get behind its campaigns.”
Key concerns about losing sharks at current rates include climate change and food security. Without sharks, global warming will accelerate as its prey species explode in numbers, leading to the overconsumption of other species down the food web, ultimately disrupting seagrass meadows, mangroves and salt marshes, essential for the absorption of 30% of the planet’s CO2. At the same time familiar fish stocks, vital for feeding 3 billion people, could vanish leading to food security concerns along with a dramatic fall in employment in fishing communities and at coastal tourist destinations.
Graham Buckingham said: “We want this advertising campaign to be the moment that people start to regard sharks as heroes and not villains. The message is very simple, we need sharks to survive.”
Thanks to a charity award from outdoor advertising media specialist, Ocean Outdoor, the campaign will appear in 10 cities and at more than 50 sites across the country until the end of September. Pro-bono contributions from the GOOD advertising agency and the photographer, Chrisitan Vizl, means that the campaign hasn’t cost the charity a penny.
Senior marketing manager at Ocean Outdoor, Shona Dobson, said: “We’re proud to use our screens as powerful platforms for change. Through bold, nationwide campaigns like Bite-Back and our Drops in the Ocean programme, we’re amplifying vital conservation messages, challenging perceptions, and changing the narrative around marine life. By supporting frontline conservationists and inspiring public action, we’re helping to safeguard our oceans, address climate change, and secure the future of our planet for everyone.”
Right now the charity is encouraging supporters to help save sharks by boycotting tuna caught by industrial fishing methods that also kill millions of sharks, turtles, dolphins and seabirds every year. Only tuna caught by pole and line avoids the accidental death of these stunning and charismatic species.
Because of Bite-Back’s campaigns, the UK is the only country in Europe to ban the import and export of shark fins. It’s also now impossible to buy shark meat in any UK supermarket because of its work.
