'Ban shark finning in NZ' poster

This poster was commissioned by Greenpeace for the New Zealand Shark Alliance's campaign calling on the public to sign a petition protesting against shark finning, a practice which sees millions of sharks being killed for only their fins. Their bodies are dumped at sea.

At the time of the campaign this practice was legal in New Zealand waters - as long as the sharks were dead. Supporters of the campaign believe that shark finning is inhumane and wasteful, and may be contributing to a global decline in shark populations.

The poster features an image of a real shark fin, and was intended to be gory and hard-hitting. A billboard version installed outside Wellington Airport in late August 2013 attracted much public and media attention.

The government consulted widely, and from October 2014, it became illegal for commercial fisheries to remove fins from any shark and discard their bodies at sea in New Zealand.

The New Zealand Shark Alliance

The New Zealand Shark Alliance successfully brings together many non-governmental organisations and scientists including Forest & Bird, Greenpeace, Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, and World Wide Fund for Nature.