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Young Swede Saves Fins |
Marcus Marcus and his Save the Sharks Campaign
Marcus Marcus
Six year old Marcus Marcus, from Stockholm in Sweden, was so outraged when he heard about sharks having their fins cut off to make soup, that he decided to take action and start his very own Save the Shark Campaign. "You must do something," Marcus explained. "That ́s what it ́s all about. You must do something."
"My goal was to show my son that one person, even small people, can make a difference," his father, Fredik Marcus told us. A web designer, Fredrik helped set up Marcus's informative and easy-to-use campaign website, which is gaining more international recognition every day. Soon to be translated into a fourth language, the site contains a page where people can add their name to an already 20,000-strong list of protesters from 58 different countries. His recently launched facebook group has also gathered over 1,000 members. "When my mum was little there were twice as many sharks as there are today," said Marcus. "Of the biggest sharks - like the hammerhead shark, the tiger shark and the blue shark - 95 per cent have disappeared - and soon the hammerhead will be put on the list of endangered species too."
The day before the opening of the Beijing Olympic Games, Marcus delivered a petition to the Chinese Embassy containing 10,010 signatures, demanding that shark fin soup be removed from restaurant menus. "I hope they gave a call to the food minister!" Marcus added, who plans to deliver another list of signatures next year. In fact, he has vowed to continue his petition until the shark fishing stops.
Although only six, this determined little boy has caught the attention of animal welfare organisations and shark scientists from across the globe. Twice, he has been interviewed on Swedish television - gaining a thousand signatures within an hour of being broadcast. He has also spoken on Radio Stockholm, as well as appearing in the country's major newspapers. Recently, Marcus was nominated as a 'Swedish Hero' and chosen by the council of Stockholm to be 'Stockholmer of the Month'. "Eating Shark Fin soup is cruel and unnecessary," announced Marcus. "Eat broccoli soup instead!"
To add your name to the petition contact: Marcus Marcus, President, savethesharks.info@gmail.com, Save The Sharks Club, www.savethesharks.se .
Story from Positive News UK
"My goal was to show my son that one person, even small people, can make a difference," his father, Fredik Marcus told us. A web designer, Fredrik helped set up Marcus's informative and easy-to-use campaign website, which is gaining more international recognition every day. Soon to be translated into a fourth language, the site contains a page where people can add their name to an already 20,000-strong list of protesters from 58 different countries. His recently launched facebook group has also gathered over 1,000 members. "When my mum was little there were twice as many sharks as there are today," said Marcus. "Of the biggest sharks - like the hammerhead shark, the tiger shark and the blue shark - 95 per cent have disappeared - and soon the hammerhead will be put on the list of endangered species too."
The day before the opening of the Beijing Olympic Games, Marcus delivered a petition to the Chinese Embassy containing 10,010 signatures, demanding that shark fin soup be removed from restaurant menus. "I hope they gave a call to the food minister!" Marcus added, who plans to deliver another list of signatures next year. In fact, he has vowed to continue his petition until the shark fishing stops.
Although only six, this determined little boy has caught the attention of animal welfare organisations and shark scientists from across the globe. Twice, he has been interviewed on Swedish television - gaining a thousand signatures within an hour of being broadcast. He has also spoken on Radio Stockholm, as well as appearing in the country's major newspapers. Recently, Marcus was nominated as a 'Swedish Hero' and chosen by the council of Stockholm to be 'Stockholmer of the Month'. "Eating Shark Fin soup is cruel and unnecessary," announced Marcus. "Eat broccoli soup instead!"
To add your name to the petition contact: Marcus Marcus, President, savethesharks.info@gmail.com, Save The Sharks Club, www.savethesharks.se .
Story from Positive News UK
