Lola and Voldemort Shark

It’s an understandable coping response to mentally shut out environmental issues. When so many things threaten everything you love, it makes it hard to live with constant awareness. Sometimes denial can be healthy - in small doses and the right contexts. But for me, if I shut those thoughts down too much I feel guilty, numb, and disconnected to myself. It’s a complicated thing to navigate. In her song “Free”, Florence Welsh sings: “Is this how it is, is this how it’s always been? To exist in the face of suffering and death, and somehow, still keep singing”. Somehow, we find ways to carry on, to find hope against all odds. Self-love and compassion are important for everyone. It’s particularly helpful for anyone feeling overwhelmed by all the suffering in the world.

Recently I downloaded an app called Finch. Its aim is to help improve mental well-being. In Australia, I often used it during outdoor instructing, because it works without reception. I named my finch animal Lola. Every day Lola went on adventures and learnt more about the world. When I was exhausted and burnt out, pouring energy into 15 other people on long programs, I’d get little notifications from Lola: “I appreciate you, cheep cheep!”. It sounds silly but it gave me energy on tiring days. I dressed her up in funky sunglasses and dresses similar to what I wore as a kid. I came to see her as a symbolic reminder of my younger self. Every time I looked after Lola, I was reminded to look after myself too, and treat myself with compassion and understanding.

In sustainability presentations, I used to throw out as much information possible about the issues and how to fix them. I was so eager for people to care that I thought I could shock people into taking action. Now my mindset has shifted significantly. We are part of the environment, so to look after it, we must look after ourselves. It is our responsibility as environmental educators to be careful and intentional about how we present information. To give people well-being support and resources. To understand the psychological responses to learning about environmental collapse and inequity. To shift the way we view ourselves, and the way we view the world.

There’s a lot to say about the way we view sharks. Sharks are held in awe by many people. When I was lifeguarding I’d watch dozens of kids splash about in their shark rash tops and togs. During the Shark Guardians presentations at schools, kids would stay back during their lunch time to continue asking questions. They were more captivated and curious than I’ve seen at any other presentation. When I started this campaign a few years ago, I joined an “I ❤ Sharks” Facebook group. I was bemused by the torrent of daily posts: Huge shark tattoos, shark toys, shark clothing, Jaws, Shark Week, shark quotes, you name it. There is something special about sharks that fascinates humans, even if we can’t put into words what exactly it is.

 

The next part has some statistics about shark deaths. If you don’t want to read it, skip the next two paragraphs.

 

 

At the same time, humans also see sharks as a resource and a threat. According to IFAW (2022), every year around 100 million sharks are killed. That's about 11,000 sharks every hour and around three sharks a second*1. It’s an issue interwoven with social inequity. Many of the shark fishermen have limited choices. If they want to send their kids to school and provide for their families, they must continue killing sharks. Project Hiu is an organisation working with shark fishermen to help them transition into using their boats for more sustainable purposes*2. (To learn more about Project Hui, visit https://www.projecthiu.com/ ).

Sharks are killed for many reasons. They are caught for their fins, liver, oil, meat, or as accidental bycatch. Sharks are put in soup, makeup, skincare (squalene), dog food, fish markets, fish and chip shops. One-third of shark species are endangered. Even the Great White Sharks are considered vulnerable. Shark nets are set up on popular beaches, entangling and killing sharks and other species. Meanwhile, around 10 people on average die from shark encounters annually. That’s some extreme odds. You are 200 times more likely to die from lightning than die from a shark encounter*3.

 

Above: 

Bruce (the shark from Jaws) is hard at work during the Universal Studios Tour. The success of Jaws was definitely huge for shark representation... Probably in both good and bad ways.

When you look at how sharks are portrayed in the media, you wouldn’t know how tilted the scales are. Your average person is probably more scared of being attacked by a shark than they are of mass shark extinction. But losing our apex ocean predators should be a much bigger concern. The consequences of this are devastating for ocean well-being - and therefore our well-being.

Mainstream knowledge of shark species is also limited. Only a few species of sharks get media attention because the news is usually limited to human encounters with sharks. But there are so many incredible sharks out there. There’s the whale shark - enormous and graceful filter feeders, with skin like the night sky. There’s the Greenland shark, which survives in waters so frigid that its flesh has developed its own antifreeze. They live to be hundreds of years old and glide deep, deep below the surface. The cookie cutter shark, who leaves bite marks the shape of - you guessed it - a cookie cutter. The hilariously ugly goblin shark. The endangered Australian grey nurse shark.

In Australia, I would read to my brother Baxter before bed. Most nights we had a running joke about how he wouldn’t let me read him Harry Potter. The one time he let me, I was three chapters in before realising he was already asleep. He later told me that he had nightmares that night. “What did you have nightmares about?” I asked him. I was surprised because the part I had read was very tame. “Sharks,” he said matter-of-factly. “Sharks??” I was perplexed. “There’s no sharks in Harry Potter!” I told him, laughing. “No,” he insisted - “Voldemort is a shark!”.

It reminded me of a vivid dream I had when I was around Baxters' age. A walking, talking shark killed almost everyone in my family. My sister and I then ran into the forbidden forest and lived the rest of our lives in hiding with the spiders and centaurs. It made me realise how I subconsciously viewed sharks as evil villains. Of course Baxter - and anyone else - will think the same thing. How could you not, when sharks only feature on the news when a human has died?

It’s healthy to have a reasonable fear of some sharks, depending on where and what you’re doing. But that fear needs to be married with respect. Sharks are, of course, a force of nature. Older than the dinosaurs, persisting through mass extinction events and ice ages. Their existence now threatened by the actions of humans.

 

We’re in their home.

 

Today Lola went on an adventure. When she came back, she had discovered a new song. Later I got a notification, just as I was beginning to fall asleep.

 

Lola is dreaming of baby shark.

 

 

References:

.*1  (reference: https://www.ifaw.org/international/journal/faq-about-sharks#:~:text=How%20many%20sharks%20are%20killed,around%20three%20sharks%20every%20second!)

*2 https://www.projecthiu.com/

*3 1  (reference: https://www.ifaw.org/international/journal/faq-about-sharks#:~:text=How%20many%20sharks%20are%20killed,around%20three%20sharks%20every%20second!)