Skip to content
All articles
  • All articles
  • About whales & dolphins
  • Create healthy seas
  • End captivity
  • Fundraising
  • Green Whale
  • Kids blogs
  • Prevent deaths in nets
  • Scottish Dolphin Centre
  • Stop whaling
Dolphin in Brazil helping with fishing illustration

Dolphins and fishermen working together

Kidzone - quick links Fun Facts Curious kids Blogs Fantastic fundraisers Gallery Splish and Splash...
Gray whale (eschrichtius robustus) Gray whale in Ojo de liebre lagoon Baja California.

Why we’re walking for whales to save the world

We've got enormous ambitions when it comes to fighting climate breakdown, and so two members...
Dolphins with keepers in the new Windsor Safari Park. Image: PA Images/Alamy Stock Photo

Three decades on from UK’s last dolphin show, what needs to change?

The UK hasn't had captive whales and dolphins on display for 30 years, but it's...
Fishers' involvement is crucial. Image: WDC/JTF

When porpoises and people overlap

We're funding a project in Hong Kong that's working with fishing communities to help save...
Whale evolution cover

How did whales end up living in the ocean?

Kidzone - quick links Fun Facts Curious kids Blogs Fantastic fundraisers Gallery Splish and Splash...
Fishers chatting

Scottish fishers working with us to reduce risks to whales

Small changes to fishing gear could make a big difference to whales around Scotland, and...

Mindful conservation – why we need a new respect for nature

'We should look at whales and dolphins as the indigenous people of the seas -...
tins of whale meat

How Japan’s whaling industry is trying to convince people to eat whales

Japan's hunters kill hundreds of whales every year despite the fact that hardly anyone in...

Project BLUEprint workshop is a whale of a success in Sri Lanka!

I have just returned from an 8-day trip to Sri Lanka where our small WDC team assisted marine biologist, Anouk Ilangakoon, in running a 2-day training workshop for whale watch operators in Mirissa on the south coast. This small village, with its palm-fringed coastline and harbour filled with a jumble of brightly-coloured fishing boats, has become a magnet in recent years for whale watchers intent on seeing blue whales.

Here, the continental shelf pinches in close to shore at nearby Dondra Head, creating ideal conditions for blue whales, sperm whales and a host of other whale and dolphin species; indeed during peak season (December-April), sighting rates are incredibly high. But success has not come without a price. Here, as many other parts of the world, whale watching has mushroomed and a massive influx of tourists and vessels has threatened to overwhelm the carrying capacity of the area. This has led to increasing concerns that the industry is growing at an unsustainable rate, threatening the safety and welfare of both whales and tourists.

And so Project BLUEprint was born.  Launched at last year’s World Travel Market as a partnership between WDC, SriLankan Airlines and eco-tourism companies, Jetwing Hotels and John Keells Group (who kindly sponsored our visit), the project promotes responsible, community-based whale watching in Sri Lankan waters.  Mirissa, as the most popular destination, was the obvious focus for our first workshop and I’m pleased to report that this was a great success!

Ninety people attended, mainly local whale watch skippers and crew members, who were joined by representatives from the Sri Lankan Navy and Coastguard, the tourism industry, research community and other stakeholders. The workshop was conducted in Sinhala, the local language, and covered all aspects of responsible vessel handling and safety protocols. The sessions were planned to be as interactive as possible and several lively discussions took place!  Afterwards, several operators commented that they were so pleased to have a forum for discussions as only rarely did they all come together.  The following day, around 70 skippers and crew attended a practical boat training session where classroom theory was put into practice.

Feedback from the workshop has been overwhelmingly positive. Naturally, we hope that we have encouraged the local operators to embrace responsible boat handling but, equally importantly, to regard themselves as a community rather than merely individual operators. Only by working together can they hope to develop whale watching in a sustainable manner; recognizing that protecting the whales and dolphins they encounter in their waters also means protecting the livelihood of each and every member of their community.

About Vanessa Williams-Grey

Policy manager - Stop Whaling and Responsible Whale Watching