Plastic is THE hot topic at the moment, thanks largely to the work of Sir David Attenborough and his wonderful team who worked on Blue Planet II; the series that shone a light on what plastic is doing to our oceans and the extent of the problem. 

Since this series aired, there has been a noticeable decline in some everyday plastic uses and more and more people are making changes in their lives and asking how they can reduce their plastic consumption. 

If you want to know why plastic is so bad, you can read thousands and thousands of articles about it all over the internet. Instead of writing a depressing post about what a terrible state plastic has got us into, and more doom and gloom, I am going to offer 10 everyday things everyone can do to reduce their plastic consumption. The little changes DO make a difference in the long term, especially when adopted by as many people as possible. 

"It's just one straw" said 7 billion people. 

This very short list took me about 6 minutes to write. There are hundreds of ways to cut down on plastic, and so I will inevitably come back to this issue time and time again. 

The point I mostly wanted to highlight with this list though is, often where there is plastic, there is a plastic-free alternative (or an alternative that re-uses plastic or reduces the amount of plastic). 

No one is perfect, and I'm not telling you to live a 100% plastic-free life from now on. I know that's unrealistic. However, what we can all do as individuals is think about what we are doing to the environment, make sensible choices and small changes, and reduce plastic pollution.

Shark fin soup is getting more and more attention, and so I thought it was about time I talked about it.

I think the most important thing to point out whenever talking about sharks, is how important and crucial they are for marine ecosystems. Most sharks are top predators, and without them there would sure to be ecosystem collapse. 

Shark fin soup is of Chinese origin. The fin itself has very little flavour, but is added for texture and as it is seen as a delicacy. As in the cases of most (if not all) animal-products trade, this is ridiculous. This is particularly ridiculous, as the fin basically adds nothing to the soup, except the name, but it's the name that causes people to buy it. It's often served at special events, such as weddings, and it's not cheap. It can cost up to $100 for a bowl! It seems to me like a bit of a status symbol, like caviar. So it's not even that tasty, and is used more for showing off wealth than for genuine enjoyment of the dish. 

However, it's still in high demand, and because it can fetch rather high prices, people are killing sharks wherever they can find them. They are trying to ensure a steady supply of fins to the market. This demand is unsustainable for the current shark populations, and their numbers have dramatically reduced in the last 30 to 40 years, correlating with the increased demand for shark fin soup. 14 species of shark which are popular within the shark fin trade, are now at risk of extinction (see here for which 14). In addition, 141 sharks are considered threatened or near threatened, and for some other species there isn't even enough data to decide their conservation status. 

The current rate and level of slaughter of sharks will take the populations a huge amount of time to recover from; time they don't necessarily have. Sharks can take anything from 7 to 20 years to reach maturity (depending on the species) and so less and less will reach maturity, and the numbers will plummet at alarming rates. With less individuals reaching maturity, repopulating will be much harder and slower. This has also caused some shark species to be physically smaller - some up to 50%! 

Sharks are often returned to the ocean once their fins have been removed, to enable boats to increase the number of fins they can carry. When the sharks are retuned to the ocean, they cannot swim properly and so sink and either die of suffocation or being eaten by another predator. However, many parts of the world have banned this practise and require the fins to be moved once the boat has returned to land. 

Regulations and laws regarding shark finning are tricky as international waters are unregulated. In 2013, 27 countries and the EU banned shark finning, and finning is banned in the eastern Pacific. There are also shark sanctuaries, where all shark fishing and finning is prohibited, areas where fin-to-body mass ratio based regulations are in place, and areas where shark product trade is regulated. However in most of the Pacific and Indian oceans, shark fishing and finning continues. 

Please don't eat shark fin soup. Awareness in some countries, including Thailand and Singapore, has led to a decrease in consumption by 25%! Therefore showing that the more people who are aware of the risks by killing sharks on such a large scale, the less sharks will be killed. This is a simple case of supply and demand; no demand, no need to supply. 

Marine conservation is something I haven't had much hands-on experience with, but definitely something I want to pursue in the future. I love diving, and I love the ocean, and some of my favourite animals live there. 

For those of you who have not heard the latest Sea World news... They will no longer be breeding their captive Orcas! Therefore, the current Orcas they have will be the last generation at Sea World. Furthermore, they are going to ease out theatrical shows. 

This is BRILLIANT news and absolutely made my week!

I, like most people, saw the film Blackfish. But for those of you who didn't, it's a CNN documentary following the life of Tilikum, the largest killer whale in Sea World's collection. The documentary follows his life, from when he was snatched from his family in the wild at the age of 2, to the day in 2010 when he took the life of Dawn Brancheau, a Sea World trainer. 

The film was definitely the main cause of Sea World changing its' policies. Blackfish was so influential in changing public opinions and turning people against Sea World. I think the people behind this film; including the director Gabriela Cowperthwaite and Manny Oteyza, the producer; are truly inspiring. Through their own hard work and determination. they've managed to make a difference. I know this sounds cliche, but it is true. 

I have seen Blackfish countless times now, and I would encourage anyone to watch it. It still makes me cry and my heart breaks for Tilikum and the other Orcas overtime I watch it, or think about it.

The film explains how captivity has psychologically damaged Tilikum and the other Orcas, which lead to the death and injury of the trainers. Orcas are extremely intelligent animals and have always fascinated me. I am always watching documentaries on them, and seeing them in the wold is very high on my bucket list. They're incredibly social animals, and even have a part of the brain we don't have which is entirely social, enabling them to feel emotions we don't feel. Their family bonds are extremely strong and so keeping them in captivity away from their families in undeniably wrong. 

Different Orca pods in different parts of the world behave differently. They hunt differently, taking advantage of their surroundings and the available food. They also communicate differently. Scientists don't like to admit that any species other than humans use language, but it is clear Orcas do. Therefore, the collection at Sea World can't communicate with each other, and so for social animals. those enclosures are like torture. 

I will be following the Sea World story and posting about it, and Orcas again. They are, in my opinion, one of the most admirable species on the planet and they continue to delight and surprise us. But the main thing I wanted to say about this story was how happy I am that public opinion changing has lead to change. People speaking out has helped the lives of these animals, and future animals. From the making of a globally successful documentary, to street protests, to the impact from social media; "normal people made a change. 

This inspires me so much and fills me with hope for other animals in danger and animal cruelties out there. Sea World is proof that if people know the truth, they will act, and things will change.