June 10, 2021

What Is an Authentic Sanctuary?

Every year, thousands of people pay good money to visit facilities that call themselves "sanctuaries" and offer an opportunity to visit with the animals, maybe have a photo taken with them and, in the case of elephants, even ride them.

But are these places authentic sanctuaries?

In this webinar, Dr. Lori Marino, President of the Whale Sanctuary Project, and Charles Vinick, Executive Director, will talk about the four questions you need to ask before visiting any sanctuary. If the answer to any of them is Yes, then it's not an authentic sanctuary.

A sanctuary is by definition a place where the wellbeing of the residents is always the priority. And the good news is that there are already hundreds of first-class sanctuaries all over the world: for elephants, big cats, bears, great apes and other animals. And while visitors can usually take a tour, there are no rides and no close-up experiences, and everyone stays at a respectful distance from the residents.

And now sanctuaries for whales and dolphins are becoming a reality. And in this webinar, Lori and Charles will bring us up to date on progress at the whale sanctuary site in Nova Scotia. They'll also discuss how it can set the gold-standard so that more and more whales and dolphins can be retired from performing at entertainment parks and aquariums around the world.