Dear Marmamers, Planet Whale is pleased to announce a forthcoming workshop that will look at the sustainability of whale watching based on data gathered by the public under a new online ethical rating system. The workshop, which is supported by World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA), will take place in Brighton, near London, UK, all day on the 4th November (the day before Europe's largest Whale Festival at the same location), and will review early results from an online database in which the public rate whale and dolphin watching trips from around the world based on five ethical questions: 1. How well did the trip publicise and use guidelines for safe approach to whales / dolphins? 2. How valuable was the trip as a learning experience? 3. How well did the trip meet your expectations? 4. How well did the trip minimise its impact on the marine environment? 5. Emphasis on the trip operator’s own research or support for conservation? These questions, defined as being the most important in developing a sustainable whale watching industry by a team of ethical whale watch operators and marine conservation charities (OceanCare, Dolphin-Care Africa, Australian Whale & Dolphin Watch Association, Sealife Surveys, and Whale Watch West Cork), will be used by whale watchers across the world to measure the sustainability of trips on www.PlanetWhale.com<http://www.planetwhale.com/>in the coming years. We would like to invite whale and dolphin watch operators and other stakeholders working closely with the industry to attend the workshop. For more information about the workshop and how to attend, please follow this link: http://www.planetwhale.com/WhaleFest-Whale-Dolphin-Watch-Operators-Workshop Regards, *Dylan Walker* ***______________________ **Co-Founder* *Planet Whale **www.planetwhale.com * Office: +44 (0)1273 355011 Planet Whale, 2a Church Road, Hove, East Sussex BN3 2FL, UK <http://www.facebook.com/pages/Planet-Whale/117831261593017?v=wall><http://twitter.com/planetwhale> This email and any files transmitted with it are confidential and intended solely for the use of the individual or entity to whom they are addressed. If you have received this email in error please notify the system manager. Please note that any views or opinions presented in this email are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the company. Finally, the recipient should check this email and any attachments for the presence of viruses. The company accepts no liability for any damage caused by any virus transmitted by this email. Registered Office: Woodridge House, Earlsbrook, Bacton, Stowmarket, Suffolk, IP14 4UA, UK. Company No. 06971130 Please consider the environment - think before you print.