Greenpeace Foundation used artist John Perry's inflatable whale "Flo" to first promote the concept of a national marine sanctuary for whales. Here Flo meets Maui mayor Hannibal Tavares, more than a decade before the national sanctuary was declared. Greenpeace Foundation
There is now a federal Marine Sanctuary in place for humpback whales in Hawaiian waters, established in the mid-90’s. However, the first big push to give these endangered whales break was led by Greenpeace Foundation.
From 1982-84 Greenpeace Foundation was a leader in pressing for a meaningful Marine Sanctuary for Humpback Whales in the waters of Hawaii. Coordinator Wendy Diehl pulled together a wide range of people and interests, and worked to create the delicate compromises necessary with the local user groups to actually help out the whales. Unfortunately, these compromises, and the work itself, was undone when D.C. based organizations including GPUSA flew out for a single meeting in which they abandoned the increased enforcement budget Greenpeace Foundation had worked for and offended local fishermen; that Sanctuary proposal then died, not to be resurrected for more than a decade.
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