David's work includes some of the most frustrating and difficult challenges of the shark conservation world; dealing with legislation. Read our exclusive interview with David as he explains some of the battles he has won and lost in recent years while fighting for sharks. The video to the right tells about a project David is currently involved int. Read his full bio below. |
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A marine biologist and ocean advocate, David McGuire is the founder of the Ocean Health and Shark Conservation non profit Sea Stewards. As a Research Associate of the Department of Aquatic Biology at the California Academy of Sciences, David is conducting a shark research program that includes population studies, movements and fisheries impacts. As Captain, Dive Master and filmmaker, David has explored the world ocean on numerous sailing voyages producing media with an emphasis on ocean awareness. Educated in Marine Biology, he holds a masters degree in Environmental Health and has worked in education and public health at the University of California at Berkeley for over a decade. David is the writer, producer and underwater cinematographer of several award winning documentaries focusing on sharks. David has recently produced a new documentary on the Sharks of San Francisco Bay and has recently worked as cameraman on feature films such as 180 South with Patagonia and A Beautiful Wave. Films in production includes a film on shark conservation and a series on local sustainable seafood. He has also published numerous articles on the state of the ocean and sharks and writes a blog on sharks and ocean health.
Through Sea Stewards he catalyzed the coalition leading to the passage of the California Shark Conservation Act (Fong, Huffman) in the State of California, the Shark Conservation Act, AB 376. The Shark Stewards project is dedicated to ending shark finning and the shark fin trade. Work on fin regulation is ongoing in other US states and in the Western Pacific through the Pacific Shark Coalition he founded with Asian partners. As documentarian and diver, he has conducted expeditions with Academy researchers communicating the wonders of the natural world and ocean life and the need to protect them, including a 2011 two month expedition to the Philippines where he collected and filmed. His work testing seafood and evaluating sustainable fishing influences policies and practices from local to international levels.
A lecturer at the University of San Francisco and other campuses, he also speaks to students of all ages and to the public on the importance of sharks to the oceans. David is also an author of numerous articles and fiction and non fiction books including Surviving the Shark. He sits on several boards of non-profits including The San Francisco Green Film Festival and the Cordell Bank Marine Sanctuary Association. He has received numerous awards for his work including an award for Journalism with KQED for the investigative story Sea Horse Sleuth, the 2011 Hero of Marin Environmental Stewardship Award, and an Emmy award for his work on the documentary Reefs to Rainforests.
His current work includes a film in production, Swimming For Sharks, and a book on San Francisco Bay Sharks.
Through Sea Stewards he catalyzed the coalition leading to the passage of the California Shark Conservation Act (Fong, Huffman) in the State of California, the Shark Conservation Act, AB 376. The Shark Stewards project is dedicated to ending shark finning and the shark fin trade. Work on fin regulation is ongoing in other US states and in the Western Pacific through the Pacific Shark Coalition he founded with Asian partners. As documentarian and diver, he has conducted expeditions with Academy researchers communicating the wonders of the natural world and ocean life and the need to protect them, including a 2011 two month expedition to the Philippines where he collected and filmed. His work testing seafood and evaluating sustainable fishing influences policies and practices from local to international levels.
A lecturer at the University of San Francisco and other campuses, he also speaks to students of all ages and to the public on the importance of sharks to the oceans. David is also an author of numerous articles and fiction and non fiction books including Surviving the Shark. He sits on several boards of non-profits including The San Francisco Green Film Festival and the Cordell Bank Marine Sanctuary Association. He has received numerous awards for his work including an award for Journalism with KQED for the investigative story Sea Horse Sleuth, the 2011 Hero of Marin Environmental Stewardship Award, and an Emmy award for his work on the documentary Reefs to Rainforests.
His current work includes a film in production, Swimming For Sharks, and a book on San Francisco Bay Sharks.