Paul Watson

Politician

1950 –

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Who is Paul Watson?

Paul Franklin Watson is a Canadian environmental activist, who founded the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, a direct action group focused on marine conservation.

The Toronto native joined a Sierra Club protest against nuclear testing in 1969. He was an early and influential member of Greenpeace, crewed and skippered for it, and later was a board member. He has been credited by The New York Times, The New Yorker and other publications with being a founder of Greenpeace, but Greenpeace denies the claim. Watson argued for a strategy of direct action that conflicted with the Greenpeace interpretation of nonviolence, was ousted from the board in 1977, and subsequently left the organization. That same year, he formed Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. The group is the subject of a reality show, Whale Wars.

He promotes veganism, and a biocentric, rather than anthropocentric, worldview.

Watson's activities have led to legal action from authorities in countries including the United States, Canada, Norway, Costa Rica, and Japan. He was detained in Germany in May 2012, on an Interpol red notice requesting his detention to allow an extradition application from Costa Rica.

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Born
Dec 2, 1950
Toronto
Also known as
  • Captain Paul Watson
Parents
Spouses
Children
Nationality
  • Canada
Profession
Education
  • Simon Fraser University
    Linguistics
  • Communication
Lived in
  • Charlotte County, New Brunswick
  • Toronto

Submitted
on July 23, 2013

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