The MV Steve Irwin

Those in the NYC area will have a unique chance to take an on-board tour of the Sea Shepherd’s Steve Irwin this week at Chelsea Piers.

Sea Shepherd is an organization made famous by the Animal Planet series “Whale Wars,” but their work goes far beyond the Arctic alone. Sea Shepherd has a permanent mission in the Galapagos, fighting shark and dolphin finning year round, in addition to other various ocean-based conservation campaigns. After their week in NYC is done, the Steve Irwin is heading to the Mediterranean to combat blue fin tuna poaching.

Wanting to assist in anyway I could, I answered a call for volunteers, and spent some time at a recycling plant in Pearth Amboy, NJ, where they were docked this weekend. My volunteer shift included working the merchandise table, which provided me with the opportunity to interact with those taking tours. I was interested to see who would come out to this remote recycling plant to meet the Shepherds. I naively envisioned that I would exclusively meet other conservationists, vegetarians/vegans and dark green fans of the show. I was pleasantly surprised by the diverse groups that I did end up meeting: families, grandparents, police officers, people from all walks of life who were excited to support this organization in any way they could. Most were fans of the show, others were fans of the ocean with only a passing knowledge of the series.

If you’re in the NYC area, I recommend checking out the Steve Irwin while it’s docked at Chelsea Piers, Tuesday through Friday. Tours run 10am-3pm (except on Friday when they run till noon) and are free, although donations are accepted. There is also a variety of merchandise available for purchase, including the t-shirts the crew wear onboard (although yours won’t say “crew,” that’s reserved for… well, crew members). On Friday night, the NYC Evening for the Oceans benefit will take place at Collective Hardware in the Lower East Side. This will be a chance to support the missions and meet Captain Paul Watson, founder and head of the Sea Shepherds.

It’s important to note that the Shepherds are a volunteer organization, all of the money donated goes directly to the missions. You can also get involved as an on-shore volunteer, if chasing Japanese whalers around Antarctica doesn’t fit into your schedule.