August 16, 2019 — At Washington DC’s regular Profs and Pints discussion series, shark expert Dr. David Shiffman shared shark facts, while discussing shark conservation and the threats currently faced by sharks. The talk brought a scientific perspective to some of the most debated topics in shark conservation, including managing sustainable shark fisheries and the efficacy of shark fin bans.

A major focus of the talk was on proposals in the U.S. that would ban the sale of legally caught shark fins, a subject of a recent paper co-authored by. Dr. Shiffman. Noting that the practice of shark finning—the removal of fins from sharks at sea—has long been illegal in the United States, and that the U.S. has some of the best managed shark fisheries in the world, Dr. Shiffman is critical of the idea that a ban would be useful for shark conservation.

“Banning a sustainable fishery here does not do anything to stop an unsustainable similar fishery somewhere else,” he said. “If we are not involved in the market we have no way to influence the market directly.”

Instead, the best way for the U.S. to combat unsustainable practices is to serve as a model for good shark management worldwide. A bill introduced in Congress, the Sustainable Shark Fisheries and Trade Act, would take this approach, requiring all shark products sold in the U.S. to come from sustainable fisheries, and providing support to improve global shark fishing practices.

Dr. Shiffman also noted during the talk that these unsustainable fishing practices globally are a far greater threat to sharks than shark finning. However, he added that these fisheries can be approved by adopting more sustainable management, and that several shark fisheries, many of which are in the U.S., are already well-managed.

“Sustainable shark fisheries can and do exist,” he said.

Profs and Pints is a regular speaker series that “brings college faculty members into bars, cafés, company offices, and other off-campus venues to share their knowledge.” It regularly hosts events in Washington, Chicago, Dallas, Nashville, and Philadelphia.