PenderPOD Mission Statement
The Pender Ocean Defenders (PenderPOD) was established in 2014 with “the vision of honouring, protecting and defending the Natural Environment of the Salish Sea from actions that could harm it”.
The group now consists of a Steering Committee of 8 Pender Island Citizen Scientists/Activists who are focussed on the health of the Marine Eco System of the Salish Sea and specifically the Southern Resident Killer Whales(Orca), Chinook Salmon(aka Spring/King) and Herring which make up the marine food web.
We do this by various peaceful actions such as education, art, theatre, song, films, poetry, parades, Spoken Word, panel discussions and letter writing campaigns.
The Orca Tile Project Pender POD’s new orca tile project is now open for community participation!
Pender POD’s new orca tile project is now open for community participation! There are 43 orcas who have been born and survived in the Salish Sea since 1998, and so we have 43 tiles to be painted. Come down to the Community Resource Center at the Driftwood to pick up a tile and painting kit, which will provide you with paints, brushes, and a tile. Part of the project is researching your whale, so we can celebrate these orcas by representing them through art and telling their stories.
The deadline for the tiles is February 15, so spread the word and come collect your tile! Feel free to email with any questions.
Aspiring artists all ages and any skill are welcome as we turn hope into lasting art to celebrate these young whales.
Two new baby orcas have been born this year
Tahlequah (J35) gave birth to J 57 was born September 5th, 2020. J57 has a famous mother: who two years ago carried her dead calf for 17 days and 1,000 miles.
Eclipse (J41) gave birth within the same month off the coast of Victoria, B.C. This is Eclipse’s second calf. Her first calf, J51, was born in 2015.
These births are happy news, bringing the number of new resident orca whales to three since January 2019.
That is not enough, there should be two or three new births a year to begin to rebuild the population.
Imminent extinction. How much clearer can it be? All over the planet, species facing extinction are treated with love and respect that includes protection--except for here in the Salish Sea. The Southern Resident orcas are unique in their intelligence, their complexity of language, their family loyalty, and their echo-location abilities that enable them to find salmon to eat, to communicate with one another, and to navigate through their waters. So, as a critically endangered species facing extinction, why are they still being harassed by whale-watching tourism? Sadly, like so much of our world--it is money first--over life itself. Please love the SRKWs from land. It is the right thing to do--for their lives and for life itself.
Many thanks to everyone who commemorated an Orca.
Sasha, a member of the Kawakatoose First Nation, did two prayer flags for the project. Here she is with her little sister holding her flag for Samish (J14). She also did one for Tanya(L5). Go to the prayer flags and click on her flags to read her story.
Natasha and her family completed 7 flags. Here she is holding Luna and Hugo.
Dear friends,
These twin crises of COVID-19 and climate breakdown show us one thing: we have to use this moment to transform. We’re living through a societal shift unlike any other in recent memory – and our efforts to rebuild must continue to be bold, imaginative, and restorative.
What can you do?
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Help us get to 2500 letters sent from our website
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Write to your local MLAs and and Federal MPs asking them to keep the pressure on and work towards solutions
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Help us spread the word on social media
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Sign a petition to support Alistair MacGregor's Bill C250 here.
