About Rob Stewart
Rob Stewart (1979-2017), the award-winning conservationist and filmmaker, dedicated his life to preserving our oceans and life on earth. As an artist himself, he knew that art stirs something inside all of us that reminds us of who we truly are and what we stand for. His life's mission was to wake up the human race and show them that what is out of sight, beneath the waves, cannot be out of mind as our existence on Earth relies on the health of our ocean.
By age 37, Rob had accomplished the completion of two full-length documentary films, Sharkwater and Revolution and was working on his third, Sharkwater Extinction at the time of his passing. Sharkwater, which aimed to expose the corruption of the shark-hunting industry won more than 40 awards worldwide and influenced anti-shark finning legislation throughout much of the world. Rob’s research and efforts in this field then led to his next film, Revolution, where he spotlighted the work of different groups and individuals who are striving to avert environmental collapse.
Still set for completion, Shark Water Extinction works to further expose the multi-billion dollar shark industry that is secretly driving shark products into our everyday lives while simultaneously causing the mass extinction of one of the earth’s most important animals.
Rob also founded two organizations: United Conservationists, aiming to enable all people to be effective advocates and protectors of their local and global ecosystems and Fin Free, a global movement for protecting sharks by eliminating the demand for shark fins.
““ We are currently facing the greatest challenge ever put before humanity. Carbon emissions, deforestation, ocean acidification, climate change, soil erosion, desertification, mass extinctions, pollution, overpopulation, food scarcity - these are just some of the problems we haven’t come close to adequately addressing. If trends continue, by 2048, when every single fishery and most of the rainforest is predicted to be gone, there will be 9 billion people on the planet. 40-50% of people will not have access to enough safe drinking water, and 20% won’t have enough food. Affordable oil and energy will be a thing of the past and millions will have been displaced by rising sea levels, desertification and agricultural failure. The environmental movement is no longer about hugging trees and saving pandas, it’s a fight for basic human survival.” ”