Long Beach, Fiji (Digital Vision/Getty Images)
Calling all eco-conscious couples – how would you like a honeymoon in a certified eco-resort in stunning Fiji?
By making your wedding shark-free, you can show respect to both your guests and our oceans as well as earning the opportunity to win a fabulous prize!
Enter the Happy Hearts Love Sharks – Hong Kong wedding contest now.…
*Winners must pay taxes and surcharges for flights. Availability for the grand prize flights and accommodation package will be subject to blackout dates to be confirmed in the winner’s Grand Diamond Prize confirmation letter.
The Happy Hearts Love Sharks wedding contest was originally created in 2009 by Canadian shark conservation group Shark Truth.
Originally run purely as a Facebook competition to reward couples who had already held a shark fin free wedding, Shark Truth had 16 couples making their pledge public in the first year and 27 couples in the second – with a combined total of 10,000 bowls of shark fin soup prevented from being served.
In 2011, Shark Truth gave HK Shark Foundation exclusive rights to launch a Hong Kong version of the contest.
Along with partners EcoVision Asia, the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, the Humane Society International, HKSF developed a new vision for the contest, which included extending its reach beyond purely the Facebook community, to include interested couples in China, and also targetting couples in the planning stages of their weddings so that we might influence those who had not previously considered having a shark-free wedding.
When our vision attracted the support of the sophisticated high society magazine Hong Kong Tatler and of the popular bridal publication Darizi, as well as a sea of awesome prize sponsorships, we knew we had something special to offer. And so the Hong Kong edition of Happy Hearts Love Sharks was born…
Pledge to make your wedding shark-free and enter the contest now!
By making your wedding shark-free, you can help keep our oceans in harmony.
Our oceans are a precious natural resource that should be conserved for future generations. They are a valuable source of food and livelihoods and play an important role in regulating our climate (about half of the oxygen we breathe every day is generated through the photosynthesis of tiny oceanic organisms called marine phytoplanktons!).
Sharks play a vital role in maintaining the delicate balance of our marine ecosystems. As apex predators, sharks sit at the top of the marine food chain and help regulate the abundance and diversity of the marine life beneath them. Declining shark populations have a direct impact on the health of our oceans.
Unsustainable demand for the Chinese delicacy Shark Fin Soup is causing a crisis in our oceans. The fins of up to 73 million sharks are thought to be traded each year – that’s 200,000 sharks per day! Along with habitat destruction, such massive overfishing has caused the dramatic decline of many shark populations, with some dwindling by up to 90%. According to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), around one third of all shark species are now threatened or near threatened with extinction. Extinction is forever so, please, make your wedding shark-free now.
For more information, please visit the FAQs on the HK Shark Foundation’s website.
Shark-free weddings are sophisticated and environmentally conscious and, by serving a suitable alternative to shark fin soup, you can both respect your guests and our oceans.
Shark Finning is cruel, wasteful and unsustainable
Many people also condemn shark-finning because it is cruel. The sharks are usually still alive when thrown back overboard. They are unable to breathe because, without their fins, they cannot swim and pass water over their gills so, instead, they sink to the sea bed where they slowly suffocate.
Shark fin soup: All symbol, no substance.
Traditionally, only emperors and the wealthy elite ate shark fin soup. Today, however, shark fin is a widely affordable luxury, thanks to the rising mass affluence in China and the global growth of industrialized fishing methods. Now, shark fin soup is a standard feature of Chinese banqueting menus and serving it is seen as a symbol of wealth and of respect for guests.
Interestingly, the shark fins have no taste and no nutritional or medicinal value on their own. All of the soup’s taste and goodness comes from the stock, which is normally made from chicken. The fins are added partly to give texture but mainly as a status symbol – and status is no reason to fish a species to extinction.
Enter the competition now and pledge to have your wedding shark-free.
For more information, please visit the FAQs on the HK Shark Foundation’s website.
Calling all sophisticated bridal couples! By making your wedding shark-free, you can show respect to both your guests and our oceans as well as earning the opportunity to win a fabulous prize! Enter the Happy Hearts Love Sharks – Hong Kong wedding contest now.…
My Husband and I stayed at the Matava November last year and I am counting down the time until we can get back there. I was certified as a scuba diver there and my teacher was brilliant! One on one training - what more could you ask for!
The food was "to die for" and being a foodie didn’t expect such wonderful & new culinary delights!!
Our Hostess with the mostess “Maggie” was so warm, friendly & funny I would go back just to spend another week with her! Love Ya Mags!!.
The Directors Richard, Adrian & Stuart well who could ask for better people to get to know and enjoy such wonderful company with! Bula Guys!!
The accommodation was peaceful and comfortable and all the staff were fantastic! As a first time diver I couldn’t ask for a better place to learn to dive! Can’t wait to see you all again soon!
XOXOXOX JULIE & DAVID XOXOXOX
Last month I spent 10 day at Matava;the staff was a lot of fun,the food was great,diving was the best,hugh mantas,lots of sharks, I didnt want to leave,hope I can go back again.Fred A
We're pleased to announce that Matava – Fijis Premier Eco
Adventure Resort has received the first PADI Green Star award in the
Asia Pacific region in November 2011 for our sustainable and
eco-conscious environmental activities and business practices. |
| Richard Akhtar of Matava and Mike Holme of PADI Asia Pacific |
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| PADI Green Star Award presented to Stuart Gow of Matava by Drew Richardson, President of PADI at DEMA 2012 (Danny Dwyer, Drew Richardson, Stuart Gow, Hendrick Nimb, Mike Holme) |
Details:
Extra night – 2nd person half price (based on double occupancy)
Discover the wonders of Matava in Fiji and save money on the second person.