Board of Directors
Sea Shepherd Conservation Society's Board of Directors make all strategic short and long term decisions for the organization. Directors serve without compensation or other tangible incentives.
 RICHARD DEAN ANDERSON
http://rdanderson.com/
Richard Dean Anderson is a well-known and respected professional actor of television, film and live theatre. Although best known for his roles in the hit TV series General Hospital and MacGyver, he has won critical acclaim for film work in Ordinary Heroes, In the Eyes of a Stranger, and Beyond Betrayal. His successful production company, Gekko Film Corp, has produced several movies for television, in addition to the TV series Legend for UPN. He is currently the executive producer and star of the science fiction series Stargate SG-1 filmed in Vancouver British Columbia. A philanthropist, Richard Dean has generously given his time to organizations such as the Make A Wish Foundation, Challengers Boys and Girls Club, Multiple Sclerosis Society, Project Literacy US and the Special Olympics. A former hockey athlete, he is one of the founders of the Celebrity All Star Hockey team who play in NHL cities throughout the country for charity. In 1988 and 1992, he was chosen to be the honorary captain of Team USA, the Olympic hockey team. For decades, Richard Dean has been an active environmentalist with deep concerns about wildlife and marine habitat conservation issues. As well as his involvement with SSCS, Richard Dean is producing "The River Project" a series of documentaries on the great rivers of the world. |
 KURT LIEBER
Kurt Lieber has been an activist in Orange County since 1981. He started out by volunteering with Marine Forest Society an organization which was doing underwater experiments in kelp and habitat restoration projects. He then went on to assist with animal rehabilitation of sick and injured pinipeds and birds with Friends of the Sea Lion and Pacific Wildlife Project, respectively. From 1992 on, he has volunteered and been a crewmember with Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. During his time with Sea Shepherd he worked extensively with Captain Paul Watson, the founder and president. It was through this tutelage that Kurt formed the idea to establish an organization that would address the needs of the Southern California marine ecosystem. He founded the Ocean Defenders Alliance (ODA) with the intent of removing abandoned commercial fishing gear. This "ghost" gear continues to harm and kill marine wildlife long after it is discarded on the bottom of our beautiful underwater habitat. |
 BOB TALBOT
Bob Talbot has been a member of the Sea Shepherd Advisory Board since 1996 and as a director will continue to contribute greatly to Sea Shepherd's efforts to document our high seas campaigns to protect marine wildlife. Talbot has joined the Sea Shepherds on the ice floes of Canada several times, most recently this spring, when he filmed devastating footage of sealers brutally killing seals. For over twenty years Talbot's whale and dolphin photographs have inspired wonder in people around the world. He has made it his life's work to foster a respect for animals and to fight to protect their habitat. Talbot's photographs have been published in magazines such as Audubon, Time, Natural History, American Photographer, National Wildlife, Outdoor Photographer, BBC Wildlife and National Geographic, as well as numerous other publications. A filmmaker as well, Talbot filmed the wildlife sequences for the Warner Bros. series of FREE WILLY feature films and Universal Pictures' FLIPPER. He directed and photographed the IMAX® RidefilmTM motion simulation system film, DOLPHINS - THE RIDE and acted as director and cinematographer for sequences in the Academy Award nominated MacGillivray Freeman IMAX® film, DOLPHINS. |
 CAPTAIN PAUL WATSON
Founder and President
Paul Watson is a Canadian conservationist and environmental activist who has become internationally renowned for his daring, innovative and aggressive approach to the field of wildlife conservation. [more] |
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 SUSAN WEINGARTNER
Trained as an actress and dancer, Susan Weingartner is an accomplished public speaker and frequent Mistress of Ceremonies at various film screenings, animal rights conferences, and other environmental and health-related gatherings. She is a member of the Genesis Awards screening committee and a co-producer of numerous ground-breaking documentaries. Susan is a passionate supporter of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, believing in the absolute necessity for direct action within the marine conservation movement. As a Director, she enthusiastically puts her networking skills and creative ideas to use for raising capital to benefit the organization.
Susan has been active in the animal rights movement for over two decades, and vegan for nearly as long. She has served on the advisory boards of multiple organizations. She was instrumental in raising funds for the legal defense of the SHAC 7, and served on the founding Board of EarthSave Los Angeles (ESLA) from 1990 until 1992. She re-started ESLA in 2000 and served as its director until 2003. In 2001, Susan formed a vegetarian families group within ESLA that still exists today, as a means for vegan and vegetarian parents in the Los Angeles area to find support for raising their children with compassionate values. Susan was also a producer of Worldfest, a vegetarian/environmental outreach music festival, from 2000-2003.
Susan is the mother of a 9-year-old vegan son, William Deza, who received an award from Animal Acres in 2006 for his compassionate acts toward farmed animals, in particular a turkey named Nibble. William donates half of his monthly allowance for her care, along with his mother's monthly financial support of a rescued emu named Kata.
Susan is currently formulating an idea for a gathering that would bring together leaders from the animal rights, health, environmental, and spiritual movements, in order to create a dialogue that has long been missing between these varied groups.
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 PERSIA WHITE
The first 3 months of life Persia slept in an old upright bass case lined with pillows and blankets. A friend of the family gave it to her mother because she couldn't afford a crib. To this day the foundation of music and art still resonate and live inside her.
Today, Persia is an actress/singer/musician/songwriter/Protools engineer. Currently, she's working with her band "XEO3" on their first album, "Problem Child". However, many people know her for her work on the hit TV show Girlfriends , now in its seventh season. Girlfriends is produced by Kelsey Grammer and has global syndication.
Recently, Persia collaborated and sang on 5 songs with recording artist Tricky who also appeared on Girlfriends as her writing partner and love interest. Persia has also co-written with Dominique Miller, Gary Wallis of Pink Floyd, Jane Wiedlin of The Go Gos, and Jason Miller of Godhead. Persia has written soundtrack music for three Independent films, as well as the season finale song for Girlfriends 2006.
Outside of Music and TV Persia has appeared in various Independent films including, Red Letters , opposite Peter Coyote, and the cult horror Blood Dolls. She starred in the made-for-TV movies Operation Sandman , opposite Ron Perlman, and Suddenly , opposite Kirstie Alley. Her television work includes guest starring roles on, Angel , NYPD Blue , Brooklyn South , Buffy the Vampire Slayer , as well as a series regular role on Breaker High with costar Ryan Gosling.
Persia is a human rights advocate, Animal Rights activist, and environmentalist. Persia was honored by PETA as a 2005 Humanitarian Of The Year and received an award from Farm Sanctuary in May 2006. She is an active member of The Humane Society of The United States, Global Green, Farm Sanctuary, CCHR, PETA, and the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. In 2006, Persia became a board member of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society.
Persia is a co-producer of the award-winning documentary EARTHLINGS narrated by Joaquin Phoenix. This film is about an awakening of consciousness and humanity. EARTHLINGS is the work she is most proud of and she urges you to watch it. For more information on EARTHLINGS go to, www.isawearthlings.com
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 BEN ZUCKERMAN
Conservation
Dr. Benjamin Zuckerman is a professor of Physics and Astronomy at the University of California, Los Angeles. He has co-edited six books, including "Extraterrestrials, Where Are They?" (Cambridge University Press 1995), "The Origin and Evolution of the Universe" (Jones & Bartlett 1996), and "Human Population and the Environmental Crisis" (Jones & Bartlett 1995). Dr. Zuckerman's interest in other planets has not outweighed his concerns for this one, and to that end he is a member of the Board of Directors of Californians for Population Stabilization and was on the Board of Directors of the Sierra Club 2002-2005. Dr. Zuckerman is a Guggenheim fellow, and has received the Bok Prize from Harvard University, the Helen B. Warner Prize of the American Astronomical Society, and the Muhlmann Prize of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific.
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FARLEY MOWAT
INTERNATIONAL CHAIR
Author Farley Mowat is Canada's Living Treasure. A naturalist and expert on indigenous people, he has penned many masterpieces, among them are Never Cry Wolf , A Whale For The Killing , and Sea of Slaughter .
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