The 1st International Workshop on Management and Non-Lethal Use of Cetaceans (1er Taller Internacional de Gestión y Uso No Letal de Cetáceos) took place in Puerto Pirámides, Chubut, Argentina, in 2005. There were more than 50 participants from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela. The purpose was to promote strategies to consolidate the sovereign right of nations to use the “cetacean resource” through non-lethal methodologies.

Lectures showed that each country has similar problems related to conservation issues. Another point was evidenced: due to its dispersion, it is difficult to access the large volume of information generated by non-governmental organizations. Although many of them have their own websites, it is essential to gather publications, reports, and actions taken in the region in one site.

The worrying results of the vote at the International Whaling Commission showed the importance of an active Latin American participation for the conservation of cetaceans in our seas.

Sovereign right of nations to use cetacean species through non-lethal methodologies is stated on the Declaración de Buenos Aires (Buenos Aires Declaration, November 2005), signed by the governments of 13 Latin American and Southern Hemisphere countries, and the Encuentro Latinoamericano sobre Conservación de Cetáceos (Latin American Meeting on Cetacean Conservation, December 2006), with the presence of commissioners and diplomats from Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Peru Chile, Panama, Guatemala, Ecuador, Dominican Republic, Colombia, Uruguay, and Venezuela.

These precedents are clear examples of Latin America saying NO to whaling, and promoting responsible use through whale watching tourism.