Project Hiu

From Shark Hunting to Shark Guardianship

In the heart of the global shark trade, one bold initiative is flipping the script — not by criminalizing fishers, but by inviting them into the solution. Project Hiu — with “Hiu” meaning “shark” in Bahasa Indonesia — is the grassroots conservation project founded by filmmaker and ocean advocate Madison Stewart. It exists to offer a viable, community-led alternative to shark fishing in one of the world’s top shark-catching countries.

Indonesia exports more shark products than any other nation. For many coastal communities, shark fishing isn’t driven by greed — it’s survival. Project Hiu recognizes this reality and meets it with empathy. Rather than fighting the trade through confrontation, it works directly with active shark fishing crews, offering them an opportunity to shift their income source from shark capture to shark tourism.

Through Project Hiu, fishing boats are repurposed to take tourists diving, snorkeling, and learning about sharks — led by the very people who once hunted them. It’s a new kind of conservation model: one grounded in local leadership, mutual respect, and trust.

A People-First Model That’s Making Real Change

Project Hiu doesn’t just protect sharks — it protects livelihoods. By creating an economic bridge out of the shark trade, the initiative supports fishing families with a more stable, sustainable income. Former shark fishers become ocean tour guides and educators, earning money not through extraction, but through conservation.

Based in Lombok and West Nusa Tenggara, Project Hiu has already reduced shark fishing among its partner crews and sparked important conversations globally — through grassroots media, documentaries produced by Madison Stewart herself, and viral storytelling. The team also runs direct education programs and donates medical supplies to the fishing communities they work with, further strengthening long-term partnerships.

Redefining What Ocean Conservation Can Look Like

Project Hiu shows that effective ocean conservation doesn’t have to come from policy or punishment — it can come from listening. By working with those closest to the issue, not against them, the project builds something deeper than change: it builds trust.

This isn’t a story about taking something away. It’s about creating something better — for the ocean, for sharks, and for the people who depend on both.