Instructor

Peter Hammarstedt

Swedish-American Peter Hammarstedt is the Director of Campaigns for Sea Shepherd, sits on the Board of Directors for Sea Shepherd Global and is Chairman of Sea Shepherd Australia. In 2014/15, Peter captained a boat that set the record for the longest maritime pursuit in history, chasing an internationally-blacklisted fishing vessel called Thunder for 110 days—across three oceans and over 11,000 nautical miles—before it was intentionally sunk by its captain off the coast of São Tomé and Príncipe. The dramatic chase was documented by the New York Times. Since then, Peter has created and piloted a “civilian offshore patrol vessel” program to assist African coastal and island States to defend, conserve and protect their waters. Joint patrols between Sea Shepherd and law enforcement agents of seven countries—including The Gambia, Liberia, Benin, Gabon, São Tomé and Príncipe, Namibia and Tanzania—have resulted in the arrest of 54 vessels for illegal fishing and other fisheries crimes over the past four years.