IWC at 80

Building on the 40-year moratorium on commercial whaling to strengthen the conservation and protection of all cetaceans

EIA briefing to the 70th meeting of the International Whaling Commission

Hobart, Australia, 27 September – 3 October, 2026

The International Whaling Commission (IWC) was established under the 1946 International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling (ICRW) and observes its 80th anniversary this year. Notably, 2026 also marks 40 years since the global commercial whaling moratorium came into effect.

The whaling moratorium remains one of the most effective international conservation measures in history. It has enabled many whale populations around the world to begin to recover from the large-scale commercial and sometimes illegal hunting that took place in the second half of the 20th century. In parallel, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) banned international trade in large whales, which has helped curtail demand for these vulnerable species.