The American Cetacean Society (ACS) was founded in 1967 and is recognized as the first whale, dolphin, and porpoise conservation group in the world. For five decades, ACS has been dedicated to bringing education, current research, and critical conservation issues to people who care about cetaceans and the habitats on which they depend..  This national organization is headquartered in San Pedro, California with chapters in Los Angeles, Orange County, Puget Sound (Seattle), Monterey, San Francisco, and a national Student Coalition based out of Indiana University. The mission of the American Cetacean Society is to protect whales, dolphins, porpoises, and their habitats through public education, research grants, and conservation actions. ACS’s programs are almost entirely conducted by volunteers.

The feature program of American Cetacean Society’s Los Angeles Chapter is the Gray Whale Census and Behavior Project, the longest-running citizen science program of its kind in the world, incorporating conservation and education through research. Started in 1979, this unique, shore-based study of the marine mammals that ply the waters off the Palos Verdes Peninsula is staffed by teams of trained ACS members and the local community. Many volunteers have been trained as naturalists through Cabrillo Whalewatch, co-sponsored by ACS/Los Angeles and the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium and can be seen spotting and recording observations from the patio of Point Vicente Interpretive Center from December 1st through late May.