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Fisheries policy that is comprehensible and agreeable to fishers is a cornerstone of democratic and inclusive governance of living marine resources. However, policy designers struggle to systematically include diverse perspectives and they may not understand the breadth and depth of fishers’ knowledge about fisheries management and conservation. Failing to anticipate how reforms to management plans are received can spur policy rejection, distrust, and foster noncompliance. Knowing fishers’ knowledge of, inclination toward, and vulnerability to proposed changes can help fishery managers design and implement inclusive and forward-thinking fishery management plans. In a representative survey of Greenland’s inshore halibut fishers, we asked about current and proposed changes to the management of fisheries. From a response pool of experienced fishers, we found little to no knowledge about individual transferable quota programs, little to no inclination for or against these proposed changes, and a wide range of levels of vulnerability in the face of potentially curtailed access to fishery resources. Results suggest that fishers and fishery decision makers must increase the exchange of technical knowledge in understandable terms for Greenland’s fisheries policy to achieve sustainability outcomes and to secure small-scale fisheries livelihoods. We recommend that policy makers increase outreach efforts to show fishers “under the hood”, provide clear and accessible information, and seek suggestions and comments from fishers regarding proposed changes to the status quo. We further suggest that analysts conduct a transparent management strategy evaluation to model potential outcomes arising from any revised fishery management plan, fishing communities, and in turn, for Greenland’s entire small-scale fishing segment.
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Endeavoring to engage in cooperative fisheries research in a contentious socio-political climate
Abstract Cooperative Fisheries Research (CFR) aims to incorporate different types of knowledge into fisheries science through the convergence of diverse perspectives, skills, and expertise. CFR can facilitate knowledge co-production and the salience, credibility, and legitimacy of science, yet it can be difficult to operationalize. In Maine’s American lobster fishery, where CFR is a hallmark of the fishery, pressure to implement conservation measures to protect North Atlantic right whales, one of the world’s most endangered large whale species, poses a major challenge for harvesters. Endeavoring to follow best practices associated with CFR, our research team set out to work with state management and fishing industry partners to evaluate the socioeconomic impacts of new whale conservation regulations on the fishery. We co-defined relevant and actionable research questions and designed a sampling approach that included multiple efforts to contact industry participants. Although the process we engaged in had some of the key ingredients for success, ultimately participation was too low to achieve our research aims. We use this paper to discuss our failure and draw on the theory of scalar politics from critical geography to reflect on challenges we encountered, including how the contentious socio-political backdrop within which the initiative transpired impacted our research.
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- Award ID(s):
- 2244117
- PAR ID:
- 10556919
- Publisher / Repository:
- Oxford University Press
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- ICES Journal of Marine Science
- Volume:
- 81
- Issue:
- 10
- ISSN:
- 1054-3139
- Format(s):
- Medium: X Size: p. 1931-1940
- Size(s):
- p. 1931-1940
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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