EDFish

Overcoming Communication Barriers and Equipping Fishers: The Key to Successful Fisheries Reform in Japan

Workshop participants playing a game

By: Fenjie Chen and Shems Jud

A ground-breaking shift in Japan’s fisheries management is happening. It is aiming to restore fish stocks and recover harvests to achieve sustainable management and utilization. But many fishers have been unaware of how these reforms impact their daily operation. They have limited understanding of how they can contribute to the reform process and, therefore, have shown resistance and delays in reform implementation. Environmental Defense Fund staff worked directly with fishers to find out why.  Read More »

Posted in International, Policy / Comments are closed

A Look at Science, Technology, and Artificial Intelligence for Sustainable Aquaculture 

We’ve come to our final blog in our series on sustainable aquaculture for EDFish. Now that we’ve covered aquaculture feed, escapes, and diseases, we’ll wrap up the discussion with a look at technology’s role in sustainable aquaculture. With appropriate investment and incentives, ocean farming technologies and innovations could address sustainability risks for farming seafood in U.S. federal waters, also known as “open ocean aquaculture.”   Read More »

Posted in Uncategorized / Comments are closed

Pokmaswas: The Catalyst for Sustainable Blue Swimming Crab Fisheries in Lampung, Indonesia

Pokmaswas supported the authorities in capturing trawl vessels,

Pokmaswas supported the authorities in capturing trawl vessels, July 3, 2024 (Credit: Ubay)

By: M. Khazali, Guswarman, and Meutia Isty Wulandari 

“If we don’t prioritize monitoring and law enforcement against destructive fishing activities, the blue swimming crab management is unlikely to succeed.” These words were said in March 2024 by Hasan “Ubay” Ubaidillah, a leader of the Community Surveillance Group (Kelompok Masyarakat Pengawas/Pokmaswas) Jaya Bahari Abadi. He stood in the Lampung Blue Swimming Crab Co-management Team (TPPRB) meeting, his voice echoing with a sense of urgency. This was not a new concern for him; he had repeatedly raised this issue since 2022 to the blue swimming crab stakeholders.   Read More »

Posted in International / Comments are closed

Transforming Data into Action: A Five-Year Look at Blue Swimming Crab Fisheries Performance in Lampung

By: Harlisa, M. Khazali, and Meutia Isty Wulandari

fishers measuring blue swimming crab

Fishers collecting blue swimming crab data. Credit: Bagus Santoso

Sarkad gazed out at the Lampung coastline, his hands gripping the edge of his small fishing boat. At 49 years old, Sarkad had spent over half his life catching blue swimming crabs. He fled his hometown in West Java, hoping to escape deteriorating marine conditions and declining catches, only to find the same situation in Lampung. The abundant blue swimming crabs he remembered from 16 years ago have dwindled as a result of years of unsustainable fishing practices.  Read More »

Posted in International, Seafood / Comments are closed

Sustainability starts with health: Disease prevention and management in aquaculture

Vibrio

Let’s continue the conversation on sustainable aquaculture. This is the third blog in our series exploring the sustainability of aquaculture—what we currently know, emerging advancements, and areas for growth. In our previous, we covered escapes in aquaculture, and before that, we discussed aquaculture feed.     Read More »

Posted in Science/Research, Seafood / Comments are closed

There’s No Escaping the Need to Address Escapes in Aquaculture

Diver with an underwater aquaculture pen with fish

Open ocean aquaculture in the U.S. has the potential to create diverse local jobs, build a more climate-resilient domestic seafood supply, and minimize impacts on the climate and environment. However, achieving these benefits hinges on practicing aquaculture the right way.  Read More »

Posted in Policy, Science/Research, Seafood / Comments are closed