Photo credit: Harrison Hughes
By Ann M. Albury, Sepp Haukebo, and Carlito Turner
The cerulean blue waters of The Bahamas are world renowned for their expansive saltwater fishing flats. These flats—shallow, sand or seagrass covered nearshore areas—are the ideal habitat for stalking prized fly fishing species, including bonefish, tarpon, permit, cobia, and snook.
The Head of Pokmaswas Jaya Bahari Abadi (right) receives the award from the Indonesian Minister of Marine Affairs and Fisheries (center, light blue shirt), alongside the Head of the Lampung Marine and Fisheries Agency (left).
By: Meutia Isty Wulandari
The “Jaya Bahari Abadi” Community Surveillance Group (Kelompok Masyarakat Pengawas/Pokmaswas) has won third place in the 2024 Adibakti Mina Bahari Award. This prestigious award is given by the Indonesian’s Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries to stakeholders who have demonstrated outstanding achievements in the marine and fisheries sector. The award was presented on Friday, September 26 by the Minister to the head of Pokmaswas Jaya Bahari Abadi in front of 10,000 attendees.
Way Kambas Fisheries Reserve in the east coast of Lampung Province, Indonesia. Credit: Meutia I. Wulandari/EDF
By: Abdul Halim1, Amehr Hakim2, Gemma Carroll3, and Annie Mark4
In just a few weeks, on October 21st, 2024, delegations from 196 countries party to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) will come together for its 16th Conference of Parties (COP16) in Cali, Colombia, to review progress, set priorities and commit to new workplans to tackle biodiversity loss and safeguard nature and the well-being of people around the world. Read More
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
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
By: Harlisa, M. Khazali, and Meutia Isty Wulandari
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
