The Fisheries Governance Network
The current global crisis in fisheries and the advantages and disadvantages of aquaculture are of grave concern to everyone: policymakers, administrators, scientists, fishers and other stakeholders. The main concerns are ecosystem health, livelihoods and employment, social justice, food security and food safety. There is urgent need for a new approach to manage these concerns and current governance practices need to be strengthened to make a practical and lasting difference.
As a response to this situation, the Fisheries Governance Network came into being in 2001 when the European Commission invited some twenty specialists in different aspects of fisheries and aquaculture to meet and discuss the concept of fisheries governance. The specialists were from Europe, Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Caribbean and South Pacific. Their insights and ideas were developed over a series of meetings, hosted by the Centre for Maritime Research (MARE) in Amsterdam, and have been encapsulated in an academic volume entitled Fish for Life, interactive Governance for Fisheries and in a new workbook on interactive governance in fisheries, Interactive Fisheries Governance, a guide to better practice.
The Fisheries Governance Network website provides a rich source of experiences, practices and opinions for those interested in fisheries governance. Contributors include all manner of stakeholders, and the Fisheries Governance Network invites contributions from those wishing to share their views and experiences.
The network originated in the fisheries governance and food security (FISHGOVFOOD) project that was funded by the European Commission in the period from 2001-2004 (project number ICA4-CT-2001-10038) . |