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Fisheries as a way of life: Gendered livelihoods, identities and perspectives of artisanal fisheries in eastern Brazil
... The provision of goods and services that can be consumed or sold to generate income is fundamental for human well-being [36][37][38][39][40][41][42], thus understanding how people access and control these resources is an integral part of MPA design and implementation. Evidence shows that access to and control over natural resources is not equitable among genders, regardless of geographic region or a country's economic status [43][44][45][46]. Hence, to design effective management policies and interventions, it is essential to understand the gendered nature of natural resource access, use, and management, and how this impacts individuals and household livelihoods. ...
... Despite these advances, MPA management continue to overlook the crucial role that women play in managing marine resources [10,70]. This oversight has led to a significant gap in knowledge regarding women's contributions to, knowledge of, and their reliance on marine resources [15,46,71,72]. Women face four main barriers to influencing management of marine resources: (i) lack of access to and control over assets, such as land, fishing equipment, capital, skills, technologies, training, knowledge, social capital [73]; (ii) constraining gender norms, including gender segregation of public space and gendered behavioral norms [74]; (iii) household structure and family responsibilities, including gender-roles in decision-making and gender division of labor [46]; and (iv) characteristics of the management system, such as institutional setting, formal and informal rules and processes [21]. ...
... This oversight has led to a significant gap in knowledge regarding women's contributions to, knowledge of, and their reliance on marine resources [15,46,71,72]. Women face four main barriers to influencing management of marine resources: (i) lack of access to and control over assets, such as land, fishing equipment, capital, skills, technologies, training, knowledge, social capital [73]; (ii) constraining gender norms, including gender segregation of public space and gendered behavioral norms [74]; (iii) household structure and family responsibilities, including gender-roles in decision-making and gender division of labor [46]; and (iv) characteristics of the management system, such as institutional setting, formal and informal rules and processes [21]. The exclusion of women from decision-making processes in natural resource management not only undermines their rightful position but also poses a significant threat to environmental sustainability. ...
There is an increasing role of marine protected areas (MPAs) to be the dominant form of marine resource management to protect biodiversity, promote livelihoods, and build food security as part of the sustainable development agenda. However, the effective and equitable achievement of these goals requires understanding women's use, access to, and dependence on marine resources and integrating their knowledge and experiences. Currently, there is inherent gender blindness in the establishment and management of MPAs, which is likely to be confounded as existing MPAs are expanded and new areas are designated. Here we present a self-assessment tool for gender sensitivity within MPA management interventions. The tool is centered on the Feminist Political Ecology approach, which central argument is that different genders experience the environment differently due to their divergent social and cultural roles. The tool evaluates gender sensitivity of management interventions using a total of 15 questions evenly distributed between five themes: Gender power roles; Gendered uses and values; Gendered knowledge, interests, and priorities; Gender-responsiveness management design; and Gender-inclusiveness management design. Responses to all questions are evaluated on a gender awareness scale; 1 = incipient gender awareness; 2 = becoming gender aware; 3 = gender aware; and 4 = gender transformative. The scores for each theme and across the entire assessment are averaged to identify where actions need to be focused. Understanding the power dynamics associated with the access to and control of marine resources will facilitate greater inclusion of women in marine resource management and contribute to the sustainable development agenda.
... Gender-conscious practices include ensuring equal participation of women in decision-making processes related to fishing practices, providing training and resources tailored to women fishers, and recognizing the distinct roles and knowledge that women bring to sustainable fisheries management. In this respect, research has highlighted the diversity of gender perceptions regarding perceived problems and their possible solutions (Santos, 2015;Gazzola et al., 2020;Zhou and Sun, 2020;Brown et al., 2023;Goli et al., 2023;Vijhani et al., 2023). ...
... In a similar vein, numerous studies have shown that women play a vital role in guaranteeing the environmental sustainability of marine ecosystems (Santos, 2015;Gissi et al., 2018;Frangoudes and Gerrard, 2019;Pierce, 2020;Purcell et al., 2020). They are predisposed to design sustainable resourcemanagement plans (Revollo-Fernández et al., 2016), make more sustainable catches than men (Gissi et al., 2018), establish community marine reserves to protect fish populations (Torre et al., 2019), and form cooperatives for the commercialization of sustainably-captured marine products (Martins-De-Andrade et al., 2021). ...
... Regarding gender roles in traditional fishing in Ecuador, what stands out is that men tend to be more involved in activities related to catching species and management, which is evident in the fishing-related decision-making processes (Uc-Espadas et al., 2018). Women are, however, more involved in the processing (Santos, 2015;Martins-De-Andrade et al., 2021) and the commercialization of marine products (Harper et al., 2013;Musiello-Fernandes et al., 2020). It is, therefore, possible to show that the results obtained evidence that gender perspectives play a fundamental role in the promotion of sustainable practices in traditional fishing activities in Ecuador. ...
In the traditional fishing sector of Ecuador, integrating a gender perspective enhances sustainability and addresses climate change by recognizing the vital roles and knowledge of women in fisheries management. The objective of this study was to validate the content, comprehension, and construction of the designed questionnaire. Additionally, it is intended to identify perceptions of sustainability and climate change amongst women and men in fisheries , and compare their views on the dimensions of sustainability and climate change. The research implemented a questionnaire with a metrically satisfactory scale, providing information on how men and women perceive sustainability and climate change in the artisanal fishing sector. The data were collected by designing an ad hoc questionnaire denominated "Gender perception as regards sustainability and climate change" following a process in which the validity of the content (experts > 0.5823; Content Validity Ratio (CVR) > 6.1; Content Validity Index (CVI) > 0.852), decompression (pilot study, N = 30) and construct (KMO = 0.71) were analyzed. The results of the internal consistency reliability analysis indicated that the Likert scale had a high index of reliability, as evidenced by Cronbach's Alpha coefficient of 0.70. This analysis provided evidence of the structure and validity of the scale, resulting in a reliable, integral, and short tool with which to measure perceptions of sustainability and climate change. The questionnaire was administered to 1464 people employed in the traditional fishing industry (17.14% women) in 40 fishing community ports near the coastal profile of Ecuador (Esmeraldas and Manabí). Most of those surveyed stated that the current traditional fishing quotas are not very sustainable in the long term (47.10%, n = 690) and that climate change may significantly negatively impact catch rates (50.30%, n = 736). Finally, the Wilcoxon test of tests confirmed that women had significantly more positive attitudes than men towards sustainability (3.03 ± 0.69) and climate change (3.35 ± 0.64).
... Twenty-nine studies, four of them comparative, concerned livelihood outcomes including differential opportunities for women and men, skill acquisition/training, wage gaps, social expectations around women's unpaid domestic labour and working conditions. Nine papers [56][57][58][59][60][61][62][63][64] (five at low risk of bias, four moderate) specifically considered traditional technologies. These highlight that traditional processing is one of the most important livelihood opportunities for women. ...
... Given their immense knowledge and skill, women play a vital role in decision-making at different stages of the value chain 56,60 , gaining access to resources, including savings and credit 60,63 . However, women using traditional technologies also appear to suffer from higher product losses 57,62,65 , while retaining total responsibility for childcare and household management 58,60 . Comparing the traditional technologies with work in factory settings, traditional activities were perceived as less physically demanding and, hence, given less social value 53 . ...
... Kinship ties to fishermen meant that women in the family often provided unpaid labour in the context of home/community-based seafood processing across contexts, from the United States 75 to Zambia 66 and Mexico 70 , leading to an undercounting of their contributions. The six papers relating to traditional settings found women having control over their incomes and decision-making [56][57][58]60,72,77 (three at low risk of bias, three moderate), although also critiquing traditional fish drying for perpetuating culturally discriminatory practices 71,77 . Restrictions on women's economic activities and their lower access to resources 68 had a negative impact on their willingness to pay for technology, leading to a higher level of fish losses 56,57 . ...
Post-harvest practices and technologies are key to reducing global aquatic harvest loss. The lives of post-harvest fisheries workers, over half of them women, are deeply affected by these technologies, but their equity and equality outcomes are poorly understood. This systematic review synthesizes evidence of post-harvest aquatic food processing technology outcomes, showing that persistent inequalities in social structure and norms disadvantage women across a range of technologies, both traditional and improved, especially regarding control over resources. We found that improved technologies bring enhanced productivity and possibly income for workers, yet contracts are often precarious due to pre-existing social inequities. While power and control of resources is more unequal in factory settings, it is not necessarily equal in traditional contexts either, despite offering greater flexibility. More rigorous comparative research, including voices of diverse actors, is key to understanding the impacts of different technologies on gender equality and social justice and inform policymaking.
... las mujeres trabajó una tercera parte de la jornada sin sueldo fijo (López y López 2018). 2 La visibilidad de la participación de las mujeres en la pesca es importante, ya que se conoce que tener una visión de género es un factor importante para las acciones de pesca sustentable (Torre et al. 2019); por otro lado, las mujeres son quienes más sufren ante la carencia de recursos (Aguilar-Revelo et al. 1995). Además, su papel en el procesamiento de productos pesqueros y en otras etapas productivas de la pesca es muy importante (Santos 2015). Por otra parte, se ha encontrado que los grupos que están formados por personas de ambos sexos tienen mejores resultados por el equilibrio de opiniones y también porque se sabe que las mujeres están más dispuestas que los hombres a invertir tiempo en procesos de gestión sostenible, mientras que los hombres suelen ver una relación directa entre la pesca y la recepción de ingresos (Revollo-Fernández et al. 2016). ...
... Como sucede en otras pesquerías, el papel de la mujer en actividades de extracción es restringida, pues en la mayoría de los casos la mujer interviene en mayor proporción en el procesamiento y comercialización (Santos 2015). La participación de la mujer en la fase de extracción sólo se encontró en tres comunidades. ...
... Al igual que en otras zonas de México y el mundo, en las pescas artesanales la etapa de la pesquería donde el papel de la mujer es más importante es el procesamiento y comercialización (Santos 2015, Naegel et al. 2016, Monroy y Pedroza 2022). ...
Shrimp fishing in the coastal area is not authorized in almost the entire Yucatan Peninsula. Despite the above, there are records that this activity has been carried out for two decades, from Sabancuy, Campeche to Las Coloradas, Yucatán. The objectives of this work are to analyze the presence and role that women play in shrimp fishing in the coastal zone of the Yucatan Peninsula. Surveys were carried out on fisherwomen where demographic information was obtained, as well as talks with key people in this activity such as: marketers, fishermen and public officials. The results show us that the legal status of the activity, as well as the physical work effort in shrimp capture, determines the degree of women’s participation. In the
Ciudad del Carmen area, where the activity is authorized and the physical work effort is high, the role of women is mainly in the financing and organization of pre- and post-capture activities, in addition to the processing of the capture. For the rest of the communities, where shrimp fishing is not authorized and in some forms of fishing it does not involve a high physical effort, the main role of women is in processing, marketing and in some areas, in the removal. The percentage of participation of women in direct capture is 7%. In many areas, this activity represents for women a complementary activity and support to the work carried out by the fisherman.
... There is a traditional view that women's only contribution to fisheries is limited to post-harvest and marketing [11]. However, recent studies opposed this view as women also contribute significantly during pre-fishing, post-fishing, offshore fishing, even extract shellfish from nearshore habitats and prepare shrimp or cultured finfish in various aquaculture and processing activities [12][13][14]. In particular, women contribute in the preparation phase of fishing as they also help repair broken nets, buy hooks for their husbands' fishing lines, cuttlefish or fish bait, even fuel, and prepare food for their families, assist their husbands for a fishing operation and sometimes even accompany them when needed [4,15]. ...
... At present, the literature on women's roles in the fisheries with regards to policy-making decisions regarding their support for conservation such as closed fishing season is absent from the literature [14]. Although the main focus for this investigation is on women's support for the closed fishing season, our previous papers support the thesis that closed fishing season helps improve fish stock abundance [16,17]. ...
... Thus, providing a more balanced view regarding the reasons and consequences of the implementation of the closed fishing season from women's vantage point could enhance the currently implemented policy in Davao Gulf. Moreover, when women's views are disregarded, this lead to solutions that fail to see the big picture and result in policies that miss half their targets of creating sustainable livelihoods and results in decreased well-being of families [14]. The FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization) and several UN agencies have recognized this problem which led them to create joint programs to address these issues where women were considered inferior to men through a focus on understanding the root causes of gender disparity which leads to hardship and difficulties for women in rural areas [22]. ...
Women living in coastal areas around the Davao Gulf mainly participate as gleaners, fishers, traders, fish farmers, and fish processors in the small-scale fisheries (SSF). However, there is little information about their participation in the management of their fisheries resources. They remain invisible considering their contributions to policy implementations, including during the closed fishing season. Thus, this study aimed to describe the roles of women, their access to community services, and their support for the implementation of the closed fishing season in Davao Gulf, Philippines. Survey data on women respondents (N = 255) were collected in six sites, collecting information on their involvement in fishing and fishery-related activities. The information was validated through seven focus groups (N = 112). Results showed that respondents live near the shore, poorly educated or attended elementary level, and are members of fishing families. They engaged in gleaning and have access to loans through microfinance institutions to address food security concerns, their children's education, and other household needs. Women also strongly supported the implementation of the closed fishing season, mainly through awareness and education campaigns during meetings. However, most of the respondents failed to connect to fishing organizations as these were male-dominated, and very few community organizations engaged women. Hence, women were underrepresented, and their opinions were undervalued in the management programs in Davao Gulf. To improve the situation, future training and livelihood programs in the fisheries should actively engage women and make all efforts to be more inclusive in community programs or projects.
... The empowerment and autonomy of women and improvement of their political, economic and social contexts are highly imperative to attain the goal of sustainable development [4]. In the pursuit of fisheries as a livelihood option, there is a differential perception between men and women and this is largely dependent on the benefits accrued to them [5]. Albeit, agriculture and livestock sectors, wherein women are confined to the primary occupation, women from coastal areas are engaged in allied activities ranging from marine capture fisheries to a diverse set of agrarian activities [6]. ...
... The literacy rate -25% of women and 36% of menwere lower in the present study, which is comparatively lesser than state average literacy rate [39]. As per a study carried out in Brazil [5], a higher percentage of women had no-education compared to men. Another study highlights that men children had higher percentage of education compared to women children which in turn, created massive discrimination in education among the fishing communities [38]. ...
... Women significantly contributed throughout the value chain [50], by participating in processing and trade [45]. Women onshore, prepare shrimp for marketing, collect shellfish from the seashore and preserve by-catch by traditional practices, for income and subsistence [5]. Studies highlighted that more than 50% and 65% of the women were engaged as seafood and squid processors in Mexico [44] and 90% seafood processors were women (about 36,000) in Senegal [51]. ...
Paramount comprehension of gender roles in fisheries is essential to value the often-concealed role that women play in fisheries and households. We examine the women’s contribution to household income and livelihood security using the qualitative data collected through random sampling from 58 fishers – 24 women and 34 men – in Visakhapatnam district of Andhra Pradesh, India. Mann-Whitney U test and Discriminant Function Analysis (DFA) was applied to check the significant difference between two groups – men and women – based on 24 variables under three categories namely socio-personal, socio-economic and socio-psychological. Results of these test revealed that age, annual income, and decision-making behavior were significantly (P < 0.05) higher for women compared to men. The eigen value 1.20 showed the percentage of variance; the proportion of discriminating ability were statistically significant (Wilks’s lambda =0.455, Chi-square = 35.09, P < 0.05) between men and women in a given function. Data of the present study shows that, there is disparity existing between the men and women respondents that could be addressed through suitable policy interventions. Further, the study calls for a gender wise quantification on the different roles played by men and women, because it has a profound implication for better fisheries management, livelihood and development policies
... The role of women in fishing-related activities remain underrepresented Harper et al., 2020;Szymkowiak and Rhodes-Reese, 2020) and overlooked in the case of the economy (Harper et al., 2017), management and policy (Harper et al., 2013;Santos, 2015). Women represent 47% of the global fisheries workforce in the pre and post-production process (Solano et al., 2021). ...
... Women's involvement in the decisionmaking and policy planning process is crucial for the marine fishery sector (Shyam and Geetha, 2013) however, their contribution is less understood and is underrepresented in decision-making processes (Shyam and Geetha, 2013;Rohe et al., 2018). Recognising the role of women in the fisheries sector has significant policy implications (Harper et al., 2013;Solano et al., 2021), potentially leading to improved outcomes (Santos, 2015). Policy decisions in the marine fishery sector can directly impact women's livelihoods and income generation. ...
The study aimed to evaluate the effects of COVID-19 related lockdowns on the livelihoods of women seafood vendors in South Andaman and Car Nicobar Islands of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India. Women fish vendors represent a marginalised community within the marine fisheries sector, facing unique challenges exacerbated by the pandemic. We conducted personal interviews using a semi-structured questionnaire with the women seafood vendors (n=184) representing the urban (77.1%), rural (21.1%) and tribal (1.6%) populations across seafood markets. Paired 't' test analysis revealed a significant reduction (p<0.001) in the average weekly income of the vendors during COVID-19 lockdowns. Responses from a five-point Likert scale survey demonstrated varying perceptions and recommendations concerning the pandemic among participants. Key challenges faced by the vendors during the pandemic restrictions included movement restrictions, limited access to inputs, reduced demand and lack of storage facilities. The study outlines necessary preparedness steps and coping strategies to revamp the marketing practices for sustainable development and participatory outcomes. We highlight the socioeconomic vulnerabilities of women fish vendors and inform policy interventions to support their recovery and resilience in the post-pandemic landscape. Available online at: epubs.icar.org.in/index.php/IJF
... As Reservas Extrativistas Marinhas trazem como foco o uso sustentável dos recursos pesqueiros, garantindo a continuidade do desenvolvimento da pesca artesanal, utilizando estratégias de cogestão como forma de incluir os atores sociais locais (Santos;Schiavetti, 2013). Dessa forma, diferentes narrativas podem subsidiar a gestão da UC, integrando a elaboração de políticas públicas pesqueiras, como os Planos de Manejo e Acordos de Pesca . ...
... "A gente sofre preconceito e sofre preconceito também por causa da cor, a gente é de uma comunidade quilombola" Outro ponto levantado pelas pescadoras foi referente a uma discriminação nas escolas, como levantado nos seguintes relatos: "Sim, sempre, ser fi lha de pescador, ser pescadora é um tabu muito grande ainda, porque sofri isso na escola, e ainda sofro, por incrível que pareça, ainda tem gente da comunidade que pratica bullying, de preconceito, de racismo" "Sim, principalmente em colégio, muito, porque outras pessoas, outras crianças, ou outras adolescentes que por terem pais que tiveram oportunidade de estudar, já que os meus não tiveram, e tem um emprego hoje, aí acabam discriminando, ou tentando né porque eu não me abato com isso não, tentando descriminar porque é pescador, é marisqueira" "Minhas meninas sofreram preconceito na escola, eles falavam mal de mim na escola, chegaram até a brigar, falando porque eu era pescadora" É necessário pontuar que a pesca desenvolvida pelas mulheres, antes de tudo, é desempenhada por quase metade dos pescadores registrados no Brasil, e essa relação de gênero deve estar presente na construção das políticas públicas pesqueiras (Santos, 2015). Garantir a equidade na pesca artesanal e acabar com as formas de discriminação de gênero sofrida pelas mulheres pescadoras está de acordo com o proposto na ODS 5, garantindo um ambiente saudável para o desenvolvimento das suas atividades pesqueiras. ...
A atuação das mulheres na pesca artesanal é invisibilizada, sendo necessário valorizar os seus saberes e práticas. O objetivo foi descrever o olhar das pescadoras acerca do ambiente pesqueiro a partir das suas trajetórias socioambientais na Reserva Extrativista Acaú-Goiana. O estudo foi desenvolvido com pescadoras beneficiárias do território, aplicando entrevistas semiestruturadas a partir do método de snowball. Foram entrevistadas 91 pescadoras, gerando quatro categorias das narrativas: Gestão; Disponibilidade dos recursos; Transgeracionalidade, e Comercialização, além dos relatos acerca da discriminação. Essas trajetórias permitem compreender a pesca artesanal a partir do olhar das pescadoras.
... For example, fishing has been widely considered a source of food and income, but it should be considered a way of life, and it has been so to many communities (O'Driscoll-Adam, 2014). Santos (2015) perceives fishing activity as a way of life that is constituted by deep social, cultural, and ecological ties. This view of fishing activity helps to recognize the diverse roles and perspectives of men and women in fisheries. ...
... The evidence of this study indicated that this motivation stems from identity expressed through community values and the fishers' connection with the resource. Since researchers and policymakers have been largely focusing on fisheries as a source of food and income (Bryan, 2008;Santos, 2015), little attention has been paid to the role of identity in influencing fishing practices and diversification. In the context of Lake Tanganyika, a closer look at the role of identity is vital for understanding the recently noted increasing fishing pressure in the Lake and the little motivation to engage in other livelihood options. ...
Human-environmental interaction is central to natural resources management. This interaction determines how the resource is utilized in a given cultural context. In Lake Tanganyika, evidence indicates a decline in fish catches. Despite this decline, fishers have demonstrated little motivation to leave fishing or diversify. A qualitative study was conducted to explore how identity influenced the phenomenon. Interviews, focus group discussions, and observation were employed to generate data. The findings of this study indicated that interactions between the fishing communities and the Lake generated identity, in which fishers came to identify themselves with the Lake. This identity shaped the fishing practices and influenced the motivation to not leave fishing or diversify. Strong attachment to the Lake and fishing activities contributed to little motivation to leave fishing or engage in other sources of livelihood, especially for old fishers. This was also the case for some young fishers in rural areas of the studied communities. This study concludes that considering how fishers identify with the resource is vital for developing future strategies to improve fisheries management. This may include options to expand. Highlights Identity shapes and influences fishing practices How fishers identify themselves with fisheries resources influences their likelihood to diversify or leave fishing activity It is necessary to consider the role of identity in designing future fisheries management strategies
... Literature also refers to the importance of gender in these processes, deeply embedded in traditional rural and coastal communities (Deb, Emdad Haque, and Thompson 2015;Santos 2015), and of the gender-related changes that arise with the closure of traditional fish production. At a very fundamental level, as Kleiber et al. (2017, 745) have suggested 'women and men often perform different roles in fisheries labour, and those roles are often given different cultural importance'. ...
... The authors also point to the lack of inter-generational transfer of knowledge (typically patrilineal) with local knowledge of fishing stocks and location being increasingly replaced with the need for formal training in technical skills and regions considerably farther out to sea. Santos (2015) similarly draws attention to the contribution of women to artisanal fisheries in Brazil, preparing shrimp for the market, extracting shellfish from the seashore and the preservation of traditional methods. Their role in simultaneously caring for young children ensures that the children are inducted from an early age into a fishing way of life that is central to the sustainability of the artisanal fishing industry. ...
This Special Issue explores coastal living, foregrounding the experiences of childhood across time and place. The contributions come from the international, interdisciplinary project titled ‘Valuing the past, sustaining the future: Education, knowledge and identity across three generations in coastal communities’ which was carried out in coastal communities in Norway, the Faroe Islands, Ireland, Cyprus and Australia. Coastal childhoods in communities undergoing rapid economic and social change are explored, providing rich empirical insight into questions of identity, belonging and attachment to place. Most contributors adopt an intergenerational lens to examine change through time, placing children’s lives and childhoods within the social context of their families and communities as well as the globalised world of the twenty-first century.
... Literature also refers to the importance of gender in these processes, deeply embedded in traditional rural and coastal communities (Deb, Emdad Haque, and Thompson 2015;Santos 2015), and of the gender-related changes that arise with the closure of traditional fish production. At a very fundamental level, as Kleiber et al. (2017, 745) have suggested 'women and men often perform different roles in fisheries labour, and those roles are often given different cultural importance'. ...
... The authors also point to the lack of inter-generational transfer of knowledge (typically patrilineal) with local knowledge of fishing stocks and location being increasingly replaced with the need for formal training in technical skills and regions considerably farther out to sea. Santos (2015) similarly draws attention to the contribution of women to artisanal fisheries in Brazil, preparing shrimp for the market, extracting shellfish from the seashore and the preservation of traditional methods. Their role in simultaneously caring for young children ensures that the children are inducted from an early age into a fishing way of life that is central to the sustainability of the artisanal fishing industry. ...
This chapter explores the shifting role and meaning of the coastline and ocean in the everyday lives and cultural identities of young people from a Faroese village. It examines and evaluates (dis)continuities in young people’s attachment to the sea since the mid-twentieth century. Young Faroe Islanders, the chapter argues, continue to value local experience and knowledge associated to marine spaces as (educational) “capital” for the future, even if they decide to move away from the coast. The water has a double meaning: it gives the youth strong bonds to the coastal place and its history (past generations), but it also symbolizes a constant flux. Living at the edge of the water, in an “aquapelagic” society (Hayward, Shima: Int J Island Cult, 6(1):1–11, 2012) in the North Atlantic, young people will always look for opportunities in the coastal ecosystem and beyond – in fisheries, fish farming, shipping, tourism, etc. How much of the aquatic knowledge is acquired from formal education and how much is part of social interaction in the village community?KeywordsYouthKnowledgeFisheriesIntergenerational relationsLocal cultureFaroe Islands
... Disregarding the role of women in fishery management implies leaving out of management discussions many relevant species and environments that support extensive marine and terrestrial food webs, such as mangroves (Rocha et al., 2012;Kleiber et al., 2015). Their proximity and daily observation of such ecosystems unveil information that fisherfolks from other areas are unaware of (Santos, 2015). ...
... Besides fostering research development, it is also crucial to make Brazilian studies known worldwide. The two most cited publications from our selection (Di Ciommo andSchiavetti, 2012 andSantos, 2015) were the ones published in Marine Policy and Ocean & Coastal Management (i.e., near 45 citations at Google Scholar), which represents a high citation rate for articles on the theme (Söderlund and Madison, 2015). However, our results demonstrated that most gender-fisheries publications are Portuguese (73.7%) and consist of grey literature (63.2%). ...
... For example, the coral reefs habitat was the second most fished by the women in our study, despite traditionally being the domain of men (de la Torre-Castro et al., 2017;e.g. Ram--Bidesi, 2015;Santos, 2015). Compared to the past (Fay-Sauni et al., 2008), a higher percentage of women were selling at least some of their catch to supplement their household income. ...
... Instead, women entering the commercial fisheries sector can find themselves in a push-pull situation (Chant and Sweetman, 2012;Dyer, 2017;Maetala, 2010;Roberts and Mir Zulfiqar, 2019) as they seek to balance their traditional responsibilities with the time needed to acquire and sell their catch, leading to increased demands on their time. As a coping strategy women often seek to combine their income-generating activity with their domestic responsibilities in order to fulfill both simultaneously (Geheb et al., 2008;Santos, 2015). For example, some women take their children with them to the market in order to fulfil their childcare obligations (Ram-Bidesi, 2015). ...
Worldwide, small-scale fisheries (SSF) are an important source of food and livelihoods for rural communities and contribute substantially to national economies. Women play crucial roles in these fisheries, yet their contributions are largely invisible, often ignored and unrecognized. We conducted household and focus group surveys to examine the role of indigenous Fijian (iTaukei) women in SSF, documenting fishing practices and contributions to household food security and income. Our results reinforced several traditional views, such as iTaukei women preferentially fishing closer to their villages; but also challenged other assumptions with women fishing a wider range of habitats (from inland rivers to the open ocean) and species than previously described, and many using a boat and fishing with men. In addition to gleaning for invertebrates and seaweed, women also caught over 100 species of fish. Women fished primarily for subsistence, emphasizing their significant contribution to household food security. Although almost half of the women sold part of their catch to supplement household incomes, they also engaged in other income earning livelihoods, and therefore were not solely dependent on fisheries. Of concern was the high targeting of nursery areas for fish and invertebrate species by women fishers, and species with low spawning potential ratios. Given the level of engagement in, and contributions to fisheries, the inclusion of iTaukei women fishers in fisheries planning and management is critical for ensuring the sustainability of SSF in Fiji. Furthermore, empowering women for full participation in fisheries and lifting them out of poverty requires a re-consideration of traditional gender norms in rural communities, which are already shifting and evolving.
... Among the complex changes induced by global capitalism, one of the most pervasive faced by fishing communities (Idrobo & Johnson, 2020;Prado et al., 2015;Thompson et al., 2016) is the process of rural gentrification (Lorenzen, 2021), through which amenity migration of middle-class people from urban centers displaces residents, elevates the cost of living, and transforms the landscape (Lu et al., 2022) and social relationships (Lu et al., 2022;Thompson et al., 2016). Although fishermen see fishing as a way of life rather than a job (Santos, 2015), the raised cost of living makes them conciliate fishing with more profitable occupations (Thompson et al., 2016), leading to a shift from a 'resourcedependent' to a 'tourism-dependent' livelihood in artisanal fishing communities (Trimble & Johnson, 2013). God's gift'. ...
Socio‐environmental changes are threatening Indigenous peoples and local communities (IP&LC), hampering conservation efforts, jeopardizing biocultural diversity and escalating environmental injustice. This situation fostered both collaborative research projects showing the potential of engaging with IP&LC for conserving biocultural diversity, and ideas in sustainability science as the relevance of accounting for plural human‐nature relationships and nature values in decision making. The success of these initiatives, however, depends on unveiling socio‐environmental conflicts as a first step to dialogue and cooperation.
We developed a tool to describe viewpoints on human‐nature relationships that underpin socio‐environmental conflicts based on a multicultural conceptual framework and Q‐methodology. To investigate its usefulness to unveil conflicts within community‐based projects, we applied it to community members and researchers working collaboratively in an artisanal fishing community in Brazil.
By purposefully choosing 23 participants who ordered 44 statements producing distributions later analysed for correlations, we described three viewpoints on human‐nature relationships and, from them, the main socio‐environmental conflicts within the community.
Two viewpoints associated with community members revealed contrasting standpoints about nature resulting from complex transformations—from resource‐dependent to tourism‐dependent—in the community. While some people whose occupations depend on outsiders wish to exploit and earn money with nature, others who depend exclusively on fishing fear that nature is under threat. These viewpoints allowed characterizing divergences that can limit collective organization within the community as well as shared desires for the future. One viewpoint was associated with researchers, highlighting differences between theirs and community members' conceptions.
Although framed to a specific situation, given its replicable development and amplitude of its conceptual basis, the tool can be adapted to different contexts. By underscoring the diversity within local communities, our tool helps leaving behind idealized notions about them. It also facilitates reflexivity among researchers on how their viewpoints can impact their relationship with communities. As a way of collectively reflecting about local perspectives on human‐nature relationships, the tool facilitates collaboration and finding ways forward.
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... Our study has two limitations: the first concerns gender roles in fishing community households. Although there is a well-marked sexual division of labor between fishing men and women, where women contribute enormously in the pre-and post-capture work (Santos, 2015;Escamilla-Pérez et al., 2021), the study did not incorporate a gender perspective for reasons of time and resources: it was difficult to access households and interview each member independently. ...
Although trawling stopped definitively in 2019 in Costa Rica, there is an ongoing debate regarding the broader policies derived from the Blue Economy. These have focused on the productive conversion of the fleet (salaried fishers) toward more profitable activities related to tuna fishing, aquaculture, and tourism. This paper takes a political economy approach to oceans and livelihoods, analyzing how the Blue Economy agenda has been implemented in Costa Rica, and what effects this is having on semi-industrial and artisanal fisherpeople in Puntarenas communities. We seek to contribute to critical studies of marine-coastal development and its social consequences in relation to environmental (in)justices in Central America, an underexplored topic in the region.
A pesar de que la pesquería de arrastre tuvo su cierre definitivo en el 2019 en Costa Rica, el debate sigue presente y relacionado con las políticas más amplias derivadas de la economía azul. Éstas se han venido centrando en la reconversión productiva de la flota -los pescadores asalariados - hacia actividades más rentables, relacionadas con la pesca de atún, la acuicultura y el turismo. Este artículo a través de los enfoques de economía política de los océanos y medios de vida, analiza cómo la agenda de economía azul se materializa en Costa Rica a través de estas políticas, y qué efectos está teniendo en los pescadores semi-industriales y artesanales de comunidades de Puntarenas. Con ello, se busca contribuir a los estudios críticos de desarrollo marino-costero y a las consecuencias sociales en términos de (in)justicias ambientales en Centroamérica, un ámbito poco explorado en la región.
... (Yodanis, 2000, p.268). Similarly, Santos (2015) describes how fisherwomen's and fishermen's roles in Brazilian SSF, which are perceived as synergetic, do contribute to shape local gender identities, defining what a woman is in relation to men and vice versa. ...
Although women contribute substantially to the small-scale fisheries sector globally, in many countries there is a severe lack of gender-disaggregated data on fishing activities. This gender data gap hampers a comprehensive understanding of small-scale fisheries dynamics with implications for fisheries management and food security. In this study, we investigate women's and men's engagement in small-scale fishing through a case study in coastal Kenya, a region characterized by a high dependence on fisheries for local livelihoods and nutritional needs. We applied a mixed method approach, combining participant observation, photography, semi-structured interviews on gender identities (n = 11) and gendered fishing practices (n = 28), an individual survey (n = 141), and pebble games (n = 35). Our results reveal a marked gendered division of labor across the seascape, with women mostly fishing in intertidal areas and men beyond the reef. Further, we find that women's fishing practices are characterized by less fishing gear, less catch, a lower functional diversity of catches, less fishing effort, and less income than those of men. However, women's catches contribute significantly to local diets, accounting for up to 50% of the fish and seafood consumed in fisherwomen-headed households. Despite women's fishing activities appearing less productive and profitable that those of men, they are important for achieving food security in Kenyan coastal communities. Results from this study contribute to broadening our understanding of the gendered dimensions of small-scale fishing and highlight relevant information for developing gender-inclusive management strategies. We conclude by providing key recommendations for fisheries research, management, and governance.
... This is not to say that monetary returns are the only motivation for pursuing different livelihoods. For example, fishing livelihoods are widely described to contribute to people's identities, ways of life and engagement in social and cultural norms, all of which motivate non-monetary reasons for pursuing or remaining within these livelihoods (e.g. de la Torre-Castro and Lindström 2010;Cinner 2014;Santos 2015). In terms of tourism, cultural and social factors such as taboos concerning working with alcohol or wearing specific uniforms may inhibit some from working in the sector-including clashes with gender norms and expectations (Maliva et al. 2018). ...
Livelihood initiatives are common within marine protected areas (MPAs) aiming for poverty alleviation or higher income opportunities. However, results can be mixed in reality, as well as change over time. Furthermore, who benefits is a key consideration, as results can vary based on inequalities, including gender. Here, the monetary outcomes of different livelihood strategies were investigated across three MPA regions in Zanzibar, Tanzania. Using a quantitative approach, the results show that livelihoods have shifted in a six-year period, with livelihood strategies differing in poverty incidence and income. Livelihood initiatives, namely seaweed farming and tourism, did not provide significantly higher monetary returns compared to long-standing livelihoods, such as fisheries. Seaweed farming showed income stability but a high poverty incidence predominantly within women-headed households. During the study period, men primarily remained in fisheries, whilst women shifted to small-scale businesses and fisheries, largely exiting seaweed farming. This underscores a need for adaptive, gender sensitive management within fast changing coastal contexts.
... Binkley, 2000). More generally, many fishing communities in the Global North have undergone diverse forms of psychosocial damage (Jentoft, 2000), including mental health impacts (King et al., 2021) and the loss of a distinct 'way of life' (Coulthard & Britton, 2015;Santos, 2015;Urquhart et al., 2014). ...
This paper proposes to establish Maximum Sustainable Employment (MSE) as a new guiding light, or beacon, for wild fisheries governance. This new social beacon complements the directives provided by the prevailing beacons: Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY) and Maximum Economic Yield (MEY). The argument is that context matters: in countries where poverty levels are high and alternative employment is scarce, fisheries governors cannot limit themselves to a sectoral perspective. Instead, they must include the remunerative employment and ‘decent work’ that wild fisheries offer society in their strategic deliberations. This perspective is especially relevant for countries in the Global South, but it also has a bearing on the Global North. After discussing the history of scientific fisheries management and the relevance of employment in fisheries, the paper considers the arguments made against MSE. It concludes with a reflection on the balancing of the three beacons in line with prevailing circumstances.
... Around the world, artisanal fishing, characterized by its reliance on family labour and a focus on subsistence, rely on smaller vessels for short coastal expeditions (Santos, 2015). In contrast, industrial fishing embraces advanced technologies and is driven by the ambition of achieving large-scale production (Žydelis et al., 2009). ...
... Brazilian reef fisheries differ from reef fisheries in other low-and middle-income countries in several social-economic aspects. The importance of subsistence fishing on reefs appears to be low or restricted to few locations (see, e.g., Santos 2015), while in many other countries subsistence fishing is the main purpose of tropical reef fisheries (Munro et al. 1996;Kittinger et al. 2015;Mora 2015). This pattern can usually be linked to the local availability of agricultural products and cultural customs with preference for other protein sources (Munro et al. 1996;Viana et al. 2021). ...
Reef fisheries are multispecific and employ a variety of fishing gears across marine environments, even in remote areas. This intricate and multifaceted nature of reef fisheries is often overlooked in management strategies, leading to global management failures. In Brazil, information about reef fisheries is often scarce and scattered. This stems from inadequate policies and an unrecognized societal value of reef fisheries. Here, we combine nationwide reef fish landing data (1950–2015) with an extensive literature review on Brazilian reef fisheries. We explore temporal and spatial patterns in total landings, species traits, functional diversity and composition to understand the current scenario, identify drivers of change and highlight information gaps. Brazilian reef fisheries rapidly increased in landing volume, number of targeted species and exploited traits in the 1980’s, despite mainly targeting carnivorous fish (groupers, snappers, jacks and trevallies). Exploited functional space increased over time, mainly due to the incorporation of smaller and lower-trophic level species that gradually were added to the pool of fished species. Local and international markets have been the main drivers behind these patterns, while subsistence fishing is marginal. Lack of proper management and enforcement of existing regulations have led to population declines, dwindling total catches since the early 2000’s, and numerous threatened species. Artisanal fishing accounts for the majority of catches, raising concern on the social impacts of degraded reef fisheries. We highlight the urgent need for adequate fishing statistics, and the use/application of science-based management and policy actions to secure productive fisheries and healthy reef ecosystems in Brazil.
... Por tanto, es necesario desarrollar políticas públicas que incluyan a la mujer dentro de la gestión pesquera, para poder participar equitativamente dentro de los sistemas de producción pesqueros (Rocheleau, 1995;Santos, 2015). Reconocer y documentar los saberes y sentir de las mujeres en la pesca puede tener profundas implicaciones para la gestión, el alivio de la pobreza y las políticas de desarrollo. ...
Objetivo: se describe el trabajo de mujeres en la pesca marina en Barra de San Pedro, Centla, Tabasco. Planteamiento del problema: Oficialmente, las mujeres son desvalorizadas e invisibilizadas, incluso excluidas de su participación en las pesquerías y en toda su cadena de valor; tienen poca influencia en las decisiones sobre el manejo de los recursos. Acercamiento metodológico: el estudio se basó en la observación participante y el estudio de casos de actores clave a lo largo de más de quince años, con visitas mensuales o quincenales al puerto pesquero Barra de San Pedro, vaciando la información en diarios de campo. Conclusiones: las mujeres no solo desempeñan un papel crucial en el procesamiento y comercialización de los recursos pesqueros, sino que experimentan un sentido de aceptación, apoyo y gusto por sus actividades. Sus contribuciones les otorgan un sentimiento de orgullo y logro, fomentando su autoestima y valía personal. Reconocer la importancia de su trabajo y garantizar su inclusión y apoyo continuo mejora aún más la percepción de sí mismas y el bienestar de las mujeres en Barra de San Pedro. Las mujeres suelen tener una visión más amplia y a largo plazo, lo cual es clave para la sostenibilidad de los recursos.
... We found that artisanal fisheries were of low education, and high average age (43 years for inshore and 47 years for offshore fishers), which suggested that fishers were aging without renewal, similar to fisher socio-economic profiles in other conservation units in Brazil (Santos, 2015;Silva & Lopes, 2015). We also found that offshore fishing provided better fishing income than inshore fishing, which was expected because offshore environments concentrate more species TA B L E 2 Risk perception scores (sum of risk order and severity) identified by inshore and offshore artisanal fishers in municipalities of the Costa dos Corais Environmental Protection Area, Brazil, in 2018 and 2019. ...
Artisanal small‐scale fisheries are crucial for subsistence and food security, especially in developing countries. However, artisanal fishers face stressors, such as economic and social marginalization, conflicts, and overfishing. Socio‐economic attributes potentially influence their risk perception. We investigated risk perception among artisanal fishers in a Marine Protected Area through interviews and semi‐structured questionnaires. Risk perception was positively influenced by fishing environment and negatively influenced by a lack of religious beliefs. Offshore fishers faced more operating conditions and time at sea, with higher risk of losses, and perceived more health and conflict risks. Inshore fishers have higher perception of environmental degradation. Prioritizing different risk perceptions is essential for effective fisheries management. Separate management plans for offshore and inshore fisheries are recommended due to varying catch, environmental perception, socio‐environmental risks, and exploited resource characteristics among artisanal fisher groups.
... Entrenched gender inequalities can also prevent women to join these activities, even if their formal access is guaranteed. In particular, domestic duties and childcare were reported as a major constraint for women as SSF management meetings often happen in the evening, thus overlapping with women's house chores and excluding them de facto from these events (Gustavsson et al. 2021;Santos 2015;Torell et al. 2021). ...
While women globally make up nearly half of the fisheries workforce, their contribution to the sector has long been overlooked with implications for fisheries management. To assess women’s participation in small-scale fisheries (SSF) management and related socio-cultural, environmental, and economic impacts, we conducted a systematic review of peer-reviewed literature (n = 124 case studies). Women had no or limited participation in more than 80% of the examined case studies reporting their participation level in SSF management. Women’s exclusion from SSF management resulted in negative outcomes, whereas their active participation was associated with various positive impacts at multiple scales. Most of the documented impacts were socio-cultural, suggesting a gap in documenting environmental impacts stemmed from women’s participation in SSF management. Importantly, most impacts reported affected the social-ecological system scale, suggesting that gender inclusion may contribute to improving the management of SSF social-ecological systems. We conclude by highlighting the need to foster gender perspectives in data collection methods used in fisheries research, in SSF management, and in ecological research on SSF social-ecological systems.
Supplementary Information
The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11160-023-09806-2.
... The Cananeia Statement and Gender Equity Action Plan's emphasis on promoting gender equity and youth involvement in artisanal fisheries resonates with contemporary social sciences literature. This emphasis aligns with a human-rightsbased approach to the development of small-scale fisheries, which recognizes the important contributions women and young people make to the sector and calls for measures to foster their participation (Santos 2015;Willmann et al. 2017;Andrade et al. 2021). ...
This article examines the prevailing blue economy narrative in Latin America and the Caribbean, emphasizing its inherent inequities. It focuses on the perspectives of artisanal fisher leaders from 16 countries who participated in a regional workshop organized by the International Collective in Support of Fishworkers in Brazil in the context of the International Year of Artisanal Fisheries and Aquaculture, Fisherfolks’ perspectives align well with recent calls for ‘Blue Justice’, which emphasizes the interconnectedness of health, food security and sovereignty, culture, identity, and environmental protection. It also underscores the significance of gender equity and youth involvement in small-scale artisanal fisheries, solidarity among fishers, and adherence to the FAO’s Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication (SSF Guidelines). Latin American and Caribbean fisher leaders argue for a model of development that recognizes and mitigates inherent inequities, promotes inclusivity, safeguards rights, and empowers communities to exercise sovereignty over their local ecosystems.
... However, seashell fisherwomen are essential in many tropical countries [28,58]. Indeed, the seafood collected by fisherwomen is necessary for nutritional safety at a household level and plays a crucial role in the regional economy [38,96]. In Rio Formoso, the seashell value chain involves a higher diversity of actors since fish are primarily marketed to local consumers, while seashells are mainly sold to restaurants but may also be bought by intermediaries. ...
Global change has a significant impact on coastal populations and their reliance on coastal ecosystems and resources. This is particularly true for small-scale fisheries (SSF) in Brazil, where limited data exacerbates their vulnerability. Acquiring local user knowledge is crucial to enhancing the sustainability of SSF. In Rio Formoso, Northeast Brazil, a fisher's association plays a vital role in conserving coastal ecosystems and raising awareness about anthropogenic activities. This study examines various social, governance, economic, and ecological aspects of Rio Formoso fisheries, focusing on fishers' perceptions of global change. We carried out individual and collective interviews, participatory mapping, and discourse analysis. Rio Formoso fisheries stood out by the diversity of their activities (gears, species, habitats), women's leading role, and the intense involvement of the association in coastal management initiatives. Fishers reported decreased abundance and biodiversity, and increased demand for their products. They perceived the threats to their fishing activities posed by the consequences of global change, including temperature and rainfall modifications, pollution generated by anthropo-genic activities, and conflicts with tourism. Social challenges, such as gender discrimination against fisherwomen and the ongoing struggle for fishers to be included in policy-making decisions, further hinder fisheries' sustainability. This study demonstrates the valuable insights gained from fishers' perceptions in a data-poor system, enabling a preliminary global assessment to identify conflicts, social challenges, ecological concerns, and suitable actors to lead feasible and acceptable policies. As conflicts and community concerns can provide opportunities for co-management, it is imperative to operationalise community-based management tools, particularly in Brazil, to alleviate fishers' struggles in meaningful decision-making involvement.
... Future integrated and comprehensive extinction risk assessments will allow better conservation strategies and management for fishes and marine ecosystems, which are key components for food security, well-being, and subsistence of local communities in the region (Santos, 2015). Hence, there is a need to encourage cooperative approaches involving NGOs, researchers, and society (citizen science) towards biodiversity conservation. ...
The richness of marine teleost fishes from the tropical northeastern Brazilian coast was compiled through an extensive search of published species records and of voucher specimens in collections. Results are presented in a systematic listthat includes 571 marine species across 98 families considered as valid records in coastal and estuarine environments.516 species (90.4%) are represented by voucher specimens in collections. Species reported in the literature with pending confirmation, or known only from vouchers, may add 72 species to the list, 18 of them without previous mention in theliterature representing new records for the study region. Brazilian endemic species are also reported, seven of which are exclusive to the northeastern coast. Additionally, 91 species belonging to 41 families are treated as erroneous or doubtful records for the region, and their geographic distribution or taxonomic status commented upon. Among the validspecies recorded, 21 are listed as threatened according to the IUCN Red List and 24 by the Brazilian official list of threatened species. At least four species introduced in the Western Atlantic are now considered invasive in northeastern Brazil. The data presented herein result from the most comprehensive survey of the coastal marine ichthyofauna of northeastern Brazil. It adds 154 species records when compared to the maximum species richness previously reported for the study region in a single publication and serves as a baseline to promote future studies in fish systematics, biogeography, ecology and conservation. Notwithstanding, the species richness of this region remains an underestimate pending additional taxonomic research and the availability of online data for regional collections
... Among those who relied on camboas as their main fishing ground (group B), less than 3 h at time (2.7 ± 1.42 h) was spent in the weirs, when the tide started receding. Compared to other forms of fishing, this is not a particularly time consuming activity (Jaeschke & Saldanha, 2012;Santos, 2015), implying that the opportunity cost of camboa fishing is relatively low, and that camboas fishing does not substantially compete with other livelihood pursuits, as is increasingly reported for small-scale fisheries in coastal Brazil (Trimble & Johnson, 2013). The lower time commitment and low-cost entry that camboas fishing represents compared to offshore fishing, may explain the relatively higher numbers of women undertaking camboas fishing on a regular basis (Tilley et al., 2021). ...
The relevance of local ecological knowledge to conservation and development agendas is gaining momentum, and the Amazon biome features as one of the most promising areas for its empirical application. Considerable attention has been given to forest composition and Indigenous land use, while coastal and marine environments have only received cursory attention. Camboas de pedra is the name given by coastal communities in the Brazilian eastern Amazon to permanent intertidal fish weirs/traps constructed of local stones. The structures are singular features of the present day coastal landscape of São Luís Island (State of Maranhão). They are some of the most impressive evidence of the continued use of pre-Columbian Indigenous knowledge by rural communities in this region. Our deliberative and participatory study of the Camboas de pedra of the beaches of Panaquatira and Boa Viagem on São Luis Island revealed that the structures continue to provide both cultural and provision services to local users, playing a pivotal role in household food security and poverty alleviation in the eastern Amazon. Our results highlight the importance of integrating local users’ perceptions of heritage structures, both tangible and intangible, in order to design inclusive, equitable and sustainable conservation and fisheries management strategies.KeywordsAmazon coastPre-Columbian fish trapsLocal ecological knowledgeLegacy to food security and livelihoodCultural heritage management
... in India, and 73% in Nigeria, when fish processing activities are included (FAO, 2011). Women's contribution to fisheries, aquaculture, and harvesting seldom reflect in statistics (Frangoudes, 2013;Santos, 2015). Sometimes, country reports do not specify gender or women, such as in Asia, where 7% of the fisheries workforce is unspecified (Frangoudes & Gerrard, 2018). ...
In five islands of Indian Sundarbans, issues were identified related to women fishers
associated with small-scale fisheries (SSF) and strategies were formulated to address them in the context of “Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries” formulated by FAO being followed by signatory nations. Women were actively involved in different fisheries-related sectors for earning their livelihoods. Despite the significant contribution of women in livelihood and nutritional security, their roles are often unrecognized leading to unfair distribution of benefits between men and women. The strategic and practical gender constraints were identified; “lack of awareness and low social participation” was the major factor as perceived by women fishers with the highest score (86.06). It was identified that gender-sensitive extension approaches, training methodologies, and region-specific appropriate technologies are to be applied to uplift the women members of the fishers' community associated with SSF. The aforesaid findings may be considered as precursors for formulating location-specific strategies to address the gender gap and to create gender equality in SSF that will lead to increased productivity and sustainability of SSF across the world.
... Participants included 68 fishers, all male, between 22 and 55 years of age. The dominance of men in the workshops reflects the rigid gender division of labor in artisanal fishing, which has strong cultural and legal foundations supporting men on fishing boats and women in shellfish collection and fish processing [21,24]. Participants were enrolled as follows: we contacted the leaders of the colônias; after they agreed to participate, we asked leaders to disseminate workshop information to associated fishers in their colônias; we offered meals during the workshop to encourage attendance for the 4-6 h period; we conducted extension workshops on GPS use in each colônia; we conducted an additional extension workshop on hygiene and healthy food with 20 children in Itarema. ...
... CHAVES, BRANNSTROM, SILVA, 2019, QUEIROZ et al., 2020) e no Brasil (VASCONCELOS, DIEGUES, KALIKOSKI, 2011, SANTOS, 2015. Empregos formais também são desenvolvidos e auxílios governamentais e aposentadorias complementam a renda das famílias. ...
Segundo a bibliografia europeia e norte-americana, a falta de
elementos de justiça processual é a causa de opiniões negativas à energia
eólica. Este trabalho discute as respostas de três comunidades do Ceará
(Amarelas, Patos e Maceió), a partir da aplicação de questionários (n= 310)
que avaliaram a participação em audiências públicas, confiança, acesso à
informação e poder de decisão. Os resultados mostraram pouca
participação popular na implantação dos parques eólicos. Somente Patos teve bons índices para confiança nas informações (82,3%) e teve poder de
decisão, todavia, houve baixa satisfação para o acesso a essas
informações. A participação em audiências públicas foi contestada em
Amarelas (89,8%) e fraudes em audiências foram apontadas em Maceió.
Contraditoriamente, Amarelas teve uma alta aceitação ao parque eólico
(76,9%) e apenas Maceió apresentou forte oposição (82,4%). Os
resultados de Amarelas confirmaram a falta de interação entre
comunidades-empresa-Estado, contudo, o apoio sem justiça pode ser
associado a falta de uma cultura participativa, estimulada por agentes
públicos e privados. Em Patos, o envolvimento rendeu maior apoio. Em
Maceió, o contexto de luta da terra e ligações externas estimularam a
oposição e destacam a organização interna. Verificou-se uma
heterogeneidade nos indicadores de justiça participativa, refletindo
novas nuances para a oposição à implantação de projetos de energia
eólica no Brasil.
... The analytical method used in this research is the mixed-method which is a mixedmethod or a combination of qualitative and quantitative (Creswell, 2014). Qualitative data were analyzed using qualitative descriptions and coding criteria were analyzed using Atlas ti software, namely, the code emerged from the explanation of the data or also referred to as the theme that emerged from the results of in-depth interviews (Santos, 2015). While quantitative data were analyzed using the replacement cost method of clean water, cost of illness. ...
The negative impact of mining activites has resulted in environmental damage that reduces environmental functions. One of them is the brown cnyoan mining, whose mining operations have resulted in the loss of of clean water sources and disrupted public health. The research aims to analyse the negative externalities received bt the community and to estimate the economic losses of the community due to mining activites. The data source of this research is primart data with a sample of 50 families using the purposive sampling method. This research uses a mixed-method, which is a combination of qualitative data (indepth interview, descriptive and coding criteria) and quantitative data (resplacement cost and cost od illness). This research shows that the dominant-negative externalities felt by the community are mining nose, decrease water quality and air pollution. The estimated loss from the replacement cost approach is 5,662,500 IDR and the cost of illness approach 3,999,000 IDR, with an average loss per family each month od 192,030 IDR. This negative impact mining disrupts community efficiency because the negative impact is not taken into account by producers in determining mining production.
... This might explain the lacking of sexdisaggregated data in fisheries among many countries. Work of women in fisheries, aquaculture, shellfish harvesting is rarely being found in statistical analysis (Kleiber et al., 2014(Kleiber et al., , 2017Santos, 2015). ...
Collaborative action is a key element for successfully implementing sustainable fisheries. Still, gender equality, being an essential component in any such actions, is often missing. In fisheries, the contributions of women’s are invisible and mostly remain unrepresented in the statistical analysis. In this paper, we examine the current challenges and opportunities of women in fisheries based on the governmental programs and reports as well as few case studies from various countries. Women now act as cooperative leaders, entrepreneurs and collaborative decision-maker. They have acquired resources and decision-making power that facilitate project developments and leads to more opportunities and sustainability in fisheries. The paper focuses on women’s participation at various levels in fisheries chain from resource management to raising voice on working conditions in industries which support the gender equality. In different ways, the paper offers insights into the knowledge gaps and ways to encourage a greater inclusion of gender into fisheries research in general.
... Typically, these fisheries are for domestic consumption and are a source of low-cost food. The same happens with fishing on the coast that opens a space for learning and socialization for children and adolescents of both sexes (Santos 2015;Uc-Espadas et al. 2018). ...
... the other half 98 . Thus, through their involvement in fisheries, women make critical contributions to household food and nutrition security as well as income provisioning 34,[99][100][101] . ...
Both fisheries and tourism have been highlighted as pivotal sectors to achieving the SDGs. Women play important roles across fisheries value chains and throughout the tourism sector. Yet women’s roles, contributions, priorities and interests tend to be overlooked and undervalued across sectors as well as in policy and management. In addition, because of restrictive social-cultural norms women are underrepresented in policy and decision-making. Gender discrimination threatens to increase women’s vulnerability to ocean risks. Advancing gender equality benefits women and girls through improved welfare and agency. These benefits extend beyond the individual to women’s households and communities, helping countries realise their full development potential, especially within the context of a Blue Economy.
Through a synthesis of peer-reviewed and grey literature, and numerous case studies from SIDS and LDCs, this report highlights gender roles in two key sectors of the ocean economy (small-scale fisheries and coastal tourism), describes the gendered dimensions of ocean risks, and summarizes efforts across SIDS and LDCs for gender equitable approaches to building resilience to ocean risks.
... Value differences can be especially pronounced in islands where tourism, urbanization, and development are transforming local economies [42,49]. Numerous studies have documented the complex and diverse ways in which people understand and relate to fish [18,25,46], how fish and fisheries help to maintain or build sharing networks within communities [13,14], their traditional and spiritual value [24,38], and their importance to community identities [43,47]. However, despite general consensus among scientists and policymakers that resource management is "people management" [8], and an understanding that there are severe consequences to social-ecological resilience when the human dimensions of these systems are ignored [4,10,15], prioritizing and integrating cultural and social values into marine management has remained a challenge [3]. ...
People’s preferences and choices around food directly influence their resource use and the resilience of dynamically linked natural and human systems. In this study we examine fish preference and consumption patterns in Dhaalu atoll, Maldives, where fisheries have experienced rapid change in response to tourism and development. We find that reef fishes are now a significant part of local diets, with 58% of interview respondents preferring to eat reef fish over the historically more popular and sustainable tuna. Our findings suggest that preferences, which vary with gender and age, are an important yet underutilized indicator of changing pressures on reefs. While demand from nearby resorts currently drives the majority of reef fishing in these islands, we document seasonal spikes in the local catch and consumption of reef fishes and record an informal network of sharing that should be considered while developing management plans. Rising levels of reef fish consumption could have significant environmental impacts in the Maldives with implications for island food security and community wellbeing.
... This decision should be based on a systematic analysis of the social drivers of the problem (including cultural, economic, governance, and institutional factors) across multiple scales and the interactions between those drivers and biological elements (often the management focus) relevant to the problem. To illustrate, understanding social drivers may involve studying: human values, attitudes, and behaviors that are often at the root of conservation problems and thereby define the socio-cultural context of conservation efforts in an area; pre-existing social rules and norms; and how different stakeholders, including underrepresented and marginalized groups, affect or are affected by the problem (Carlisle and Gruby, 2018;Manfredo et al., 2020;Santos, 2015). Such an analysis often requires a critical assessment of the dominant narratives about the cause of the problem and problem framings, which can lead to the surfacing of previously unrecognized inequalities and alternative narratives where necessary (e.g., Fairhead and Leach, 1995). ...
A growing body of literature has highlighted the value of social science for conservation, yet the diverse approaches of the social sciences are still inconsistently incorporated in conservation initiatives. Building greater capacity for social science integration in conservation requires frameworks and case studies that provide concrete guidance and specific examples. To address this need, we have developed a framework aimed at expanding the role for social science in formal conservation planning processes. Our framework illustrates multiple ways in which social science research can contribute to four stages of such processes: 1) defining the problem and project team; 2) defining goals; 3) identifying impact pathways and designing interventions; and 4) developing and evaluating indicators of success (or failure). We then present a timely case study of wolf reintroduction in Colorado, U.S.A., to demonstrate the opportunities, challenges, and complexities of applying our framework in practice.
... In Latin America, women play a fundamental role in fishing-related activities [85,86]. Despite this, women are not an entirely homogeneous category of people in the sector, rarely found in statistics or documented in socioeconomic evaluations [87,88]. Therefore women are subject to various degrees of inequalities in access to and control over productive resources, services, employment opportunities, and empowered participation in decision-making [89,90]. ...
Increasing attention is paid to the interdependence between the ecological and human dimensions to improve the management of natural resources. Understanding how artisanal fishers see and use the common-pool resources in a co-management system may hold the clue to establishing effective coastal fisheries policies or strengthening existing ones. A more comprehensive planning of the system will also have a bearing on how to reduce conflicts and strengthen social networks. We surveyed artisanal fishers and decision-makers to determine their perceptions about the Management and Exploitation Areas of Benthic Resources (known as MEABR) in Chile’s Biobio region. We performed a field study from November 2018 to August 2019, applying a set of questionnaires to determine the ecological and human attributes that contribute to MEABR outcomes, and then constructed composite scores for those attributes according to a multidimensional scaling technique (“Rapfish”). We find that fishers have different perspectives: surprisingly, women highlighted that the institutional dimension was the most influential on MEABR performance, whereas men highlighted the ecological and economic outcomes. The decision-makers’ role in the MEABR system was considered adequate, but communication and socialization of regulations were irregular. Results also showed that fishers expressed dissatisfaction with illegal fishing practices (poaching), productivity, profits, and conflicts inside and outside the MEABRs. Our study allowed us to better understand how the MEABR has developed in the region. We recommend strengthening local management strategies with particular attention paid to networking among stakeholders, including gender inclusive relationships.
... Women's work in fisheries, aquaculture, and shellfish harvesting is rarely found in statistics [14,20]. Their contribution to the economy of fishing households or enterprises is even less documented. ...
... Typically, these fisheries are for domestic consumption and are a source of low-cost food. The same happens with fishing on the coast that opens a space for learning and socialization for children and adolescents of both sexes (Santos 2015;Uc-Espadas et al. 2018). ...
Fishermen and the gender-neutral “fishers” are the most frequent names to mention humans who fish in the English language (Branch and Kleiber 2017). This term in the Cambridge dictionary is defined as someone who catches fish, primarily as a job. Another definition pointed out in the literature is that these are humans that capture various types of animal life for human food, animal feed, bait, and other uses (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics 2018). Finally, fishermen can be considered as those humans whose purpose is to remove the biological resources that depend, at some stage of their development, on the aquatic habitat (Fig. 1). This natural resource is subsequently intended for the subsistence of local communities or small- or large-scale commercialization.
... Women fishermen have high socio-economic capital and provide excellent support for family welfare and income [19] in developing a sustainable small-scale capture fisheries sector. The mobility of fishing women is minimal because it requires environmentally friendly technology that can provide additional income for families [16] and the contribution of small-scale fisheries worldwide in policymaking [20]. Millions of women are involved in the small fisheries sector [21]. ...
The existence of an empowerment program for fisherwomen in household-scale capture fish processing aims to improve the family economy so that it will impact changes in household consumption expenditure after the empowerment of small-scale fishermen's wives. The research method used qualitative independent variable regression estimation with the consumption function theory. The results showed that post-empowerment household consumption expenditures on small-scale fishermen's wives were influenced by household income and household members' numbers. On the other hand, the wife's education and regional differences did not have a significant effect. The increase in household consumption of small scale fishermen's can be realized if there is an increase in household income from the catch and processing of fisheries products from fishermen's wives in a sustainable manner during the fishing season
... Gender inequality in fisheries income is widely known (Zhao et al. 2013, Teh et al. 2020), yet the underlying causes are diverse. Compared to male fishers, women could be disadvantaged by being restricted to just gleaning, processing, and selling activities (Santos 2015, Furkon et al. 2019, being restricted to intertidal areas (Siar 2003, de la Torre-Castro et al. 2017, having poorer access to boats (Gerrard and Kleiber 2019), being given lower prices by traders (Purcell et al. 2016), and even being excluded in some fisheries, thus obtaining less catch (Chapman 1987). Women might invest less time in fishing because of their involvement in child raising, farming, caring for elders, and housekeeping (Harper et al. 2013, de la Torre-Castro et al. 2017, Biswas 2018. ...
The predicted future shortfall in seafood production from tropical small-scale fisheries demands support to help diversify income streams and food production for coastal communities. Livelihood diversification can comprise the enhancement or addition of components to existing fisheries, yet the likely socioeconomic impacts are unclear. With a long history of nondeleterious introductions, the marine snail "trochus" (Rochia nilotica) was introduced to Samoa from 2003 to 2006 to offer a new artisanal fishery resource. Some 15 years later, we surveyed 303 fishers using structured questionnaires and mixed effects models to evaluate how the fishery has contributed to fisher well-being and what factors have influenced the socioeconomic impacts. Most fishers consumed part of their catch and both fisherwomen and fishermen shared harvests informally within communities, thereby bolstering resilience of the social-ecological systems at the community level. More than one-quarter of fishers sold part of their catch and the new earnings represented 17% of their gross income from all sources. Fishing incomes were gender equitable and influenced by fishing frequency and capital assets (boats). Most fishers were satisfied with income from the relatively new fishery and improved income was reported by a majority of fishers, especially those younger and less experienced. Additional money from the fishery was most often spent on food, church tithing, and school fees. This relatively new fishery fostered positive well-being outcomes that were gender inclusive. Extrapolations of annual incomes across the fishery reveal a rapid return on investment from foreign-aid funded development. The study reveals that certain coastal artisanal fisheries can be gender equitable and that benefits are likely underestimated because of subsistence consumption and informal distribution networks. Diversifying the marine resources accessible to small-scale fishers offers a promising strategy to support coastal livelihoods and strengthen resilience of social-ecological systems.
This paper aims to explore the role of local leaders in fostering social harmony within conflict-prone coastal Muslim communities, primarily composed of fishermen. The focus is on how local leaders promote social harmony while navigating the challenges, priorities, and opportunities they face. It is essential to consider the diverse nature of these communities. Although they may appear united due to their shared livelihood, the realities are often more complex, featuring intricate social dynamics, power structures, and competing interests. The research was conducted in Kalirejo Village, located in the Kraton District of Pasuruan. This location was chosen due to its history of significant conflict dynamics; however, the community is currently peaceful, largely owing to the diligent efforts of local leaders in promoting peace. This study employs qualitative research methods, utilizing data collection techniques such as observation, interviews, and focus group discussions. The findings indicate that local leaders have implemented four key strategies to promote social harmony in coastal Muslim communities. First, they have engaged in mediation and negotiation efforts. Second, they actively appeal to the community to prevent further conflict during events. Third, they serve as guarantors for individuals involved in conflicts before legal proceedings. Lastly, they organize activities that involve both parties, such as Friday Tours and grand religious studies.
Households in the coastal areas are more vulnerable to various environmental, social, and economic disruptions in terms of an intersectionality point of view. As a first step in mitigating potential effects on families, knowing how susceptible they are and, ideally, fortifying themselves against existing and potential disruptions is essential. Vulnerability and adaptive capacity could not be uniformly distributed between households owing to gender-based socio-economic disparities and inequities. This research, thereby, examined the vulnerability and adaptive capacity variation between households headed by males and females in the two coastal areas of an emerging economy like Bangladesh. This study utilized the Evaluation-based on the Distance from Average Solution (EDAS) method and Boosted Regression Trees (BRT) technique to conduct the analysis. The EDAS method has been used to analyze the adaptive capacity index. Using BRT, an innovative approach in the area, we showed that male and female-headed households are different in terms of their capability to adapt. The findings from this study suggest that the households led by females are more vulnerable than those headed by males in the study region across a variety of dimensions (social, health, economic, housing, and land ownership) from an intersectionality perspective. The study findings can provide a new outlook for the decision-makers in the coastal region on the vulnerability and adaptive capacity differences among the residents and thus lead to more efficient disaster management practices.
Purpose
The concept of sustainable livelihoods – commonly understood as managing of means of living without undermining natural resources – has gained momentum in international development discourse. This review focuses on broadening of conceptualisation of policy intervention process for sustainable livelihoods approach and synthesis of evidence to track development in their knowledge structure.
Design/methodology/approach
Evidence available in the literature systematically reviewed with the established methods and themes of interest are curated, to assess the characteristics, mechanisms and caveats arising in policy and practice.
Findings
The authors found seventy-five independent studies that fit into the pre-specified research protocol and objectives. The authors classify these studies into six major themes: Economic wellbeing; Opportunities and capabilities; Climate and natural resources; Policy design; Formal-informal institutional environment; and Labour, entrepreneurship and exports. Various research gaps and directions for future research are also discussed.
Research limitations/implications
The study provides a typology of reviewed literature examining the profile dynamics. Thematic analysis resulted into identifying complementarities and trade-offs and results demonstrate multiple heterogeneity in structures, processes and outcomes.
Originality/value
The definitive areas of interventions are discussed to broaden the utility of the concept in a structured way. This review paper brings a comprehensive view of livelihood intervention system and contribute in enriching the social policy perspective.
Peer review
The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/IJSE-06-2022-0402
The fishing sector is facing major economic and environmental challenges worldwide. However, at least in developed countries, it is also undergoing a major social crisis. This research has tried to quantify and validate this subjective feeling of deep crisis, based on objective and quantitative data referring to the Spanish Mediterranean. Indeed, the results show alarming data. Different scattered databases have been analyzed and it has been exposed that in only 15 years the number of vessels, power and tonnage has decreased by about 40%; as for fishermen, their number has decreased by about 30%, also revealing a serious problem of generational replacement, since in only 10 years, the average age of fishermen has increased by 3 years. A simple linear regression model shows that this downward trend in the number of boats and fishermen will continue at least in the short term. The data obtained invite a deep reflection on the future or even the very survival of fishing in the Spanish Mediterranean in the medium term. This reflection is not limited to this specific area but can be extrapolated to many other fishing areas.
Os Parques Eólicos Offshore (PEO) são uma importante fonte de energia emergente. No Brasil, o licenciamento ambiental de PEO requer um mapa de identificação de usos múltiplos preexistentes,
visando às atividades potencialmente conflitantes, como rotas de pesca e navegação. O objetivo do trabalho foi avaliar a aplicação de metodologias participativas na construção de dados sobre a atividade pesqueira, visando à análise de potenciais impactos dos PEO nos territórios marinhos do estado do Ceará, com enfoque na pesca artesanal. Foram produzidos mapa participativo e calendário de pesca na colônia Z18, localizada em Amontada, Ceará. A coleta de dados ocorreu por meio de quatro oficinas participativas com 45 participantes. Os dados foram digitalizados em ambiente SIG e, posteriormente, validados junto à comunidade. Os resultados mostram sobreposição completa entre um PEO e a atividade pesqueira local. Assim, métodos participativos podem auxiliar na aquisição de dados pesqueiros e na avaliação dos múltiplos usos dos territórios marinhos.
Buku monograf ini berjudul Respon Keputusan Ekonomi Perikanan Skala Kecil Wilayah Pesisir dengan menggunakan teori ekonomi dengan analisis kuantitatif (ekonometrika) seperti estimasi model logit secara mendalam dengan kasus yang khusus, yaitu respon keputusan ekonomi baik dari nelayan dan wanita nelayan pada sektor perikanan tangkap skala kecil. Hal yang baru dalam buku ini menyajikan kasus-kasus penelitian pada rumah tangga nelayan skala kecil yang telah dilakukan oleh penulis secara mendalam, seperti Estimasi Keputusan Bertahan Hidup Rumah Tangga Nelayan Skala Kecil, Komparasi Estimasi Keputusan Nelayan Skala Kecil dalam memilih Teknologi Penangkapan, Estimasi Keputusan Istri Nelayan Skala Kecil dalam memilih Usaha Pengolahan Ikan Tangkap, serta Komparasi Estimasi Keputusan Istri Nelayan Kecil Perahu Motor Tempel dan perahu tanpa Motor dalam Memilih Pemberdayaan Usaha Pengolahan Ikan.
Shrimp aquaculture is a primary driver of mangrove deforestation globally. The decline of these forests not only threatens the integrity of valuable ecosystems but can also produce detrimental impacts on mangrove-dependent communities. Ecuador is the largest producer of farmed Pacific whiteleg shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) in South America. This industry's growth and success have come at the expense of the country's mangrove forests. This paper analyzes the impacts of shrimp aquaculture development on a mangrove-dependent community in Esmeraldas province, Ecuador. Furthermore, this research highlights how gender and gendered norms inform the strategies adopted by different actors in response to these processes. Drawing from ethnographic and Global Positioning System data collected in situ, this study shows that women are disproportionately affected by the loss of mangrove forests. Mangrove forests have historically provided women sustenance, opportunities for income generation, and the ability to pass on cultural traditions. The establishment of the aquaculture sector also created a collapse of local livelihoods. Losing access to traditional livelihood practices pushed men into the mangroves to gather cockles, a productive activity customarily only practiced by women. This livelihood shift for men further contributes to the displacement of women from the mangrove forests. The introduction of industrial shrimp farming increased the community's reliance on mangrove resources. The overuse of these resources is leading to a depletion of mangrove cockle populations, putting the community in a vulnerable position as both men and women are increasingly dependent on this fishery to subsist.
While Community-based tourism (CBT) has delivered on economic opportunities in some cases, researchers have questioned the viability of its impacts, often citing inequitable distribution of benefits as a critical debilitating factor. CBT is often based on normative principles that assume all actors have equal aspirations, power, voice, and access to resources. Yet, tourism activities are embedded in the same uneven social structures that envelope and define local livelihoods. In this qualitative case study of a fishing community outside of Djoudj National Bird Park in Senegal, we analyze the way a CBT project fits within women’s and fishermen’s livelihood strategies, focusing on the social and cultural norms structuring their participation in tourism. We apply the actor-structure livelihood framework to unveil the interactions between the norms embedded in the community-level social structure (i.e. social and cultural norms) and individuals’ agency as they seek out meaningful livelihood opportunities in CBT. The results of our study show that social norms, implicit biases, and cultural identities associated with women and Black Moorish fishermen, normalize their nonparticipation in certain positions within the CBT project. Through this analysis, we highlight norms shaping other livelihood activities and how they spill into the CBT sphere. We situate our findings within the broader scholarly discussion on CBT as a tool that encourages the equitable distribution of benefits and empowerment of local communities. We also discuss livelihood perspectives, specifically actor-structure framework, as a viable approach to explore failures, challenges, and opportunities of tourism as a community development tool.
The Corumbau Marine Extractive Reserve was created in a region of rich biodiversity, located in the South of Bahia State, Brazil, to meet the revindications of artisanal fishermen in a context of increasing predatory industrial fisheries. The aim of the Marine Extractive Reserve is to improve the sustainability of fisheries stocks and the economy of artisanal fishermen's families, protecting the local biodiversity for the locals' collective use. However, at Corumbau the natives are facing social problems that have increased due to tourism growth. The present research contributes to the Management Plan in sectors that are crucial to assess the aspirations and subjective aspects related to the natives' daily life at individual, familiar and communitary levels. The Participatory Appraisal with a Gender Equity Perspective (PAGP) was applied to five communities at RESEX Corumbau, showing, by gender, the greatest problems artisanal fisheries' families are facing. Tourism is growing in the area, reflecting the residents different and contradictory interests. It can develop commerce and jobs, but also intensify some social and environmental problems in this area.
Most research on gender difference or inequities in capture fisheries and aquaculture in Africa and the Asia-Pacific focuses on the gender division of labour. Emerging research on globalization, market changes, poverty and trends in gendered employment within this sector reveals the need to move beyond this narrow perspective. If gleaning and post-harvesting activities were enumerated, the fisheries and aquaculture sector might well turn out to be female sphere. A livelihoods approach better enables an understanding of how employment in this sector is embedded in other social, cultural, economic, political and ecological structures and processes that shape gender inequities and how these might be reduced. We focus on four thematic areas – markets and migration, capabilities and well-being, networks and identities, governance and rights – as analytical entry points. These also provide a framework to identify research gaps and generate a comparative understanding of the impact of development processes and socioecological changes, including issues of climate change, adaptation and resilience, on gendered employment. Without an adequate analysis of gender, fisheries management and development policies may have negative effects on people’s livelihoods, well-being and the environment they depend on, or fail altogether to achieve intended outcomes.
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Social scientists in Atlantic Canada developed an incisive political economy of the region’s fisheries in the 1970s and 1980s and forged a sharp critique of Canadian fisheries policies. Meanwhile, fisheries scientists generated a series of stock assessments which substantially overestimated cod populations. After the collapse of the stocks in 1992, a number of reflective postmortems have addressed the role of the social and natural sciences in this resource failure. The present paper will attempt to construct a “political ecology” of the crisis from this corpus, one which does not, a priori, privilege industrial capitalism over cod ecology.
Key Words: fisheries, cultural ecology, political economy, technology, Atlantic Canada, cod.
This study examines the potential socio-spatial impacts of a new series of marine protected areas (MPAs) on fishers in Moorea, French Polynesia. The establishment of the MPAs is contextualized within recent and historical processes of economic development and theories of women in development and gender, culture and development. Seventy adults from three neighborhoods in Moorea were interviewed. Analysis of the data provides new information about the characteristics of fishing in Moorea. Unlike most fishing cultures and communities throughout the Pacific Islands, men and women in Moorea have similar, as opposed to segregated, spatial patterns of fishing activities and fishing methods. The study also points out the potential negative impacts of the MPAs on both men and women, particularly younger and lower-income fishers.
The diversity of social, ecological and economic characteristics of small‐scale fisheries in developing countries means that context‐specific assessments are required to understand and address shortcomings in their governance. This article contrasts three perspectives on governance reform focused alternately on wealth, rights and resilience, and argues that – far from being incompatible – these perspectives serve as useful counterweights to one another, and together can serve to guide policy responses. In order to better appreciate the diversity in governance contexts for small‐scale fisheries it puts forward a simple analytical framework focused on stakeholder representation, distribution of power, and accountability, and then outlines principles for identifying and deliberating reform options among local stakeholders.
In the 1970s and 1980s, a strong social movement of rubber tappers in the Amazonian state of Acre achieved remarkable policy goals, gaining new forms of land rights as well as political representation through their alliance with indigenous groups, environmentalists, political parties and human rights advocates. Allies of the social movement entered politics and took state power in 1999 as the “Forest Government,” building on the rubber tapper's legacy to embrace the unique cultural and political history of the state, and implementing ambitious plans for forest-based development under the banner of “forest citizenship.” In the past 25 years, however, rubber tapper identity has changed rapidly as many rubber tappers migrate to urban areas, or increasingly shift from traditional rubber tapping to more intensive land uses such as commercial agriculture and small-scale animal husbandry. This paper uses data collected from household surveys, key-informant interviews and ethnographic research to explore the idea of what it means to be a “rubber tapper” and “forest citizen” today. We examine the contradictory nature of changing land-use and cultural revitalization efforts among diverse rural and urban populations, and the implications of this diversity for the future of the Forest Government's policies, and the rubber tappers.
Marine extractive reserves (MER) are being established in coastal areas of Brazil to protect 'traditional' coastal populations and the marine resources upon which their livelihoods depend. This paper examines the challenges Brazil's first open-water MER is facing in trying to achieve these goals. Results from a pilot project in Arraial do Cabo, Rio de Janeiro suggest that significant social barriers to collective action exist and that local resource governing institutions are not robust. Consequently, fishers are not becoming decisive players in the decision-making process. The implications of these conclusions for future maritime conservation policy in Brazil are explored. Published by Elsevier Ltd.
An approach to poverty reduction in low-income countries known as the 'sustainable livelihoods approach' is applied to understanding the strategies of artisanal fisherfolk confronted by fluctuating fisheries resources. The livelihood approach is explained, and the insights it provides into conventional fisheries management policies in developing countries are explored. It is argued that both state-led management and some of the newer, community or territorial use-rights approaches, if predicated on an incomplete understanding of livelihoods, can result in management directives incompatible with both resource conservation and the social and economic goals of management.
"Maritime Extractive Reserves, a new type of government-community collaborative management regime, are being established in coastal areas of Brazil in order to protect natural resources while sustaining local livelihoods. The long-term participation of resource users provides the cornerstone of this conservation and development model. This approach to conservation is supported by common property theory that questions the inevitable destruction of collectively managed resources. "This thesis explores the relationship between Maritime Extractive Reserves in Brazil and the traditional coastal communities they are created to protect. Specifically, it investigates the quality of the institutions which have traditionally governed the beach seining community in Arraial do Cabo, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It then analyses the levels and kinds of participation and perceptions of the newly created Extractive Reserve, which attempts to build upon these traditional relationships. Finally, the study identifies community level factors that constrain or provide potential for long-term participatory conservation in this area. "A case study approach is adopted, involving both quantitative and qualitative research methods. Data were collected through a questionnaire, participant observation, formal and informal interviews, focus groups and document review. This hybrid approach enables contextual exploration for which qualitative methods are essential ensuring a higher degree of accuracy and reliability than either could offer in isolation. "The data reveal that, although local traditional resource management institutions have a long history and were once effective, they have weakened over time. The data also indicate that there are significant social barriers to collective action within this user group which have implications for the operational viability of the Extractive Reserve concept. These barriers include weak organization, hierarchical structures, high levels of intra-community conflict and mistrust of government. Consequently, both the quantity and quality of participation in the reserve is low and therefore, local fishers are not becoming decisive players in the decision-making process. The implications of these conclusions for future maritime conservation policy in Brazil are explored."
"The management of small-scale artisanal fisheries in Brazil should be a priority because of their importance as a source of food for internal markets and their location in sites with high biodiversity, such as the Atlantic Forest coast. Fishing spots, territories, and sea tenure have been widely studied within artisanal fisheries, and, in this study, a fishing spot of this type may be a defended area or an area that imposes rules for users, making the exclusion of outsiders feasible, or even a place in which fishing occurs with some exclusivity. This analysis takes into account the importance of fishing areas for the conservation of artisanal fishing in Brazil and the relative temporal stability of these areas. In particular, examples of the use of the marine space on the coast of Brazil in areas such as Rio de Janeiro, Sao Paulo, and Bahia States are presented. Fishing spots used by artisanal fishers were marked using a Global Positioning System (GPS). An informal division of the marine space and high temporal stability, often in the range of 10-30 yr, in the use of the fishing spots were found. For some fishing areas, information published in the 1960s provided a relevant comparison for the current use of the fishing spots at sea. Such information is very helpful for the management of artisanal fishing in Brazil because tourism has increased in some areas, recreational fishers have been fishing in marine spots used by artisanal fishers, and industrial fishers are spread over a wide range of the marine space in these coastal waters. This stability in the use of marine space among artisanal fishers plus local rules support the case for local co-management of artisanal fisheries. Reserving areas for artisanal fishers and understanding the behavior of other users are essential aspects for the management and conservation of artisanal fishing in Brazil."
Feminist post?structuralist theory, feminist empiricism, and field practice can all contribute to insights on the value of quantitative and qualitative methods in feminist geographical research. A political ecology study of gendered interests in a social forestry program in the Dominican Republic illustrates the methodological dilemmas and potentials of feminist research on environmental change. The study combined qualitative and quantitative data collection and analytical techniques. Examples from the case study address three methodological questions in feminist geography: (1) Should identity or affinity be the basis for situating ourselves and the subjects of our research? (2) How can we reconcile multiple subjectivities and quantitative methods in the quest for objectivity? and (3) Can we combine traditional positivist methods with participatory mapping and oral histories? The paper draws on theoretical literature as well as field experience to answer these questions.
Throughout the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries fisheries policies and management systems worldwide changed as commercial fish stocks declined and fishing pressure intensified. Increased technological developments have enabled fishing fleets to become highly mobile and efficient and, together with a growing demand for fish for human consumption, have contributed to 87 % of commercial fish stocks being either fully exploited or overexploited (FAO 2012). Unsurprisingly, the focus of fisheries policy and management has been directed at biological and economic dimensions in the effort to bring stocks back to sustainable levels and to protect marine environments. However, in the broad global context, social and cultural issues in fisheries policy and management have largely been ignored. Yet omitting socio-cultural objectives has consequences for many fishing communities that today are struggling to deal with the implications of such decision making (Symes and Phillipson, 2009; Urquhart et al., 2011). Examples may include increased levels of unemployment, outmigration, weaker community structures and economic difficulties, which are especially felt in fisheries dependent communities (Scottish Government 2009). These examples have a strong socio-cultural dimension while biological and economic factors are important contributing factors. Consequently, it is increasingly being recognised that sustainable fisheries will only be achieved by integrating management and policy across biological, social and economic dimensions (FCR, 2009).
In Piriápolis (Uruguay) and Paraty (Brazil), artisanal fishers view fishing as a way of life, rather than just a job. The freedom of fishing and an inherent satisfaction in the occupation figure large in fishers' attachment to it. There are strong indications, however, that the relationship of fishers to fishing is changing. First, while fishers from both areas wish to keep fishing in the future, they are moving into different occupations or supplementing their work in fishing with other employment. Second, artisanal fishers from Piriápolis and Paraty identified fishing as an undesirable occupation for their children because they believe that in the future fishing will no longer be a viable occupation. Nonetheless, despite the wishes of their parents, young men and women in Piriápolis and to a much lesser degree in Paraty continue to become involved in fishing and fishing-related activities. The paper uses a social wellbeing perspective to interpret fisher responses to the changing circumstances they face. Wellbeing is a lens to understand the distinctive features of artisanal fisheries and helps to understand fishers' disenchantment with fisheries governance processes, in a scenario where participation is being promoted by the state in Uruguay and Brazil. The implications of these findings for state efforts to promote fisher participation in governance are discussed.
Feminist post-structuralist theory, feminist empiricism, and field practice can all contribute to insights on the value of quantitative and qualitative methods in feminist geographical research. A political ecology study of gendered interests in a social forestry program in the Dominican Republic illustrates the methodological dilemmas and potentials of feminist research on environmental change. The study combined qualitative and quantitative data collection and analytical techniques. Examples from the case study address three methodological questions in feminist geography: (1) Should identity or affinity be the basis for situating ourselves and the subjects of our research? (2) How can we reconcile multiple subjectivities and quantitative methods in the quest for objectivity? and (3) Can we combine traditional positivist methods with participatory mapping and oral histories? The paper draws on theoretical literature as well as field experience to answer these questions.
The dominant discourse of fisheries science and management, bioeconomics, places the behavior of individual fishermen operating on an open-access commons at the center of its understanding of fisheries resources and the fishing industry. Within this discourse, fishermen are the sole actors and the fishery is the fixed stage for an inevitable ‘tragedy of the commons.’ Starting from these particular assumptions of both subject and space, bioeconomics proposes solutions to fisheries crisis that differ sharply from fishers’ perceptions of the resource and their desires for management. These divergent understandings of both the natural and social environments are reflected in the maps produced by fisheries scientists/managers and those produced by fishers themselves. Remapping fisheries in terms of fishers’ perceptions and scales of operation reveals diverse natural landscapes and communities in which the dominant discourse charted only quantities of fish and individual fishermen. The landscape of fishing communities, once made visible, suggests an opportunity for forms of area-based management that might facilitate community development rather than just individual prosperity.
This article examines how gender ideologies differentially inform men and women's work‐life courses in the fishing economy of southern India. Drawing on interviews conducted with fish traders in Trivandrum, India in 1993–94 and 1999, we construct economic life histories for men and women traders. These are then used to illustrate how gender creates different patterns of paid work for men and women throughout their life courses and to analyze how men and women formulate livelihood strategies differently as a result.
Many conventional management strategies have been demonstrated to be ineffective in achieving sustainable fisheries, and new approaches are required to overcome existing environmental, social and economic problems. Adaptive co-management represents the combination of a learning-by-doing approach (adaptive management) involving all related and legitimate stakeholders in the decision-making process (collaborative management). In this study, the relevant experiences from a fishery in southern Brazil are reported. The first section of the paper summarizes the broad history of national fisheries and their management. Then the southern Brazilian artisanal penaeid-trawl fishery is briefly described and the three main problems associated with the common gears used are discussed, including their (1) poor size and species selectivities, (2) poor efficiencies, and (3) their mechanical impacts on benthic habitats. Finally, a framework is proposed to address the environmental and socioeconomic issues in the fishery and its implementation discussed via an adaptive co-management approach.
Political ecology (PE) is rooted in a combination of critical perspectives and the hard won insights distilled from field work. The theoretical base of political ecology was joined, by Piers Blaikie and others, to an unflinching commitment to empirical observation of biophysical and socio-economic phenomena in place. To this already ambitious mix was added a practical intent to contribute to material as well as social change: a practical political ecology of alternative development ran beneath the surface of much of this work. For many this led to serious encounters with policy and the machinery of policy research institutions. While seemingly contradictory with the critical tenets of political ecology, Blaikie’s pursuit of this pathway led beyond the ivory tower to Political Ecology in the Key of Policy, initially to inform national and international policy and eventually expanding – through the work of second-generation PE – to address internal policy in social movements and alternative development networks. Among recent variations on political ecology that have built partly on the work of Blaikie, Feminist Political Ecology (FPE) expands PE to address women as a group, and gender as a category. FPE and post-structural PE are based on multiple actors with complex and overlapping identities, affinities and interests. An emergent wave of political ecology joins FPE, post-structural theory, and complexity science, to address theory, policy and practice in alternatives to sustainable development. It combines a radical empiricism and situated science, with feminist post-structural theories of multiple identity and “location”, and alternative development paradigms. This approach honors the legacy of Piers Blaikie and other PE founders yet incorporates the insights and political projects of feminism, post-structural critique and autonomous or alternative development movements.
The assessment and management of marine resources is an increasingly spatial affair dependent upon emerging geo-technologies, such as geographic information systems, and the subsequent production of diverse layers of spatial information. These rapid developments are, however, focused on biophysical processes and data collection initiatives; the social landscape of the marine environment is undocumented and remains a “missing layer” in decision-making. As a result, the resource areas upon which stakeholders and communities are dependent are neither mapped nor integrated into planning processes. We report on a participatory method to map the presence of fishing communities at-sea. The lessons learned concerning the spatial representation of communities informs not only fisheries, but other sectors struggling to incorporate similarly the human dimensions of the marine environment in assessment and planning.
Although West African fisheries have been the subject of considerable study, little attention has paid to the role of gender in the development process and, more specifically, the work done by women in the overall management of fisheries. Lack of attention to the gender dimension of fisheries management can result in policy interventions missing their target of creating sustainable livelihoods at the community level. There is little doubt that fishing-dependent communities have a vital role to play in the overall development process of many coastal West African States, but without a complete understanding of the complexity of gender roles, the goal of sustainable livelihoods is unlikely to be achieved. In a bid to improve knowledge about gender roles in fishing communities, and to provide policy makers with some guidance as to where interventions might be most useful, a workshop was held in Cotonou, Benin (West Africa) in December 2003. This paper provides a brief introduction to the theory on gender and fisheries development and then goes on to report the findings of the workshop. The most significant conclusion is that policy interventions which help strengthen institutional capacity in coastal artisanal communities would have the greatest over all impact. A move toward collecting gender and fisheries disaggregated data would also help expand existing knowledge about what are often marginal and isolated economic sectors.
"As the conservation of marine resources becomes a growing global priority, the concept of marine protected areas (MPAs) is being widely propagated. Since most MPAs are located in coastal areas of great biodiversity, their development has direct relevance and concern to the livelihoods, culture and survival of small-scale and traditional fi shing and coastal communities. An MPA is considered to be any coastal or marine area in which certain uses are regulated to conserve natural resources, biodiversity, and historical and cultural features. The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) defi nes an MPA as 'any defined area within or adjacent to the marine environment, together with its overlying waters and associated fl ora, fauna, and historical and cultural features, which has been reserved by legislation or other effective means, including custom, with the effect that its marine and/or coastal biodiversity enjoys a higher level of protection than its surroundings.'"
The coastal zone is a place of intense activity where resources, users, and resource-use practices interact. This case study of small-scale fisheries in Honda Bay, Palawan, Philippines shows that resources, space, and gender are intertwined. The study was conducted between June 1997 and July 1998. The data were gathered using free listing, pile sort, ranking, resource mapping, and key informant interviews. The results showed that women's knowledge about fishery resources and their fishing activities are associated with the intertidal zone whereas men's knowledge is associated with coral reefs. In classifying fishery resources, appearance is the main consideration for women whereas a combination of appearance, habitat, and type of fishing gear is the consideration used by men. Market price is very important because of its dependence on the demand of the export market as well as the local market. Women dominate the buying of fishery products. Many women market their husband's catch, process fish, or gather shells and sea cucumber for sale. Among the fishing households, type of fishing gear provides an indication of socioeconomic standing. This paper concludes that access to resources is shaped by gender and age. The differences in resource knowledge possessed by men and women lead to differential access to fishery resources. In addition, the differences in socioeconomic status also influence resource access. The socialization of children into fishing reinforces the gender division of labor and space in the coastal zone.
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