Pierre Failler

Assessing nature’s contributions to people

Recognizing culture, and diverse sources of knowledge, can improve assessments A major challenge today and into the future is to maintain or enhance beneficial contributions of nature to a good quality of life for all people. This is among the key motivations of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), a joint global effort by governments, academia, and civil society to assess and promote knowledge of Earths biodiversity and ecosystems and their contribution to human societies in order to inform policy formulation. One of the more recent key elements of the IPBES conceptual framework (1) is the notion of natures contributions to people (NCP), which builds on the ecosystem service concept popularized by the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA) (2). But as we detail below, NCP as defined and put into practice in IPBES differs from earlier work in several important ways. First, the NCP approach recognizes the central and pervasive role that culture plays in defining all links between people and nature. Second, use of NCP elevates, emphasizes, and operationalizes the role of indigenous and local knowledge in understanding natures contribution to people.

Migration of Senegalese fishers: a case for regional approach to management

This article traces the recent history of Senegalese small-scale fishers’ migration in West Africa. It details how migration of Senegalese fishers developed and then intensified to become a specialized fishing strategy spread out all along the coast of West Africa, from Mauritania to Sierra Leone and beyond. This escalation has rapidly led to the depletion of fish stocks in the region. Today, while fishing migration still largely contributes to food security and provision of sustainable livelihood for coastal communities, this type of migration has reached both an ecological and social deadlock and its future is largely uncertain. Based on current trends in Senegalese fishing migration, this paper highlights the main drivers of changes and impacts of migration. It proposes the development of a regional approach to fisheries management, emphasizing the need for collaborative transnational research projects and stressing the necessity for biodiversity project managers to include the issue of fisheries migration in their regional conservation strategies. It also suggests there may be a need to introduce property rights so as to limit the open access enjoyed by Senegalese migrant fishers almost all over the West African sub-region.

Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) Special Feature: Editorial

The number of MPAs has increased sharply, from just 118 in 1970 to well over 6,300 today. This growth in numbers has also been accompanied by a voluminous growth in the academic literature on the theme, with writers employing ecologic, economic and governance lenses (or a combination thereof) to both support the case for MPA creation, and to evaluate just how successfully (or not) existing MPAs match up to their promises. Research suggests effective management of such protected areas is vital if desired outcomes are to be achieved within the allotted time period. This Special Feature on MPAs therefore seeks to address two key questions derived from the management effectiveness framework of Hockings and others (2000), namely: ‘How appropriate are the management systems and processes in place?’ and ‘Were the desired Objectives achieved—and if so, why?’ Fourteen articles, drawing on different disciplinary perspectives relating to MPA experiences from across the globe, offers insights into these questions by considering, inter alia, how: are MPA sites selected?; is ‘buy-in’ to the process from the various stakeholders achieved?; are these stakeholder’s views reflected in the management systems that evolve?, and what monitoring and evaluation mechanisms are in place? Bringing these perspectives and approaches together through the medium of this Special Feature is thus intended to further our understanding of the different issues that may confront both planners and managers of Marine Protected Areas.

Introduction to the Special Issue on Job Satisfaction in Fisheries in the Global South

The job satisfaction of capture fishers is of more than sectoral interest. On a practical level the relevance is as follows: capture fishing is known to contribute in a major way to the degradation of the world’s oceans (Millenium Ecosystem Assessment 2005), and could possibly be relieved if fishers are induced to move out of fishing (Pauly et al. 1989). Whether fishers are actually inclined to do so or not, however, depends at least partially on their levels of job satisfaction. Comparative studies of job satisfaction—as attempted in this special issue—throw light on the extent to which fishers are attached to their work and are willing to give it up for alternative professions. More specifically, such studies provide evidence of labor conditions in a profession known to be exceptionally tough and even dangerous (ICSF 2003).

Climate Variability and Food Security in Africa: The Case of Small Pelagic Fish in West Africa

The paper presents an analysis of the changes in fishing practices in West Africa both by national and foreign vessels and in trade patterns, as well as on the way in which these affect the economic and nutritional patterns of the Western and Central African countries, especially when climate variability is taken into account. Projections for the next decade indicate an increasing gap between estimated demand and supply under all scenarios elaborated. The more optimistic scenario shows that when environmental conditions are favourable, future fish supply cannot fulfil a growing population demand if per capita consumption remains at 2012 level. When environmental conditions are unfavourable, the supply-demand gap could rise to 1.8 million tonnes. However, even the best environmental conditions will not be able to satisfy the demand if the fish consumption per capita increases and the gap will progressively grow with time reaching 2.9 million tonnes in 2025. The pessimistic scenario presents a worrying picture of the future supply of West Africa where the gap between demand and supply may reach 3.3 million tonnes in 2025. In both scenarios, market mechanisms will adjust demand and supply by increasing the price of fish reducing therefore the accessibility for poor people and inhabitants of rural and areas far from the main fish markets. The foreseen deficiencies of fish supply will lead to nutritional loss, as some nutritional elements present in fish are not adequately represented in the foreseen substitutes (e.g. chicken). Therefore, climate variability increases the food security risks both in terms of quantity and quality.

Major opportunities of blue economy development in Bangladesh

Major opportunities of blue economy development in Bangladesh M. Gulam Hussain , Pierre Failler , A. Al Karim and M. Khurshed Alam EU-BGD Joint Collaboration on Blue Economy, Maritime Affairs Unit, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dhaka, Bangladesh; Economics and Finance Group, Portsmouth Business School, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, UK; Maritime Affairs Unit, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dhaka, Bangladesh

The establishment of marine protected areas in Senegal: untangling the interactions between international institutions and national actors

International institutions, understood as sets of rules contained in international agreements, are aimed at orienting national governments towards specific policy options. Nevertheless, they can determine a change in national policies and practices only if states are willing and capable of incorporating international obligations into their national legislations and ensuring their application and enforcement in areas that follow completely under national jurisdiction. The establishment of marine protected areas promoted by international agreements as a tool for the protection of marine resources represents an interesting case for revealing the complex interactions between international institutions and national actors. Particularly, the establishment of these areas in Senegal shows the salience of domestic constellations of actors who may support or undercut national commitments to international regimes: political elites, bureaucracies, the general public and target groups. By anchoring the empirical analysis to an actor-centred institutionalist perspective, the article explains how dynamic constellations of actors can distort the penetration of international objectives in the national policy framework. Different constellations of national actors can indeed bend international institutions at different moments: during the formulation of a new law in line with international obligations; in the definition of its implementation framework; and in the enforcement of national policies.

Assessing nature's contributions to people: recognizing culture, and diverse sources of knowledge, can improve assessments

Recognizing culture, and diverse sources of knowledge, can improve assessments A major challenge today and into the future is to maintain or enhance beneficial contributions of nature to a good quality of life for all people. This is among the key motivations of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), a joint global effort by governments, academia, and civil society to assess and promote knowledge of Earths biodiversity and ecosystems and their contribution to human societies in order to inform policy formulation. One of the more recent key elements of the IPBES conceptual framework (1) is the notion of natures contributions to people (NCP), which builds on the ecosystem service concept popularized by the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA) (2). But as we detail below, NCP as defined and put into practice in IPBES differs from earlier work in several important ways. First, the NCP approach recognizes the central and pervasive role that culture plays in defining all links between people and nature. Second, use of NCP elevates, emphasizes, and operationalizes the role of indigenous and local knowledge in understanding natures contribution to people.

Institutional challenges and constraints for Ghana in exporting fishery products to the European Union

ABSTRACT The objective of this article is to provide an analysis of the key institutional challenges and constraints that Ghana faces relative to food safety when exporting fishery products to European countries. Particular attention is given to the way Ghana conforms to European Union (EU) import requirements and complies with specific food safety measures, including traceability constraints. The major findings of the analysis are, firstly, the growing difficulty for institutions to adapt to more and more stringent EU regulations and to develop new sets of domestic rules and, secondly, the lack of collaboration between key institutions does not allow the establishment of an efficient food safety system. These findings are important not only for Ghana, but also for other countries that are currently exporting fish to Europe or that wish to do so.

Evaluation of coastal and marine ecosystem services of Mayotte: indirect use values of coral reefs and associated ecosystems

ABSTRACT Coral reefs of Mayotte (342 km2), seagrass beds (7.6 km2) and mangroves (8.5 km2) provide important ecosystem services of which the most important are the coastal protection, fish biomass production, carbon sequestration and water purification. The quantity and quality of these services have been decreasing steadily for several years and should continue to do so if no action is taken to contain anthropogenic pressures. The coral cover of the fringing reefs and the barrier reef has thus declined, respectively, by 60% in 15 years and 15% in 8 years. The pioneer front of Sonneratia for mangroves has declined by 13% in 6 years, and for seagrass beds, the water quality suggests a degraded state. The estimated annual value of these services amounts to EUR 124 million. It would be EUR 162 million if the ecosystems were in pristine conditions. The article shows that the preservation of coastal ecosystems is essential from an economic point of view. EDITED BY Sebastian Villasante