We Eat Whales in Norway

Sometimes in this profession you end up in some pretty big and serious meetings that I'm not sure graduate school entirely prepares you for, particularly when there is an international element and a bit of diplomacy involved. It is amazing how all over the world, most of us working in fisheries can find ready camaraderie with fellow scientists, fisheries managers, fishermen, and all those involved in our profession. It is also amazing how sometimes these events can go sideways pretty quickly, and not everything proceeds as one would expect. One time, I was part of bilateral delegation with our Norwegian counterparts. We were discussing a full range of fisheries science and living marine resource management issues that were of mutual interest to both countries. The head of our delegation, one of my boss' bosses, didn't quite fully get the pre-briefing and somehow missed the memo when she asked the room, “So, would you all in Norway be interested in working on protected species issues with us? For example, on organisms like whales?” Which was followed by deafening silence as many of us, I suppose based upon which country we were from, either bit our tongues or suppressed snickers. A lot of people were looking at their shoes. In case you didn't know it, there are a couple of countries that have not signed on to the international whaling ban via the International Whaling Commission. Norway is one of them, particularly for the abundant minke whales. Finally, after a very painful pause, one of the Norwegians, who looked like he could have come straight from a Viking ship or at least a Viking movie, said in heavily accented English, but not accented enough to mask the wryness in his voice, said, “Madame, in Norway, we eat whales.” The suppressions of laughter grew harder and slightly more audible, as did eyes boring into shoes. Norwegian snickering: +1; American embarrassment: +11. Then the number two of our delegation shouted, “Mackerel. How about mackerel? Or cod?” I thought he said, “Mackerel, holy mackerel, Oh my God” at first, which didn't help. He kept going, “We have similar interests for those fish.” His decidedly un-apoplectic manner was both serious, but at the same time further exacerbated the attempts to stifle what was turning into a growing swell of hushed laughter. Norwegian snickering: still +1; American snickering: starting. Then the head of our delegation noted, “Well, what about turtles?” That was funny and we thought she was joking, since although they are protected species as well, but they don't exactly make it to sub-Arctic waters off of Norway. But clearly, she wasn't joking. Again, after a pause, our Viking friend calmly reminded everyone of the geographic distribution of sea turtles. “Well, there is climate change,” she retorted. Norwegian snickering: +2; American snickering: +1. Then the guy on my left quietly whispered to me, “And we might as well throw in puffins. I hear they're good to eat.” The guy on my right heard it and chimed in, “And don't forget seaweed garnished with myctophids and copepods as a starter salad.” Let me just say, upon hearing those remarks I had a hard time not falling out of my chair. Trying to maintain the decorum necessary for such an international situation was no small feat. Norwegian snickering: +1; American snickering: +3. We eventually recovered after that moment passed and were able to complete the meeting. But I didn't envy our delegation's number two for the tongue-lashing we saw him get as we walked by a private room that he and the delegation head were in after the meeting. Something about not getting the memo was clearly heard… Later on, after we finished the formal session, we caught up with our Norwegian counterparts at a mixer and talked about it, a bit bashful at our mishandling of the whale situation. They had a good laugh, we had a good laugh, and we all laughed off the situation. We connected through the laughter, and the humor diffused what could have been a tough diplomatic situation. So, what do you do if your boss doesn't quite get up to speed on a pre-briefing set of materials? I advise grace all the way around. Such leaders often have so much information coming at them that it's hard to keep it straight sometimes. But the other lesson learned from this situation is to be sure to pass along a memo and then be doubly sure to follow it up to verify that it has been received and is generally understood. If need be, trying to help bail them out, as our number two attempted, is also gracious. And being gentle but firm in maintaining the facts, as our Viking colleague did, is also a form of being helpful and kind. Conversely, as many of you dear readers progress in your career, you might find yourself as the head of such a delegation at some point. In that case, the lessons here are to realize you can't know everything about everything, your past experiences may or may not translate to the new situation, trust your people, and try to prepare as much as you can before going into meetings. But most of all, wherever one is at in one's career, keep it all in perspective, work with your counterparts, and know there is usually time to sort things out over a beverage and a chuckle. … until next month.