Putting fishing communities on the map in ICES ecoregions
Abstract This paper highlights the importance of identifying fishing communities for fisheries and ecosystem-based management, which often focuses on fleets and ecological impacts rather than on the communities where fishers live and land their catches. Fishing communities are key to understanding the broader impacts and benefits of fishing, as they support many livelihoods in fleet and trade-related activities. Recognizing these communities, allows for better data collection, analysis, and informed policy-making. ICES WGSOCIAL developed a method to identify fishing communities across ICES ecoregions, first applied in the Celtic Seas and North Sea ecosystem overviews. These overviews describe ecosystems, identify human pressures, and assess their impact. Using fishing ports as proxies, our method links socio-economic indicators (e.g. landings value) to communities. We identify limitations to our methods and explore the complexities of defining a ‘fishing community’ due to its dynamic, multidimensional nature. We discuss next steps for improving our mapping approach and deepening our understanding of the social, cultural, and economic value of fishing, and why these matter for applied marine science in support of policy and management.
Authors
- Cristina Pita (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1824-3396)
- Tereza Fonseca (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7039-7435)
- Nathalie A. Steins (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6362-342X)
- Marta Ballesteros (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5415-8722)
- Amber Himes‐Cornell (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3695-2241)
- Emmet Jackson (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3858-6479)
- Karma Norman (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9427-4640)
- Sónia Seixas (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9635-6321)
- Fanny Barz (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1700-7343)
- Katell G. Hamon (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6419-8947)
- Marloes Kraan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4189-746X)
- Arina Motova
- Alfredo García-de-Vinuesa (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6645-6217)
- Mimi E. Lam (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2399-9809)
- Debbi Pedreschi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6881-1051)
- Angel Guitierrez
Institutions
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (US)
- Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (IT)
- Universidade Aberta (PT)
- Norwegian Institute of Marine Research (NO)
- Instituto Español de Oceanografía (ES)
- Bord Iascaigh Mharaga (IE)
- University of the Humanities (MN)
- Marine Institute (IE)
- NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service Northwest Fisheries Science Center (US)
- University of Bergen (NO)
- University of Aveiro (PT)
- University of Coimbra (PT)
- Wageningen University & Research (NL)
Publication Details
- Journal
- ICES Journal of Marine Science
- Published
- 2025-07-01
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1093/icesjms/fsaf103
- Citations
- 3
- Primary Topic
- Coastal and Marine Management
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 7.27
Funders
- Norges Forskningsråd
- Ministério da Ciência, Tecnologia e Ensino Superior
- Centro de Estudos Ambientais e Marinhos, Universidade de Aveiro
- Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia