Promoting new knowledge of climate change impacts on fisheries

Background

Climate change has been identified as a key barrier to achieving the Millennium development Goals by international development organisations. Climate change will have a disproportionate impact in the development world, where the world's poor remain most susceptible to the potential damages and uncertainties inherent in a changing climate. Previous FMSP research (Project R4778J) provided evidence of the increased vulnerability of fisherfolk to the impacts of climate change. There was a need to review and complete the previous analysis, and make the findings available to different stakeholders and engage with other practioners in the field across the sectors of fisheries management, risk reduction and climate change to take the issue into account.

Approach

The project aimed to promote uptake of findings from R4778J, and to contribute to changing the behaviour of target communication stakeholders. Due to the short-term nature of the project (7 months), success was monitored through assessments of current knowledge, attitudes and practices. A review of literature on climate change impacts on wider natural resource sectors was carried out and hot-spot analysis to determine countries most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change on fisheries. Key communications messages were determined through a project meeting and were promoted through a flyer, a policy brief and a poster produced for DFID and press release.

A workshop at DFID, brought together stakeholders from a range of environmental and development sectors (fisheries, climate change, poverty reduction, risk reduction and environmental management), in order to assess current understanding on climate change, poverty and fisheries and determine recommendations for future research (see Workshop report).

Findings

A range of future research needs and priorities have been identified to further understand the impacts of climate change on poverty within fisheries, and ways of supporting adaptation and reducing the vulnerability of fisher folk and vulnerable economies.

A literature review of the impacts of climate change was produced and a policy brief has been published in collaboration with FAO as part of their policy series 'New Directions in Fisheries'. A draft scientific paper on the socio-ecological resilience of fisheries and fishing communities to the impacts of climate change has also been written from results of project R4778J. A summary of the workshop findings is available. Communications materials developed included a flyer, a poster and web-links (including a highlight on DFID News site).