Reviving fisheries around the world

EDF is supporting fishing communities with technology and resources to manage their fisheries sustainably.

The result: resilient oceans and thriving local communities.

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Water

More 2020 wins

Victor Pandapotan Malau wakes early each day to get to the docks in Lampung, Indonesia — where local fishers glide in on boats, their nets full of blue swimming crabs. A student at the University of Lampung, Malau inventories the catch using a smartphone reporting app provided by EDF and local partners.

This new tool is one example of our work to introduce innovative technology that helps equip people to participate in sustainable fisheries management. The community-driven effort will be a model for other small-scale fisheries around the world.

35%

of fisheries worldwide are overfished.

Good data collection surely can improve fishery management in Lampung. We can determine the fishery stocks, and then work to prevent the extinction of the fish and crabs.

Victor Pandapotan Malau student at the University of Lampung

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Victor Malau talks about the value of good data

Following the science

Malau, one of many locals collecting data, knows that the science is critical to managing the crab population, preventing overfishing and sustaining this vital source of local income. The efficiency of the app — which allows him to upload data from the dock to a national fisheries database — is a game changer.

Globally, lack of data, especially for small-scale fisheries, is one factor that hinders adoption of sustainable fishing practices, putting fishers’ livelihoods at risk. In Indonesia, we are helping to change that, working with provincial partners and the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries.

Weighing and measuring blue swimming crab — Collecting data is critical to managing the crab population.

EDF is trusted to effectively facilitate and implement a science-based sustainable fisheries management plan.

Trina Yunanda Director of Fish Resources Management, Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries, Indonesia

A quarter-million livelihoods

Indonesia’s blue swimming crab industry sustains the livelihoods of 275,000 people. “Blue swimming crab is very important for Lampung province, because many fishers here depend on it for their livelihood,” says Malau. “It has been inspiring to get to know more about the fishers and help maintain their economy.”

Today, with the help of people like Malau and the fishers he works with, Indonesia is setting aside nearly 20% of a 1,400-square-mile blue swimming crab management area as a marine protected area. Equipped with new tools and knowledge, Lampung is showing the world that local communities can lead the way in making their own fisheries more sustainable.

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