Moving along

[Mouthwatering seagrass at Three Sister's Springs, Crystal River, FL]

The summer has quickly come and gone, and soon with it concludes my time with the EDF Oceans Program. There are several projects I am still working on and until then I look forward to those last weeks of putting together my final touches. 

From my previous post I shared three ongoing projects I got involved with as part of the EDF Oceans Humboldt team, much which is still a work in progress. I continue to work on the Humboldt Ocean Observing Systems (OOS) matrix researching and synthesizing the oceanography platforms and parameters that will set up the future OOS for the Humboldt region. I also continue to support the Latin America team in the fisheries focused webinars that have taken place throughout the summer and with it drafting a blog piece for EDF on the webinar outcomes and lessons learned for the Latin America region. 

Throughout this time, the OOS matrix research has proven to be a lot of work, and it is still very much a work in progress. I plan to conclude my efforts in this project with a synthesized table of parameters and variables that will help visualize gaps and better guide future plans that set up the proper OOS platform for the Humboldt region. 

So far, from my assembling of the matrix some gaps have become obvious while others are less evident and will require further scrutinizing with the collaboration of the various Humboldt fisheries agencies. As the Humboldt team develops this system, the multicolored matrix will continue to provide a critical baseline for the development and planning of the Humboldt Ocean Observing Systems platform to become a reality.

Another project I had the opportunity to work on was the Technology Dialogues (Diálogos de tecnología) in Latin America, which mirrors the SAFET seafood and fisheries emerging technology conferences started by WWF. EDF’s partnership with WWF led to the creation of the LAC 2021 conferences in which I assisted in the development of some of the dialogues and provided support in the moderation of breakout rooms, activities and communication.

For those unfamiliar with the concept, Diálogos much like SAFET created an open space for educational and informative purposes to fisheries stakeholders in the region. By bringing together a diverse crowd of fishers, government officials, technology providers, and locals we helped moderate discussions on current fisheries management perspectives, plans, challenges and opportunities in scaling up the effective use of technology and implementing more sustainable fishing practices that benefit local and regional management of stocks and marine species. 

With 116 attendees our last session ended successfully last Thursday, July 22. Our attendees left the Diálogos with many regional connections and a wealth of knowledge on the importance of science in future planning, as well as the value of alliances in regional collaboration of fisheries management. We all gained insight onto data and technology needs for the region as well as guidance on successful methods for the integration of technology & science in local artesanal fisheries.  They not only enriched us with their experiences but they also learned of from each other as they plan to enhance fisheries management and collaboration across all stakeholders in the region. It was a rewarding experience from which I look forward to attending sessions in the future. 

Diálogos de Tecnología #3 LAC

Finally, my last project has been to work on a writing piece about the importance of scaling up technology on fisheries management from a perspective in Latin America. It integrates past lessons and new outcomes learned from the diálogos this summer. Although currently in draft form, it is intended as an EDF blog piece to be published in the near future. 

My fellowship with EDF has certainly kept me busy so much I lost track of summer moving along rather fast. As I continue my work in the upcoming weeks I look forward to my third post and new updates to share with you all in August. In the meantime, greetings from Florida and our resident manatees whom I get to visit every other weekend to recharge for the week!

[Cutie Betsy propelling herself through the spring. Betsy: resident manatee at Homosassa Springs - FL 😊]

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