Deliberate transformation of fishery social-ecological systems: The Bahamas spiny lobster fishery improvement project experience

Many fisheries have become trapped in patterns of unsustainable use and require significant change to be reset on new a trajectory towards sustainability. Here, we explore how certification programs, using fishery... [ view full abstract ]

Many fisheries have become trapped in patterns of unsustainable use and require significant change to be reset on new a trajectory towards sustainability. Here, we explore how certification programs, using fishery improvement projects (FIPs), can drive transformative change in fishery social-ecological systems using a case study of The Bahamas spiny lobster fishery. Specifically, we evaluate how the FIP process aligned with the four phases of social-ecological transformation and, using outcomes from The Bahamas, assess the poential for this model to create lasting change. 

To understand The Bahamas lobster FIP process, we undertook a detailed literature review of FIP activities and conducted semi-structured interviews with 40+ stakeholders across The Bahamas. We qualitatively analysed all documentation and interview notes, structuring our analysis around the social-ecological transformation framework (Moore et al. 2014). 

We found that market incentives for certification played a key role in creating transformative change in the fishery. Specifically, market demand for certified lobster necessitated improvements in fishery performance and created a window of opportunity for industry members to initiate change. The FIP model facilitated improvements by establishing a structure for implementing and monitoring change and creating a forum for collaboration. Despite the adoption of new practices and ideas, at the project's completion the fishery had yet to institutionalise its new trajectory. In order to build resilience, the fishery requires additional work, e.g. expanding activities to other islands (scaling-up the changes) and formalising the new governance arrangements (routinizing new practices). 

References: Moore et al. Ecology and Society 19, 54 (2014). http://dx.doi.org/10.5751/ES-06966-190454