The small-scale fisheries sector is a powerful example of our interconnectedness. Small-scale fisheries employ 90% of all fisherworkers globally, supplying nearly half of the world’s fish catch each year. In addition to feeding coastal communities, seafood harvested by small-scale fishers ends up on the plates of consumers from Bogotá to Beijing. 

Although small-scale fisheries are critical for the livelihoods and food security of millions, they remain under-resourced and underserved. These fisheries are routinely marginalized in both policy-making processes and decision-making about the management of the resources they depend upon. Meanwhile, the combination of COVID-19, overfishing, and climate change continue to be disproportionately felt by small-scale fishing communities.
 
On World Ocean Day 2022, Acumen Academy and Environmental Defense Fund are thrilled to announce our inaugural Resilient Small-Scale Fisheries Leadership Accelerator. Resilience in fisheries and fishing communities relies on innovative, diverse leaders who can navigate increasing uncertainty and drive action toward a more sustainable and equitable future. A reimagined system would recognize and honor the dignity of a fisherwoman in Mexico or Indonesia and her ability to both reliably earn for her family and contribute to a global seafood supply chain that more than 3 billion people around the world rely on. Our program seeks to lift the voices and dignity of small-scale fishers.

Through our Leadership Accelerator, we’re making an investment in leaders bold enough to reimagine and transform the fishery systems they work in. From Chile to the Philippines, the global cohort of 13 includes social entrepreneurs designing digital platforms that improve fisherfolk market connections, data scientists building end-to-end seafood ecosystems addressing sustainability and traceability, government leaders driving public-private partnerships, and community leaders creating cooperative models that help artisanal fisherfolk improve their livelihoods and adapt to socio-environmental stressors.

Beginning on June 8th and continuing over a 12-week period, this cohort of global innovative leaders will participate in a series of growth and development sessions, learning about both human and fishery systems, and exploring how their decision-making as leaders can drive resilience in their communities and collectively help change the world. Together, they will develop skills to manage uncertainty, foster greater inclusion of marginalized groups, identify and hold space for the core values different people hold, and drive action, even in the face of tension. Participants will also gain a powerful network of sustainability-minded peers to support their ongoing growth, development, and achievement beyond the program.

The accelerator brings together leaders like Flora Belinario, who works with small-scale fishing communities in the Philippines, encouraging fishers to adopt sustainable fishing practices, training them on how to improve their product quality and access better markets, and increasing their financial resilience through community savings clubs.

Flora Belinario helps small-scale fishing communities in the Philippines build resilience by improving product quality and market access.

Our Accelerator is designed for people like Flora who are willing to step outside the status quo to reimagine and redesign a more collaborative, diverse and sustainable future. The program also brings Acumen Academy’s flagship leadership training to the small-scale fisheries sector for the first time.