The answer to these questions and more will be debated this week when global leaders— including government representatives from the US, EU and China—gather in Portugal for The Economist’s World Ocean Summit 2015.
Historically, the blue economy has meant little more than fishing the abundant resources of the sea. Fisheries currently contribute more than $270bn to global GDP. Yet overfishing is pushing fish populations toward collapse. Consequently fishing is seen by some as an industry in rapid decline.
If nothing is done, the doomsayers will be right: collapsing fisheries will compromise the livelihoods of some 38m fishermen and women around the world and take away a key protein source for 3bn people.
But I see a more hopeful future. Economic growth, food production and sustainability can create an upward spiral, resulting in more fish in the water, more food on the plate, and more prosperous communities around the world. This kind of triple bottom-line outcome should serve as a model for the blue economy.
Evidence from around the world—including Australia, Belize, Chile, Denmark, Namibia, Norway and the US—demonstrates that the oceans are resilient and can rebound when fishing is sustainable.
In Belize, for example, fishermen and government officials are taking sustainable fishing nationwide. Just last month the cabinet voted to adopt “managed access”, which grants small-scale fishermen secure rights to their local fish resources in exchange for adhering to science-based limits on catch and no-fishing areas.
Early adopters of the approach in Belize are already seeing a dramatic decline in illegal fishing, rebounding fish populations, and a more stable fishing businesses. This is a far cry from the norm when some fishermen reported sharp declines in spiny lobster catches, down from 200 to 20 per day. Struggling fishermen up and down the coast led the charge in calling on the government to spread the new approach in hopes of a better future.
In April, meanwhile, the US government announced that overfishing is at an all-time low, following adoption of secure fishing rights or “catch shares” for most of the nation’s biggest commercial fisheries. The fish population is now rebounding. At the same time, the number of fishing jobs has increased by 23% and fishing revenues are up 30%.
Even fisheries in the Gulf of Mexico, hard hit by the BP oil disaster, are doing better. Since 2007, when catch shares were first implemented for the popular red snapper fishery, catches have more than doubled and revenues have increased by 108%. Today there are three times more red snapper in the ocean.
Such inspiring examples of progress are backed up by a suite of new research that will be unveiled at the World Ocean Summit by the The Economist Intelligence Unit, California Environmental Associates, and others.
The Ocean Prosperity Roadmap: Fisheries and Beyond is a new collection of research designed to inform decision makers, including governments and investors, on effective ocean and coastal resource management strategies to maximize economic, conservation and societal benefits.
The transition to sustainable fishing is achievable and the blue economy can be an engine of prosperity, providing lasting value and abundance for all.
The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Economist Intelligence Unit Limited (EIU) or any other member of The Economist Group. The Economist Group (including the EIU) cannot accept any responsibility or liability for reliance by any person on this article or any of the information, opinions or conclusions set out in the article.
