Sea Around Us

Sea Around Us
Name	Sea Around Us
Formation	1999
Founder	Daniel Pauly
Type	Research initiative
Headquarters	Vancouver
Location	University of British Columbia
Fields	Marine science, Fisheries science, Environmental science
Leader title	Director
Leader name	Daniel Pauly
Parent organization	Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries

Sea Around Us Sea Around Us is a research initiative based at the University of British Columbia and founded by Daniel Pauly that reconstructs global fisheries catches and assesses marine ecosystem impacts. The project integrates data from national reports, academic literature, and regional studies to produce spatially explicit estimates for policy and conservation, informing organizations such as the Food and Agriculture Organization and the United Nations Environment Programme. Its work intersects with institutions including the Pew Charitable Trusts, World Wildlife Fund, and regional bodies across the Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean, and Indian Ocean.

History

The initiative was established in 1999 by Daniel Pauly following influential work on catch misreporting linked to the Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) expansions after the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Early collaborations involved researchers from the Fisheries Centre at the University of British Columbia and partners in the Philippines, Senegal, and Peru. Sea Around Us contributed to debates during milestone events such as the World Summit on Sustainable Development and engaged with policy discussions around the Common Fisheries Policy reform in the European Union. Over time the project expanded its staff and computational capacity, aligning with initiatives at the International Union for Conservation of Nature and the Convention on Biological Diversity.

Objectives and Scope

Sea Around Us aims to quantify historical and contemporary fisheries removals, map catch distributions, and evaluate ecological impacts across marine bioregions including the North Atlantic Ocean, South Pacific Ocean, and Mediterranean Sea. Objectives include producing data to support the Food and Agriculture Organization reporting, informing assessments by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and aiding regional fisheries management organizations such as the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization and the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission. The scope spans small-scale artisanal fisheries in places like Mozambique and Indonesia to industrial fleets operating from ports in Spain, Japan, and Chile.

Methodology and Data Sources

Sea Around Us employs catch reconstruction methods combining national catch statistics, peer-reviewed studies, grey literature, and local knowledge gathered through collaborations with institutions such as CIFAR partners and regional universities in West Africa and Southeast Asia. The methodology integrates spatial allocation using global grids tied to exclusive economic zones and high-seas areas defined under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Data sources include archives from the Food and Agriculture Organization, fisheries records from countries like Norway, Mexico, and Peru, and satellite-derived vessel tracking used by agencies such as Global Fishing Watch. Analytical tools draw on ecosystem modeling frameworks linked to work by researchers in Ecopath networks and comparative studies referencing publications in journals like Nature and Science.

Major Findings and Publications

Major outputs include reconstructed global catch time series showing that actual removals often exceed reported figures, publications in outlets such as Nature Communications and Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, and datasets used by the Sea Around Us interactive database. Findings highlighted declines in large predatory fish across regions like the North Sea and the Gulf of Mexico, shifts to smaller species documented in work relating to fishing down the food web, and the extent of illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing affecting fisheries in Somalia, Ghana, and the Philippines. The initiative has produced atlases, policy briefs cited by the World Bank and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, and contributed chapters to regional reports coordinated by the Secretariat of the Pacific Community.

Impact and Policy Influence

Sea Around Us data have informed international negotiations at the United Nations and evidence used by the Food and Agriculture Organization during technical consultations on catch reporting. National agencies in countries including Peru and South Africa have used reconstructions to reassess management plans, while non-governmental organizations such as Greenpeace and the Nature Conservancy have drawn on the datasets for advocacy on marine protected areas referenced in discussions at the Convention on Biological Diversity. Sea Around Us analyses influenced debates on subsidies at the World Trade Organization and contributed to capacity-building workshops organized by the United Nations Development Programme and regional fisheries commissions.

Collaborations and Funding

Collaborators include universities such as the University of British Columbia, University of the Philippines, and the University of Cape Town, research institutes like the Pew Charitable Trusts-funded projects, and intergovernmental bodies including the Food and Agriculture Organization and the Secretariat of the Pacific Community. Funders and supporters over time have included private foundations such as the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, governmental agencies, and multilateral institutions including the World Bank and Global Environment Facility. Project partnerships have extended to initiatives like Global Fishing Watch and networks within the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea.

Criticisms and Controversies

Critiques have targeted methodological assumptions in catch reconstructions, disputes over estimates published in high-profile journals, and tensions with national statistical offices in countries such as China and Indonesia when reconstructed totals differ from official reports. Debates have occurred in academic forums including symposia at the International Marine Conservation Congress and responses in journals such as Fish and Fisheries. Other controversies concern the use of reconstructed data in policy advocacy by organizations like Greenpeace, raising questions debated at meetings of the Food and Agriculture Organization and in policy analyses by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

Category:Marine conservation organizations