By Jeffery Young

The 5th World Fisheries Congress is underway in Yokohama. This meeting occurs once every four years and brings together fisheries scientists from across the globe to discuss and debate the future direction of sustainable fisheries management. I will be presenting on the third day of the conference on the David Suzuki Foundation’s Pacific salmon fisheries reform project.

The conference has just started, and so far, the tone has clearly been set. Emphasized by the very strong cultural association and dependence of the host nation on fisheries resources, all of the opening ceremony and keynote speakers have very clearly identified the oceans crisis, including the critical role of fisheries in degrading ocean ecosystems and the importance of wild capture fisheries to providing food and employment to the world’s most vulnerable people.

Despite this dire outlook, it is inspiring to witness the energy and passion of scientists from around the world who are dedicated to solving this crisis. I hope to contribute to the discussion and do my part to ensure Canada is part of finding solutions and setting an example of responsible and sustainable fisheries for the world.

Check back soon – I’ll give my impressions of how it all went.