The bi-annual conference, in its 10th edition, was organized by the Centre for Maritime Research (MARE) in the Netherlands.  The conference gathered social scientists investigating issues related to the ocean, with a significant focus on small-scale fisheries. The conference was attended by over 400 participants, primarily from academia, but also included representatives from small-scale fisheries and non-governmental/civil society organizations. 

MARE Conference Participants ©Alicia Sajd

Small-scale fisheries experts from FAO attended the conference to present on work including the ongoing study, "Illuminating Hidden Harvests (IHH): The contribution of small-scale fisheries to sustainable development",  "Small-scale fishing communities on the front lines of climate risk: learning from extreme weather events", and achieving "Blue Justice for small-scale fisheries in the context of fishing opportunities and markets:  A lens for SDG14.b".

The events "Can international voluntary instruments contribute towards more equitable governance of coasts and oceans? The case of the Voluntary Guidelines for Securing Sustainable Small-Scale Fisheries in the Context of Food Security and Poverty Eradication" and "Theorising the implementation of marine policies and plans" are also worth taking note of. The latter put focus on the SSF Guidelines implementation at global and regional level.

The SSF Guidelines were also refereed to by the key note speaker Svein Jentoft during the conference.

Read more about the conference on the MARE website.