World Oceans Day is an annual celebration held on 8 June, officially declared by the United Nations in 2008. Many countries have been celebrating this day since 1992, following the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, which took place in Rio de Janeiro. World Oceans Day draws attention to the important role the oceans play in our lives and the environment.
This year, focusing on the theme ‘Life and Livelihoods’, ICSF collaborated with small- scale fishers and fishworkers around the world to produce several video interviews. These videos highlight their experiences, what they love about their work, the challenges they face, and how their communities have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
In Trat Province, Thailand, we heard from Mayuree Thammachat about how her community turned the COVID-19 crisis into an opportunity to sell home-cooked seafood. Sak Sawasdee told us about the changes he has witnessed in fish stock levels in the area and how the pandemic caused fish prices to drop due to lack of demand from the tourism sector. Wanna Sawasdee explained the many responsibilities women have to ensure fishing activities can be carried out each day and the household runs smoothly.
In Accra, Ghana, Sandra Osabutey told us about about her love for her work as a fish smoker, a skill she inherited from her mother, and the challenges she faces in buying fresh fish to smoke.
In the inland lakes of the Netherlands, Freerk Visserman explained his love for working and living from nature, and the importance of respecting it. Theo Rekelhof shared his excitement for catching eels, and told us how he contributed to building a healthy eel population by releasing legal glass eels into the lake.
In Costa Rica, Zoraida Bonilla Martínez sang a song for the sea and talked about how her love for fishing is in her blood, inherited from generations of family members. Silvina Paniagua Fernández spoke about the importance of being granted fishing licenses so her community has equal opportunities to work. Luis Alberto Marín Saenz highlighted the challenge of having to go further from the coast to catch the same catch as he once could in shallower waters.
Full videos are available at:
‘I love my work; I inherited it from my mother’ | Sandra Osabutey, smoked fish merchant, Ghana
‘We’ve tried to turn the Covid-19 crisis into opportunities’ | Mayuree Thammachat, Thailand
Some days we’re lucky; some days we lose | Sak Sawasdee, fisher, Thailand
Women have the main responsibilities | Wanna Sawasdee, fishworker, Thailand
Let nature do its job | Freerk Visserman, inland fisherman, The Netherlands
Feel the excitement of catching eel’ | Theo Rekelhof, inland fisherman, the Netherlands
A song for the sea | Zoraida Bonilla Martínez, fisher, Costa Rica
We need equal opportunities to work | Silvina Paniagua Fernández, fisher, Costa Rica
The sea is still here and we are still fishing| Luis Alberto Marín Saenz, fisher, Costa Rica
‘In the mangroves, with nature, there’s an energy’ | Eliada dos Santos Avelino, fisher, Brazil
2021 ICSF