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By Danielle Carey, Sepp Haukebo and Eduardo Boné-Morón Renowned for its turquoise waters and unique marine ecosystems, The Bahamas is a natural wonder of the world. Yet, with all its beauty, the country faces critical challenges, including rising energy costs, environmental degradation and the growing impacts and threat of climate change. These issues jeopardize the …

By: Aubrey Taylor Tropical Storm Oscar crept up from the North Atlantic Ocean at a leisurely 40 miles per hour on the morning of Oct. 19, 2024 and ambled toward the Turks and Caicos Islands. Based on the data available, meteorologists believed the tiny storm was unlikely to cause major damage. Yet only three hours …

By: M. Khazali, Andi Yasser Fauzan, and Meutia Isty Wulandari  The Government of Indonesia has committed to protect its marine ecosystems, pledging to establish 32.5 million hectares of marine protected areas (MPAs) by 2030. This commitment supports the 30×30 target of the Global Biodiversity Framework, which aims to protect 30% of the world’s marine areas …

By Ann M. Albury, Sepp Haukebo, and Carlito Turner The cerulean blue waters of The Bahamas are world renowned for their expansive saltwater fishing flats. These flats—shallow, sand or seagrass covered nearshore areas—are the ideal habitat for stalking prized fly fishing species, including bonefish, tarpon, permit, cobia, and snook.  The Bahamas is known as one …

By: Meutia Isty Wulandari The “Jaya Bahari Abadi” Community Surveillance Group (Kelompok Masyarakat Pengawas/Pokmaswas) has won third place in the 2024 Adibakti Mina Bahari Award. This prestigious award is given by the Indonesian’s Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries to stakeholders who have demonstrated outstanding achievements in the marine and fisheries sector. The award was presented on …

By: Abdul Halim1, Amehr Hakim2, Gemma Carroll3, and Annie Mark4  In just a few weeks, on October 21st, 2024, delegations from 196 countries party to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) will come together for its 16th Conference of Parties (COP16) in Cali, Colombia, to review progress, set priorities and commit to new workplans to …

By: Poppy Brittingham Open ocean aquaculture (also referred to as “offshore” aquaculture) is a nascent industry in the United States. As it exists now, the industry has the potential to positively contribute to domestic seafood supplies if executed well. However, if the risks and impacts of the farms are not well understood, it can cause …

A new report from Environmental Defense Fund provides critical insights into species that may be optimal for farming in open ocean environments.

By: Fenjie Chen and Shems Jud A ground-breaking shift in Japan’s fisheries management is happening. It is aiming to restore fish stocks and recover harvests to achieve sustainable management and utilization. But many fishers have been unaware of how these reforms impact their daily operation. They have limited understanding of how they can contribute to …

We’ve come to our final blog in our series on sustainable aquaculture for EDFish. Now that we’ve covered aquaculture feed, escapes, and diseases, we’ll wrap up the discussion with a look at technology’s role in sustainable aquaculture. With appropriate investment and incentives, ocean farming technologies and innovations could address sustainability risks for farming seafood in …

By: M. Khazali, Guswarman, and Meutia Isty Wulandari  “If we don’t prioritize monitoring and law enforcement against destructive fishing activities, the blue swimming crab management is unlikely to succeed.” These words were said in March 2024 by Hasan “Ubay” Ubaidillah, a leader of the Community Surveillance Group (Kelompok Masyarakat Pengawas/Pokmaswas) Jaya Bahari Abadi. He stood in …

By: Harlisa, M. Khazali, and Meutia Isty Wulandari Sarkad gazed out at the Lampung coastline, his hands gripping the edge of his small fishing boat. At 49 years old, Sarkad had spent over half his life catching blue swimming crabs. He fled his hometown in West Java, hoping to escape deteriorating marine conditions and declining …

Let’s continue the conversation on sustainable aquaculture. This is the third blog in our series exploring the sustainability of aquaculture—what we currently know, emerging advancements, and areas for growth. In our previous, we covered escapes in aquaculture, and before that, we discussed aquaculture feed.     In this blog, we are focusing on diseases in …

Open ocean aquaculture in the U.S. has the potential to create diverse local jobs, build a more climate-resilient domestic seafood supply, and minimize impacts on the climate and environment. However, achieving these benefits hinges on practicing aquaculture the right way.  So, what does the “right way” entail? What do we still need to know to …

Is aquaculture sustainable? As with so many important questions, the inevitable—often infuriating—answer is, “it depends.”   As the U.S. looks to expand into open ocean aquaculture (usually between 3 and 200 nautical miles off the coast), we have the opportunity to get things right from the start. We can create diverse local jobs, build a more …

The FISH Act will support science and collaboration needed to secure a robust future for U.S. fisheries

A new poll released by Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) reveals voters are open to growing more seafood in U.S. waters if it adheres to strong consumer and environmental standards.

Authored by Juan Pablo Hoffmaister, Associate Vice President for Global Engagement at Environmental Defense Fund  The international climate community is convening in Bonn, Germany, for the 60th sessions of the Subsidiary Bodies of the UNFCCC this June—and they will set the tone for the next year of global climate engagement. The sessions in Bonn are …

By Daniel Whittle Chronic power outages, food disruptions and climate-related disasters have become commonplace across the Caribbean. But amidst these challenges, there’s room for optimism. Increased funding, growing awareness, supportive policies and community leadership offer an opportunity for rebuilding and strengthening resilience in the Caribbean and small island developing states, or SIDS,  around the world.

“An Ocean of Potential” was the tagline at this year’s Our Ocean conference in Greece on April 15-17. The phrase encompasses the breadth of possibilities that the ocean holds for us. It also encapsulates EDF’s approach to supporting climate-resilient fisheries and oceans. What do we mean when we say that there is “an ocean of …

A community in the Philippines is exploring the major benefits of seaweed farming.

The U.S. Supreme Court will rule on Chevron. What is it and why could it change how federal regulations are enforced? General Counsel Vickie Patton answers important questions about this bombshell case.

This past August, in southern Ecuador amidst dense mangrove forests, scientists were at work. As I followed in her footsteps, Julie Shahan, a Stanford University Ph.D. student, navigated the challenging terrain, burdened by the large 25-pound piece of equipment on her back. This equipment, a gas analyzer, collects measurements to unlock the secrets of soil …

Boat-mounted sensors being used off the coast of Ghana are helping fishers there deal with dwindling catches from climate change.

By Christopher Cusack (EDF) and Cooper Van Vranken (Ocean Data Network) In the early hours of October 25, 2023, Hurricane Otis made landfall near Acapulco, Mexico, with peak winds of 165 mph wreaking havoc on communities in its path. Normally, people would have had a chance to prepare but just the day before, the consensus …