Waterside Chat with Brad Warren of Global Ocean Health

06/26/23 • 53 min

Brad Warren, president of Global Ocean Health, joined host Tom Sadler of the Marine Fish Conservation Network on May 31, 2023 for an online Waterside Chat. Global Ocean Health is based around the idea that when the "health of the ocean itself is threatened, the strongest champions are people who depend on it for a living." Brad and host Tom Sadler talked about:
* How the seeing salmon reduced to a shadow of their former abundance - and size - motivated him and so many others to take action.
* Why melting glaciers and ocean acidification are bad news for fish populations, and how fish losses from heat and drought are a direct and visible result of climate change.
* How frontline food producers can see the unraveling of the ecosystems that make us dinner.
* The power of fishermen speaking directly to Congress about the threat to their livelihoods and their ability to feed the rest of us
* How Global Ocean Health is working with tribal nations to address climate change.
* Why the tribal ethic of multi-generational stewardship is essential to helping restore the ocean, atmosphere, and land balance.
* How Global Ocean Health, helps seafood producers, resource-dependent communities and scientists understand climate change, document its consequences, and protect fishery resources and ecosystems.
More about Global Ocean Health: http://globaloceanhealth.org/
The Marine Fish Conservation Network’s Waterside Chat series connects people who depend on healthy oceans and fisheries with the issues that directly affect them and their communities. Each episode the Network’s Deputy Director Tom Sadler talks with different guests about ocean policy and fisheries management topics. He engages them in genuine and thoughtful conversations about what policy decisions mean for people’s livelihoods, communities, recreation, and coastal ways of life.
More about the Network: https://conservefish.org/

Previous Episode

Managing Gulf Fisheries for the Long Term: Waterside Chat with Eric Brazer

Eric Brazer joined host Tom Sadler for a Waterside Chat on April 26th, 2023. Eric is the deputy director of the Gulf of Mexico Reef Fish Shareholders' Alliance, a member of the Network’s Policy Council, and a voice on behalf of science-based management of Gulf Red Snapper and other species. Among many other things, Eric and Tom discussed:

How despite years of fisheries conservation successes, the Gulf is telling us it's in trouble. Populations of fish such as gag grouper have declined to their lowest level on record, prompting huge cuts in fishing quotas.
The need for ecosystem management rather than managing individual species in isolation.
The need for fisheries managers to have experience in fisheries management or on the water. The Gulf management council has more people named "Bob" serving on it right now than it does actual commercial fishermen.
How the Shareholder Alliance’s Quota Bank that helps reduce red snapper discards in the eastern Gulf by holding participants to a high standard of accountability in a market-based system.
The Alliance's policy work to support good science and data, to educate regional and federal regulators, and to play an active role in shaping our commercial fishing regulations.
Their work with the Gulf Wild brand program, supporting a seafood traceability program built by fishermen for fishermen.
How the Alliance fosters the next generation of conservation-minded fishermen.
The complex effects of climate change on Gulf fish populations.

More about the Gulf of Mexico Reef Fish Shareholders' Alliance: https://shareholdersalliance.org/
More about the Gulf Wild program: https://gulfwild.com/
The Marine Fish Conservation Network’s Waterside Chat series connects people who depend on healthy oceans and fisheries with the issues that directly affect them and their communities. Each episode the Network’s Deputy Director Tom Sadler talks with different guests about ocean policy and fisheries management topics. He engages them in genuine and thoughtful conversations about what policy decisions mean for people’s livelihoods, communities, recreation, and coastal ways of life.
Join the Network's email list to learn about future Waterside Chats: https://conservefish.org/join-our-email-list/

Next Episode

Aquaculture the Right Way: Waterside Chat with Andrianna Natsoulas

Andrianna Natsoulas joined host Tom Sadler on June 21, 2023 for a Waterside Chat organized by the Marine Fish Conservation Network. The campaign director for Don’t Cage Our Oceans, Andrianna is also the author of "Food Voices: Stories from the People Who Feed Us."
In a wide-ranging conversation, Tom and Andrianna talked about:

Don’t Cage Our Oceans' approach to open-ocean aquaculture policy and advocacy
Why Don't Cage Our Oceans argues that open-ocean, fin-fish aquaculture is neither economical nor sustainable
The downsides of open-ocean fin-fish farms, from nitrogen and carbon pollution to antibiotic releases and risks to marine mammals
The comparison between open-ocean fish farms and factory farms on land
The need for fish-farming practices that are embedded in social, economic, and environmental values -- projects that provide nutritious fish to local residents, support the environment, and bring coastal communities more opportunities

Learn more about Don’t Cage Our Oceans: https://dontcageouroceans.org/
The Marine Fish Conservation Network’s Waterside Chat series connects people who depend on healthy oceans and fisheries with the issues that directly affect them and their communities. Each episode the Network’s Deputy Director Tom Sadler talks with different guests about ocean policy and fisheries management topics. He engages them in genuine and thoughtful conversations about what policy decisions mean for people’s livelihoods, communities, recreation, and coastal ways of life.
Join the Network's email list to learn about future Waterside Chats: https://conservefish.org/join-our-email-list/