Innovation Fund

In 2021, the MSC awarded £100,000 through the Ocean Stewardship Fund to support global efforts to identify and improve best practice approaches for at-sea monitoring, which will ensure that fishery observers around the world can carry out their work safely.

Projects awarded include:

• Creating a bespoke fisheries communications platform for observers to safely communicate with home bases
  

• A review of fishery observer programmes and recommendations on policy changes

Why did the MSC choose this theme?

The collection of high-quality data on fishing activities, which has been recorded at-sea, is a key part of effective fishery management.

Data on fishing activity are provided by fishers on vessels as well as independent sources, such as third-party human observers and electronic monitoring systems. Both sources of data are essential in enabling fishery managers to assess factors such as catch, fishing effort or activity, the health of the target species and the fishery's environmental impact.

Fishing vessels can be dangerous workplaces and observers may find themselves in unsafe conditions with limited options for rescue or medical support. They may also come into conflict with the crew and are at risk of bribery, intimidation and harassment.

The MSC wants to see better and safer working practices for at-sea observers, who play a vital role in legal and sustainable fisheries management.

What grants are available?

The Innovation Fund is not open for applications in 2022-23 as all priority research is being addressed through other funding strands within the Ocean Stewardship Fund.