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Ashleigh Arton
MSC Senior impact Officer
Planet and satellite viewed from space by PIRO4D, pixabay.com
After an exciting four months of collaboration with the innovators, it was announced that FisherSpotter and AMTD Electronics successfully reached the final phase of the MSC’s challenge.
FisherSpotter’s idea consists of installing a low-cost GPS logger and tracker on boats, one that builds on already available robust and saltwater-friendly technology used to track whales. GPS signals ping at regular intervals to confirm a vessel’s location and provide a means for fishers to send out a distress signal in an emergency. Many small-scale fishers put themselves in danger when they are far off-shore with no means to contact their home-base. The emergency beacon can help reduce this risk and incentivise fishers to install the devices.
AMTD Electronics developed a low-cost, low-power device that uses short-range Bluetooth capabilities to connect with a mobile phone for authentication and communication of GPS data. Tracking modules installed on boats would help monitor the movements of vessels inside fishing-restricted zones. This data may also be made available to the fishers themselves, helping them better understand their environment and support data-driven decisions.
We’ll be working closely with both innovators to help further develop their ideas to monitor sustainable fishing compliance. It’s been inspiring to work with such forward-thinking organisations and investigate how space data could really benefit our oceans, here on Earth.
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