Empowering small-scale fishers

Small-scale fisheries and supply chains support livelihoods and nutrition for millions of people, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. Around the world, fisheries supply chains are becoming increasingly digitized, creating faster and more reliable avenues of market access for small-scale fishers. These new digital tools have taken on an even greater prominence as small-scale fishers scramble to adapt to shocks associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. However, it is not yet understood if these technologies improve fishers’ livelihoods and influence fishers’ decision-making (e.g., evaluation of environmental impacts and cooperation in conservation practices). This project will investigate these questions through the deployment of a well-established digital platform by ABALOBI with fishers in the Republic of Palau. Using a quasi-experimental design, the researchers will track socioeconomic and decision-making metrics before, during, and after deployment of the ABALOBI app, generating actionable and scalable insights into the role of technological interventions in empowering small-scale fishers and promoting sustainable solutions for fishing communities.

Learn more about the Environmental Venture Projects grant program and other funded projects.

Principal Investigators:

Gabriel Wong-Parodi (Environmental Earth System Science)

Michael Bernstein (Computer Science)

Fiorenza Micheli (Biology)