Macroalgae are foundational to rocky reef ecosystems, creating complex habitat that supports diverse species assemblages and provides vital ecosystem services such as coastal food production and carbon dioxide sequestration. Within rocky reefs, macroalgae host dense communities of epifaunal invertebrates, which play a key role in energy transfer and nutrient cycling within marine food webs. However, these ecosystems face compounding environmental stressors, including ocean warming, increased storm disturbance, and nutrient limitation. Additionally, the limited temporal resolution of existing datasets has hindered our understanding of long-term fluctuations in macroalgal-epifaunal communities. This research examines the drivers of macroalgal-epifaunal community structure in California’s Santa Barbara Channel, focusing on long-term environmental impacts at Santa Cruz Island to inform sustainable, multi-trophic aquaculture systems. Using 16 years of ecological community data alongside records of sea surface temperature, wave height, and nutrient availability, we assess how regional and reef-scale drivers shape community dynamics over time. Our findings reveal a positive relationship between macroalgal species density and epifaunal richness, suggesting that reefs with greater macroalgal species density enhance energy flow through epifauna, supporting fish and invertebrate populations critical to local fisheries. Further analysis will investigate how climate-related factors influence reef resilience and productivity, offering critical insights for sustainable, climate-resilient ocean-based food systems that support both biodiversity and fisheries. These findings contribute to the development of biodiversity-supporting aquaculture practices that can strengthen ocean-based food systems in a changing climate.

How to cite: Mangino, I. and Miller, R.: The Role of Macroalgal-Epifaunal Communities in Ocean-Based Food Systems: Long-Term Environmental and Ecological Drivers in Rocky Reef Ecosystems, One Ocean Science Congress 2025, Nice, France, 3–6 Jun 2025, OOS2025-874, https://doi.org/10.5194/oos2025-874, 2025.

The allocation process within environmental markets is frequently a source of contention, marked by a lack of transparency. Historically, allocation of fishing opportunities has been primarily rooted in past catches, a practice increasingly scrutinized due to its potential implications for future generations and other societal concerns. Climate change and related shifts in fish distribution, but also stock recoveries, now occurring after decades of overfishing, have brought attention to this issue, potentially opening avenues for policy experimentation. Cases of conflict arising from shifting distributions underscore the urgency of addressing allocation challenges. Despite prevailing challenges, there exist policy examples that provide models for more transparent and equitable methods of allocating fishing opportunities, signaling options for improved practices. For instance, auctions may be used for at least a partial allocation, as they could substantially increase the re-distribution of resource rent to society. Other policies could be implemented to protect small-scale fishing with low environmental impact.

How to cite: Kourantidou, M., Oostdijk, M., Elsler, L., Gisladottir, J., Richter, A., Carpenter, G., Tokunaga, K., Woods, P., and Agnarsson, S.: Distributing (new) fishing opportunities, One Ocean Science Congress 2025, Nice, France, 3–6 Jun 2025, OOS2025-445, https://doi.org/10.5194/oos2025-445, 2025.

In recent decades, rising inequity has become a significant social challenge, shaping human-environment interactions in coastal areas and affecting small-scale fisheries where social and cultural values intersect with policy and markets. Despite these challenges, sustainable fisheries that respect ecological limits and promote social justice exist worldwide. The OceanPaths project investigates pathways to ocean sustainability across diverse coastal locations, from the global north to the global south, focusing on lobster fisheries in the Mediterranean, Chile, and the Colombian Caribbean, which amid different socioeconomic contexts have evolved from subsistence to tourism-driven industries. Through stakeholder surveys and interviews, we explore how social, cultural, and political factors shape conservation efforts, emphasizing the influence of equity-driven, bottom-up initiatives over top-down regulations. By integrating traditional and scientific knowledge, the project highlights inclusive management practices that operate within ecologically safe boundaries. OceanPaths ultimately aims to foster sustainable futures, enhance social well-being, and strengthen ecosystem services, advancing equitable and resilient ocean governance.

How to cite: de Juan, S., Martín Estarellas, J. J., Bohórquez Herrera, J., Villasante, S., and Ospina-Alvarez, A.: Pathways to Sustainable and Just Lobster Fisheries in Coastal Regions, One Ocean Science Congress 2025, Nice, France, 3–6 Jun 2025, OOS2025-601, https://doi.org/10.5194/oos2025-601, 2025.

The global supply of fishmeal and fish oil (FMFO) has been essential to the tremendous growth of aquaculture production over the past 30 years. Seventeen million tonnes of wild fish were caught and reduced to FMFO in 2022 and almost all of which (87% FM, 74% FO) was used by aquaculture to feed certain finfish and crustaceans. It is estimated that 4-5kg of wild fish is currently used to produce 1kg of farmed salmon. With increased aquaculture production often deemed necessary to feed a growing human population, it is important to better understand the potential implications that further growth, and demand for FMFO, may have for equity and justice. In this review and analysis, using examples from Peru and West Africa, we explore how the industrial extraction of marine resources for FMFO disproportionately harms small-scale fisheries and coastal communities, often in the Global South. Specifically, we focus on the extraction of small pelagic fish species such as anchovies and sardines to produce FMFO as feed for farmed salmon that is consumed almost exclusively in richer countries. Further, we analyze how industrial scale reduction of fish to FMFO threatens the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals by perpetuating inequitable and unjust practices, including the unsustainable harvesting of small pelagic fish species, which has far-reaching consequences for marine food webs and biodiversity and the nutritional security of coastal communities that depend on access to these fish. Lastly, we propose policy interventions that aim to mitigate the inequality in FMFO production while fostering greater inclusivity and fairness in the global fishing industry.

How to cite: Costalago, D., Piscetta, M., Skerritt, D., Cusa, M., and Geers, T.: Inequity in Fishmeal and Fish Oil Production., One Ocean Science Congress 2025, Nice, France, 3–6 Jun 2025, OOS2025-468, https://doi.org/10.5194/oos2025-468, 2025.

Small-scale fisheries play a crucial role in supporting the livelihoods of coastal communities and ensuring food security, thus contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). However, they face major equity challenges regarding access to marine resources and markets and bargaining power, among others. The need for progress in access for small-scale fishers is specifically recognized within the SDGs, notably SDG 14.b (which aims to "ensure access for small-scale artisanal fishers to marine resources and markets"). An export small-scale fishery in Madagascar was used to further investigate these challenges and their effects on resource sustainability. The study highlighted significant temporal and geographical variability in catch, fishing gears, market conditions, and ex-vessel prices at regional scale. Fishers operated within a 10-km distance from their villages and face varying fluctuations in catch abundance due to ecological factors. The dominant “patron-client” relationship in the value chain negatively impacted ex-vessel prices and fishers’ profits, including during the high abundance period following the annual fishing closure. Local buyers and exporting firms were therefore the primary beneficiaries of the market context. The study emphasized the lack of organized structures in the fishery, which hampers market efficiency and exacerbates inequalities among fishers, who were price takers with restricted access to national and international markets. Price and profit variations highlighted the tensions between fishers’ socioeconomic needs and the marine resource sustainability and the urgent need for enhanced equity in access to markets. The study suggests and discusses the opportunity for setting minimum fair prices through negotiations among fishers, buyers, and exporting firms within a stakeholder forum as a way to voice vulnerable actors’ needs and increase equity in small-scale fisheries.

How to cite: Fanambinantsoa, S. D., Zafimamatrapehy, D. R., Razanakoto, T., Raberinary, D., Razanoelisoa, J., Mahafina, J., and Leopold, M.: Equity challenges in resources and market access in small-scale fisheries , One Ocean Science Congress 2025, Nice, France, 3–6 Jun 2025, OOS2025-1215, https://doi.org/10.5194/oos2025-1215, 2025.

Human beings possess an innate connection to the natural world, which significantly impacts their physical existence, well-being, and mental state. A socio-ecological system (SES) can be characterized as an interconnected structure of humans and their environment, exhibiting a complex, hierarchical nature with non-linear and unpredictable behavior arising from system interactions. Natural systems encompass biological and biophysical processes, whilst social systems are moulded by actors, regulations, institutions, knowledge, and ethical considerations that interpret human perceptions of the natural world. There is a growing body of scientific literature emphasizing the importance of recognizing fisheries as an SES, as the system can be broken down into interacting ecological and social subsystems. The ecological aspects of fisheries typically include fish populations, ecosystems, and environmental conditions, while social components comprise fishing communities, economic and governance institutions, and cultural practices. SES are susceptible to various threats, risks, and stressors that affect their surroundings and create vulnerabilities, making them prone to harmful or challenging circumstances. This study provides a global overview of the stressors that affect fisheries SES and their plausible coping strategies.. A systematic review of literature was conducted to identify pressures driven by multifaceted stressors, which were categorised into five groups: biophysical, economic, social, governance, and technological. Following a tailored search strategy, 287 published articles from citation databases were chosen for review using NVivo. These were filtered through the SPIDER inclusion-exclusion framework, and a thematic analysis of the contents was performed by assigning flexible codes to descriptive information. Climate change, land-based pollution, illegal fishing, overfishing, and oceanographic variability were identified as primary biophysical stressors. Significant economic stressors included high resource dependency, competing interests, poverty, price volatility, unsustainable subsidies, and the contraction of future livelihoods. Key social stressors comprised lack of access to education and awareness, inequalities, and health concerns. Major governance stressors encompassed geopolitical crises, unpredictable catch changes, lack of consideration for ecosystem services and resource users, inadequate planning for climate change impacts, absence of sustainability policies, and weak enforcement. The use of intensive fishing techniques and inequalities in access to technology were among the principal technological stressors. The combined effects of these stressors make SES vulnerable to catch depletion, alterations in catch composition, poor environmental conditions, loss of livelihood benefits, and diminished resilience. The ability of SES to withstand these perturbations and take advantage of opportunities or to cope with the consequences is determined by its adaptive capacity. This study revealed numerous dimensions that define the adaptive capacities of fisheries SES. The most influential strategies for building fisheries SES resilience stem from access to material assets, fostering ecological resilience, planning for climate change impacts, empowering human agency, promoting social organization, and developing socio-cognitive structures. While this research offers a global perspective crucial for fisheries management, it is important to note that SES vulnerabilities are context-specific, depending on the precise characterization of local socio-environmental conditions. Therefore, analysis should be tailored to the geographical location of interest.

How to cite: Manikarachchige, I., Kemp, P., Shah, B., and Hare, J.: From Stress to Strength: A Global Perspective on Fisheries Socio-Ecological Systems Vulnerabilities and Adaptive Capacities, One Ocean Science Congress 2025, Nice, France, 3–6 Jun 2025, OOS2025-512, https://doi.org/10.5194/oos2025-512, 2025.