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Importancia de las Diferencias de Actitudes entre Pescadores Artesanales en la Cogestión y Conservación de Recursos Marinos
Author(s) -
GELCICH STEFAN,
EDWARDSJONES GARETH,
KAISER MICHEL J.
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
conservation biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.2
H-Index - 222
eISSN - 1523-1739
pISSN - 0888-8892
DOI - 10.1111/j.1523-1739.2005.00534.x
Subject(s) - livelihood , business , artisanal fishing , participatory rural appraisal , fishing , sustainability , government (linguistics) , fisheries management , marine protected area , sustainable management , environmental planning , environmental resource management , fishery , property rights , natural resource management , geography , natural resource , citizen journalism , habitat , economics , political science , ecology , agriculture , microeconomics , linguistics , philosophy , archaeology , law , biology
The Chilean government has introduced a policy that gives formal property rights over defined areas of seabed to organized groups of artisanal fishers with the goal of achieving sustainable exploitation of natural resources. We assessed differences in the attitudes of participating artisanal fishers toward this form of management to understand their importance in the design and implementation of fisheries management. We used questionnaires and participatory rural appraisal techniques to survey members of six fishing management committees. Fishers' attitudes varied significantly among syndicates in three main domains: attitudes toward the environment, unresolved aspects behind the management area policy, and perceived benefits derived from adoption of the policy. These differences indicated the existence of distinct world views that structure fishers' behavior toward the marine environment and its management. In addition, the responses made by fishers correlated best with the degree of off‐sector pluriactivity and their dependence on diving as a source of income. This suggested that a livelihood approach to the development of Chilean artisanal fisheries that considers the multiple economic niches of the fishers will be most effective in the implementation of dual conservation/management measures.