FOL back in Copenhagen for a Workshop on Climate Change Impacts and Fisheries Management

Future Oceans Lab joined a collaborative workshop on climate change impacts and fisheries management which was held in Copenhagen on the 30^th and 31^st of August 2017. This event was organized by the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) and hosted by the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) at its headquarters.

EDF is a non-profit organization that advocates using science, economics and law to find effective environmental solutions that benefit people while protecting natural systems. EDF works within a broad range of areas including climate, oceans, ecosystems and health. EDF Oceans Europe’s last initiative included a workshop to better understand fish stocks shifts caused by climate change in the North East Atlantic, which have been documented by the ICES report WKFISHDISH. Implications of these shifts for the future of fishing and fisheries policy and management were at the heart of the discussion.

Two days of thrilling dialogue between science and policy experts helped to provide a common grounding on the latest research related to changes in fish stock distribution and abundance as a result of climate impacts. The role of science in identifying climate related risks and impacts and assessing the current science-policy interface was also examined. Finally, tools and approaches that foster constructive solutions to climate-related fisheries impacts for the North East Atlantic region were explored.