Project Search

256 results

Developing FRDC’s 2020-2025 RD&E Plan

Project number: 2018-197

Project Status:

Completed

Budget expenditure: $370,061.23

Principal Investigator: Matt Barwick

Organisation: Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC)

Project start/end date: 19 Apr 2019 - 30 Dec 2020

Contact:

FRDC

TAGS

Stakeholder

Fisheries Management

Aquaculture

Need

Section 19 of PIRD Act requires R&D corporations to prepare R&D Plans for each consecutive 5-year period. Each plan is to include (at a minimum):
· a statement of the Corporation’s objectives and priorities for the period to which the plan is expressed to relate; and
· an outline of the strategies that the Corporation intends to adopt in order to achieve those objectives.
Under section 10 of the Funding Agreement between FRDC and the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources (DAWR), FRDC is required to develop a consultation plan, which seeks to:
• explain the purpose and objectives of consultation to inform the 2020-2025 RD&E Plan;
• describe who will be consulted;
• outline methods proposed; and,
• explain how input provided will be used.

FRDC is to obtain DAWR approval for the consultation plan prior to commencement of activities.
In order to develop an RD&E Plan which accurately interprets and responds to RD&E needs for Australia’s fishing and aquaculture community it is important to understand the aspirations, pain points, risks and opportunities of each sector over the intended life of the plan through undertaking broad consultation. It is also important to understand the current situation of the fishing and aquaculture (F&A) community (including indigenous, wild catch, aquaculture and recreational, and post-harvest sectors). The situational analysis should provide an updated understanding of what fishing and aquaculture looks like in Australia today, who is involved, what drives them, how they are performing, how the product (if retained) is used, what are the main dominant risks and trends. An earlier situational analysis delivered as an output of FRDC Project 2014/503.20 provides a useful template.
Finally, it is for any RD&E plan to be informed by an understanding of likely future trends, risks and opportunities facing Australia’s F&A community in the future. This requires:
· compilation of evidence to enable consideration of likely future geopolitical, social, economic, environmental and/or technical changes likely to occur in the future, and drivers of those changes;
· generation of projections relating to supply and demand for seafood products as well as cultural and/or recreational time use

Objectives

1. Undertake consultative activities to inform development of the 2020-2025 RD&E Plan

2. Deliver a contemporary situational analysis for Australia’s fishing and aquaculture community to inform FRDC’s 2020-2025 RD&E Plan

3. Deliver a future-scan with a decadal time horizon (2030) to inform FRDC’s 2020-2025 RD&E Plan

4. Undertake activities necessary to enable launch of the 2020-2025 RD&E Plan by 30 June 2020.

Final report

Authors: Jeff Dambacher Alistair Hobday Fabio Boschetti Chris Moeseneder Linda Thomas

Final Report • 2020-05-28 • 2.57 MB

2018-197-DLD.pdf

Summary

This report covers the second of two CSIRO contributions to the project FRDC 2018-197. This project was reviewing FRDC research objectives through a process that developed alternative scenarios of possible futures relevant to Australian fisheries. Discussed here is the development of a quantitative model to explore future seafood scenarios developed elsewhere. The purpose of this modelling exercise was to support the project FRDC 2018-197. The development of these possible future scenarios was undertaken in a process
that ran in parallel to the CSIRO contribution. This process involved a series of stakeholder workshops and follow-up discussions, to which CSIRO staff were occasional observers.

The qualitative models developed to describe present day dynamics were then tested to see if they could account for previously observed shocks or perturbations the Australian aquaculture and fisheries system. This involved a face-to-face workshop and teleconference with representatives of the Stage 1 expert group.

Based on external input to management, employment and environmental variables, the qualitative models produced a set of predictions that were highly consistent with previously observed impacts in Australian fisheries and aquaculture.
The models were then tested to see how well they compared to the dynamics described in the future scenarios, and here model predictions were found to be highly consistent with the dynamics played out in the two future scenarios – that is, both worlds are likely.

With ongoing support from CSIRO, these models can now be used to explore alternative perturbations, identify the informative indicators, and to determine when these models of the future (World A and B) are no longer realistic representations of real situation. If insufficient information is being gather on these indicators, the efforts could be made to collect such data, or if the information is too expensive, the alternatives can also be investigated to determine how many alternative indicators provide the equivalent conformation

Final Report • 2020-05-28 • 2.57 MB

2018-197-DLD.pdf

Summary

Abalone assessment and management (workshop): what have we learned, what are the gaps and where can we do better

Project number: 2018-193

Project Status:

Completed

Budget expenditure: $26,750.29

Principal Investigator: Ian Cartwright

Organisation: Abalone Council Australia Ltd (ACA)

Project start/end date: 29 Mar 2019 - 30 Nov 2019

Contact:

FRDC

TAGS

Electronic Monitoring

SPECIES

Abalone

Need

This workshop will seek to establish a commitment from all stakeholders – industry, managers & researchers – to work towards the rationalisation and consolidation between jurisdictions in the areas of research, monitoring and management. A national commitment to achieving this would be a positive step towards addressing long-standing issues of duplication among sectors as well as lost opportunity for collaboration and the leveraging of resources. In addition, such a commitment will be integral to improving the sustainability of these stocks, while enhancing economic outcomes for industry.

Objectives

1. To consolidate and exchange information on the range of current and planned assessment and management approaches in Australian abalone fisheries

2. To identify areas of common interest and determine the degree to which common approaches may be adopted across and within jurisdictions

3. To determine where existing research outputs and future research could best be used by managers to improve outcomes and increase industry and the community’s confidence in assessments

4. To consider areas of common interest and prioritise future RD&E investment

Final report

Author: Ian Cartwright

Final Report • 2019-05-20 • 425.64 KB

2018-193-DLD.pdf

Summary

This workshop sought to establish a commitment from all Australian Abalone stakeholders – industry, managers & researchers – to work towards the rationalisation and consolidation between jurisdictions in the areas of research, monitoring and management. A national commitment to achieving this would be a positive step towards addressing long-standing issues of duplication among sectors as well as lost opportunity for collaboration and the leveraging of resources. In addition, such a commitment will be integral to improving the sustainability of these stocks, while enhancing economic outcomes for industry.

PROJECT NUMBER • 2018-192

PROJECT STATUS:

COMPLETED

Travel Bursary to attend the AquaVet program at Cornell University, in Massachusetts, USA

AQUAVET is a demanding intensive 4 week aquatic veterinary medicine course aimed to equip members of the veterinary profession with the skills and knowledge required to work in the aquatic field. The biomedical skills used so successfully by veterinarians to deal with disease and increase...

ORGANISATION:

Panaquatic Health Solutions Pty Ltd

TAGS

Travel bursary: Symposium on Responsible Fishing Technology for Healthy Ecosystems and Clean Environment

Project number: 2018-191

Project Status:

Completed

Budget expenditure: $6,500.00

Principal Investigator: Steve J. Eayrs

Organisation: Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC)

Project start/end date: 10 Mar 2019 - 29 Jun 2019

Contact:

FRDC

TAGS

Need

Attendance to Symposium on
Responsible Fishing Technology for Healthy Ecosystems and Clean
Environment

Objectives

1. Attendance at Symposium onResponsible Fishing Technology for Healthy Ecosystems and CleanEnvironment

Report

Author: Dr Stephen Eayrs

Report • 2019-05-01 • 859.57 KB

2018-191-DLD.pdf

Summary

The Award recipient participated in the annual ICES-FAO Fishing Technology and Fish
Behaviour Working Group (ICES-FAO WGFTFB) meeting on April 8 - 12, 2019. This
meeting was hosted by Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai, China, although each year the
meeting is held in a different location. The theme of this meeting was, Responsible Fishing
Technology for Healthy Ecosystems and Clean Environment. This report presents a summary
of this meeting and suggestions for future research in the Australian fishing industry.

PROJECT NUMBER • 2018-189

PROJECT STATUS:

COMPLETED

NCCP: Socio-economic impact assessment and stakeholder engagement

The present study, undertaken by University of Canberra, was developed to investigate the potential to engender support for the recommendations included in the NCCP byassessing potential impacts of carp control on different groups, and ensuring key stakeholders are able to access, understand and...

ORGANISATION:

University of Canberra

TAGS

SPECIES

Identifying and synthesizing key messages from projects funded by the FRDC Indigenous Reference Group

Project number: 2018-183

Project Status:

Completed

Budget expenditure: $167,738.00

Principal Investigator: Leila Alkassab

Organisation: Land to Sea Consulting

Project start/end date: 31 Aug 2019 - 8 Mar 2020

Contact:

FRDC

TAGS

Need

The IRG has raised a need to synthesise the key messages from previous projects that they have supported. In order to ensure that the data and information from these projects are accessible and easily understood for various audiences (includes Indigenous, commercial and recreational stakeholders, researchers, policy makers and the general public), the IRG has identified a need to create succinct materials that can be useful to those that seek to develop policy and stimulate community driven engagement.

Objectives

1. To gain an understanding of the materials and formats that policy-makers and key fisheries organizations need in their utilization of research to develop policy.

2. To improve general stakeholder awareness of the key research findings in of FRDC and IRG projects.

3. To provide Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities with material that they can use in their engagement with government and non-government agencies.

4. To develop a succinct fact-sheets and a report that integrate the key messages of eight previous IRG projects in a user-friendly and culturally appropriate way.

Final report

ISBN: 978-0-646-82309-6

Author: Leila Alkassab

Final Report • 2020-08-01 • 492.72 KB

2018-183-DLD.pdf

Summary

What the report is about

This project identifies, synthesises and summarises the key messages of eight projects that have been funded by the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC) and the Indigenous Reference Group (IRG) on fisheries. These key messages have been presented through a series of materials including a synthesis report, summary booklets and an infographic, all of which were developed as a way of raising awareness of the latest research findings regarding the Indigenous fisheries in Australia. They are presented in a manner that is useful and accessible to a wide-range of audiences including Indigenous communities, decision makers and other fisheries stakeholders.

The materials have specifically developed with the aim of empowering Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities by providing them with resources that they can use to engage government and non-government agencies. This project also involved a two-way learning component which entailed engaging an Indigenous student as a researcher for the duration of this project.

Background

In 2011 the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC) and the Indigenous Reference Group (IRG) on fisheries held a national forum to discuss issues around Indigenous involvement in fishing and seafood based Research, Development and Extension (RD&E). Participants at the forum included Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people with experience or expertise in fishing, seafood, or natural resource management across Australia as well as a small number of non-Indigenous participants (Calogeras et al. 2012). In 2012, participants from the forum reviewed and endorsed the work and confirmed that the outputs and the outcomes aligned with the desires of the group. Through this process, the IRG developed a set of five priorities to guide RD&E for and about Indigenous fishing in Australia (Calogeras et al. 2012).

The FRDC-IRG have supported a number of projects focused on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander fisheries that focus on elements of the RD&E priorities (Calogeras et al. 2012). These projects have information that the IRG needs to communicate with Indigenous, commercial and recreational stakeholders, researchers, policy makers, agencies and the general public. Their findings bridge certain knowledge gaps about the Indigenous fisheries and highlight key issues and priorities of Indigenous fishing communities in terms of access and use of their fisheries.

Aims/objectives

This project was undertaken in response to the need identified by the IRG to ensure that the research findings from the previous eight projects are made accessible and easy to understand. The project consisted of the following objectives:

To gain an understanding of the materials and formats that policy makers and key fisheries organisations need in their use of research to develop policy.
To improve general stakeholder awareness of the key research findings in of FRDC and IRG projects.
To provide Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities with material that they can use in their engagement with government and non-government agencies.
To develop succinct fact-sheets and a report that integrate the key messages of eight previous IRG projects in a user-friendly and culturally appropriate way.

Methodology

The project team conducted a desk-top review of eight project reports, their appendices, conducted phone meetings with the principle investigators of each project and liaised with the IRG. Project materials were subsequently developed with the use of qualitative data analysis software NVIVO and designed through Canva, a graphic design program.

Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander artwork was used for the materials produced and where appropriate the artist engaged was from the region that the original project was for or about. An Indigenous student was also recruited as an employee of Land to Sea Consulting for the purposes of two-way capacity building.

Results/key findings

The project findings echo the key messages drawn from the eight recent FRDC-IRG projects that took place on country through participatory and ethical research methodologies. The five themes identified provide an insight into Indigenous priorities for:

Indigenous fisheries
Governance and management
Legislation and policy
Economic empowerment
Capacity building

These five themes have been developed as a way of understanding the key messages of recent FRDC-IRG research and for providing a step forward in offering fisheries stakeholders with in-depth insights into the challenges and opportunities facing the Indigenous fisheries sector. They support and align with the IRG RD&E principles and priorities while emphasising the particular findings and core assertions of the research projects analysed.

Implications for relevant stakeholders

The significance of this project lies in the materials created to communicate with Indigenous communities, fisheries managers, policy makers and other stakeholders involved in the Australian fisheries. They are short, easy-to-read and accessible versions of eight comprehensive research projects and clearly summarise their findings and synthesise their key messages.

The also provide Indigenous communities with material that they can use to engage decision makers. For policy makers and managers, they provide a synthesised and summarised version of recent research bout Indigenous fisheries from which proactive policy can be built and based upon.

Recommendations

The five key messages that have been created through the synthesis of the FRDC-IRG projects have come to shape the very core of this project. Therefore, it is ultimately inevitable that these are the same messages that must embody the recommendations of this project. They are particularly aimed at policy makers and the direction for further development in the Indigenous fisheries sector.

Project products

Brochure • 2020-08-01 • 33.17 MB

2018-183-synthesis report.pdf

Summary

Indigenous communities in Australia have utilised, shared and traded marine resources since time immemorial. These communities continue to hold strong connections and knowledge to aquatic ecosystems and biological resources, and fishing remains embedded in their cultural, social and economic lives.

Since the early stages of colonisation, the ability of Indigenous fishing communities to access their fisheries for both cultural and commercial purposes has been disrupted by external factors, including the policies and practices of the Australian state. In recent history international agreements have been put in place to protect Indigenous rights to access and manage their fisheries worldwide. The Australian government has an obligation to ensure the protection of Indigenous peoples access to their land and sea. Yet there still remains a gap in the aspirations of Indigenous community for their fisheries and formal fisheries management arrangements.

Presently, the Commonwealth, States and Territories define and recognise Indigenous fisheries through different legislation, policy and practices. In turn, there is an identified need for a comprehensive set of national principles to guide the development, implementation and monitoring of Indigenous fisheries policy across all jurisdictions.

The key messages that have been identified through the findings of recent FRDC-IRG research projects present opportunities for various levels of government to proactively assist and support Indigenous fishing communities to access and utilise their fisheries in ways that align with Indigenous aspirations.

Brochure • 4.65 MB

2018-183-Summary booklet–2012-216 Indigenous Cultural Fishing and Fisheries Governance.pdf

Brochure • 2020-08-01 • 9.97 MB

2018-183-Summary booklet-2013-017 Optimising the Management of Tropical Reef Fish through the Development of Indigenous Scientific Capability.pdf

Brochure • 2020-08-01 • 50.93 MB

2018-183-Summary booklet-2013-218 Building the capacity and performance of Indigenous fisheries.pdf

Brochure • 2020-08-01 • 42.41 MB

2018-183-Summary booklet-2014-233 Improving access for Indigenous Australians to, and involvement in, the use and management of Australia’s fisheries resources.pdf

Brochure • 2020-08-01 • 15.98 MB

2018-183-Summary booklet-2015-205 Livelihood values of Indigenous customary fishing.pdf

Brochure • 2020-08-01 • 12.26 MB

2018-183-Summary booklet-2016-201 Business opportunities and impediments for Aboriginal community development in supportive fishing industries in the Roper River to Robinson River area of the Northern Territory.pdf

Brochure • 2020-08-01 • 13.39 MB

2018-183-Summary booklet-2016-204 'Wave to Plate' establishing a market for cultural fisheries in Tasmania.pdf

Brochure • 2020-08-01 • 24.76 MB

2018-183-Summary booklet-2016-206 Business Nous Indigenous business development opportunities and impediment in the fishing and seafood industry.pdf

PROJECT NUMBER • 2018-181

PROJECT STATUS:

COMPLETED

The End of an Era: Acknowledging the socio-cultural history and contribution of Australian small-scale fisheries

With little fanfare or attention, commercial fishing in the Gippsland Lakes in eastern Victoria ceased on 1 April 2020. The small-scale commercial fishery, which was crucial to the establishment of the town of Lakes Entrance roughly 150 years ago, was closed by the Victorian State...

ORGANISATION:

A Twigg

TAGS

Human Dimensions Research

SPECIES

PROJECT NUMBER • 2018-177

PROJECT STATUS:

COMPLETED

'If you don’t know where you are going, you’ll end up someplace else' - Future proofing the Australian Mud Crab Industry through improved strategic direction

BACKGROUND Australian mud crab fisheries extend from northern Western Australia (WA) across the Northern Territory (NT) and Queensland (Qld) through to northern New South Wales (NSW) and are managed across the four jurisdictions. The product from each jurisdiction is sold into a...

ORGANISATION:

C-AID Consultants

TAGS

SPECIES

Women in Seafood Australasia - Understanding, supporting and promoting effective participation by women within the Australian seafood industry

Project number: 2018-174

Project Status:

Completed

Budget expenditure: $201,500.00

Principal Investigator: Heidi J. Mumme

Organisation: Women in Seafood Australasia (WISA)

Project start/end date: 19 Sep 2019 - 19 Sep 2021

Contact:

FRDC

TAGS

Human Dimensions Research

Need

A comprehensive and wide ranging understanding of the current levels of engagement of women in the seafood sector will provide a valuable and ongoing resource to the wider seafood sector to increase women's engagement and participation.

To support and promote the value of fully engaged women participating effectively and helping to secure the future viability of the Australian seafood industry WISA needs to build critical skills of seafood women, delivered in a way that is accessible to them and encourages participation from rural and regional areas. This is particularly important for women under 30.

Researching (nationally and internationally) and better understanding the value of having greater diversity within seafood enterprises, associations, research agencies, at senior management, board and committee level will help WISA create an integrated online and offline skills development platform. The platform will need to be easily accessible by women, focused on the specific and particular needs of women and support and encourage greater participation by women in the seafood industry.

While there are resources available e.g e-leaders program there is a need for these resources to be reviewed and updated to target the specific needs of seafood women. Additionally, WISA needs to form strategic and mutually beneficial partnerships/alliances with other relevant organisations and networks and work with them to capitalise on opportunities provided through these partnerships.

Having skilled women is not sufficient to ensure that women are successful and effective contributors. It is also necessary to develop a specific pathway program for women to gain the confidence necessary to nominate and be selected for key management, board and committees. This will help seafood enterprises and organisations (industry, research and government) to increase diversity by enabling access to skilled women able to contribute to their success.

Objectives

1. 1 To create a baseline (quantitative and qualitative) against which progress and impact of WISA activities can be measured.

2. 2 To establish an online skills platform to provide access to training by women in rural and regional areas that will support greater diversity in seafood enterprises, research agencies and industry associations.

3. 3. To deliver the Women in Seafood Pathways program targeting at least 15 graduates initially.

4. To establish a communications and extension program to highlight the roles of women in seafood and the value diversity provides to the seafood industry and community.

Final report

Authors: Kirsten Abernethy Heidi Mumme and Karen Holder

Final Report • 2022-10-01 • 1.13 MB

2018-174-DLD.pdf

Summary

This FRDC project, Understanding, supporting and promoting effective participation by women in the Australian seafood industry, was pivotal for WISA in supporting its future direction as an organisation. Research undertaken showcased the significance of the roles and contributions of seafood women and exposed the structural and cultural barriers faced by women in the industry. The provision of a bespoke entry level leadership program for women using an online format has provided WISA with greater understanding of the professional development needs of seafood women and how to deliver these effectively. The popularity and success of communication and extension activities incorporated into three key events throughout the project, including presentations, panel sessions, webinars, workshops and networking events, met several objectives including: increasing industry recognition of the contributions of seafood women, highlighting the value inclusion and diversity provides to industry and communities, and identifying ways forward to shift structures and cultures impeding women’s participation and progression in the industry. Underpinned and supported by this project, WISA underwent a renewal including developing a strategic framework to deliver more to its members targeting the evidence-based needs of women in seafood, as well as transitioning to a new company structure which has resulted in a more effectively governed organisation.

Final Report • 2023-02-01 • 2.84 MB

2018-174-2-DLD.pdf

Summary

Women of the Australian Seafood Industry: Women’s contribution, their roles and what women need to succeed, reports the findings of the research component of the Women in Seafood Australasia (WISA) project: 2018-174 Understanding, supporting and promoting effective participation by women in the Australian seafood industry.
Women are an important component of the Australian seafood industry, present in every sector working in the supply chain and with the industry, and every organisation type. Until this project, Australia had little data on women’s contributions to the seafood industry and the roles women play. Furthermore, there was little industry-wide understanding of women’s experiences working in the Australian seafood industry, if and where there are inequalities and gendered differences in experiences, and where barriers lie to women fully participating and progressing in the industry.
This national project used a combination of data sources, including Australian Bureau of Statistics Census data, in depth key informant interviews, and an online survey, to reveal answers to these questions first asked by Women in Seafood Australasia twenty years ago.

PROJECT NUMBER • 2018-172

PROJECT STATUS:

COMPLETED

Methods to profile and connect the provenance of wild caught prawn fisheries and their values to the community

The wild prawn industry, as a key influencer of the community's (sustainability) perception of the Australian seafood industry, has addressed identified risks to social license so that it can protect its legal license to operate in public waters. This report provides the results and conclusions on...

ORGANISATION:

Australian Council of Prawn Fisheries Ltd (ACPF)

TAGS

SPECIES