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Indigenous business development opportunities and impediments in the fishing and seafood industry - 'Wave to plate' establishing a market for Tasmanian cultural fisheries

Project number: 2016-204
Project Status:
Completed
Budget expenditure: $255,195.00
Principal Investigator: Marcus Haward
Organisation: University of Tasmania (UTAS)
Project start/end date: 29 Dec 2016 - 29 Nov 2018
Contact:
FRDC

Need

Aboriginal wild catch is aspirational, seasonal and culture-dependent. For these reasons, it does not compete well against large-scale, industrial fishing operations. Addressing the FRDC’s Indigenous Sector strategy to improve understanding and engagement that ‘best support individual and community economic development’ (FRDC 2015), this project aims to develop a niche market of boutique seafoods, together with investigating how the arts and tourism sectors can foster fisheries management for greater Indigenous community benefit.

A Tasmanian Aboriginal engagement framework in fisheries has not yet been developed by government (Lee 2016, in press). This project will create the conditions for extensions development, based upon resetting engagement terms between Indigenous peoples and government, providing a toolkit of self-determining strategies for regional development. Economic models for future development of fisheries can build upon the capacity of Indigenous communities to translate value into benefit in subsequent projects, such as employment opportunities within the network chain of wild catch procurement to presentation.

There is a need to provide best practice guidance that demonstrates Australia’s commitment to international obligations, such as 2007’s UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. In Australia, building on the growing jurisprudence that affirms native title rights to land, the High Court in 2013 extended such rights to commercial fishing in the Torres Strait in its Akiba v Commonwealth decision (Butterly 2013). However, judicial recognition of Indigenous fishing or other marine-based rights does not in itself provide specific guidance on how those environmental resources should be managed culturally and economically.

Objectives

1. Adapt successful terrestrial model to marine environments, investigating specific conditions of Tasmanian Government policy relating to Indigenous peoples.
2. Assess cultural fishery extensions within commercial operations and determine best practice for government and industry partners.
3. Explore the network chain opportunities for Indigenous involvement in food tourism.
4. Develop postgraduate Indigenous research capacity and broaden scope of marine studies in academia.

Final report

ISBN: 978-1-925761-09-2
Author: Emma Lee and Marcus Haward
Final Report • 2019-05-01 • 4.86 MB
2016-204-DLD.pdf

Summary

The FRDC project, ‘Wave to Plate’: establishing a market for cultural fisheries in Tasmania, is the first time that an Aboriginal Tasmanian postdoctoral researcher has engaged with marine research in Tasmania. Indigenous-led research has delivered a raft of outcomes that can be considered important social shifts for Tasmanian Aboriginal fisheries in over a generation, and, at the time of writing, the Tasmanian Government is actively working to implement the outcomes of the project in relation to access to resources and good governance.
This project has been successful in highlighting the barriers to participation and engagement in cultural fisheries, specifically the current regulatory and policy frameworks that impede progress towards regional development and the contributions that cultural economies of Aboriginal Tasmanians can make to the Tasmanian state. It has identified gaps in knowledge and posited future research directions that are Indigenous-led and centred upon connections to sea country. The project has also been successful in publicly demonstrating the appetite for cultural fisheries through the trialling of the ‘Wave to Plate’ concept with commercial partners.
 
There has been increased understanding from government, Aboriginal communities, industry and research stake holders and partners to the potential of new markets and developmental fisheries from making centre and core Aboriginal Tasmanian connections to sea country. New collaborations with food tourism interests have resulted from the project to inject cultural strengths into Tasmanian fisheries.
This report outlines several key areas that must be considered for establishing a market for cultural fisheries in Tasmania. These include:
  • access to marine resources for Aboriginal Tasmanians;
  • the governance forms, such as a proposed Indigenous Fisheries Advisory Committee and cultural marine planning unit, to assist in decision-making that provide fairness, equity,transparency and opportunities for Aboriginal Tasmanians to develop cultural fisheries that suit local conditions;
  • the models for Indigenous rights to resources and business enterprise that provides a best fit for Aboriginal Tasmanian regional development and fisheries management;
  • the research directions that require a multi-disciplinary focus; and
  • the types of partnerships that can aid in the establishing a market for cultural fisheries.
The report demonstrates that there is a vast array of good will towards Aboriginal Tasmanian aspirations and a variety of means upon which the direction of fisheries can deliver mutual benefit. Above all, there is a breadth and depth of Aboriginal Tasmanian community expertise to create a new industry based upon ancient traditions.
Industry
PROJECT NUMBER • 2016-177
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED

Phase 2: Traceability Systems for Wild Caught Lobster, via Sense-T and Pathways to Market

This document is the final report of the project (FRDC 2016-177) ‘Traceability Systems for Wild Caught Lobsters’. It has been prepared by researchers from University of Tasmania. Background The project ‘Traceability Systems for Wild Caught Lobster, via Sense-T and Pathways...
ORGANISATION:
University of Tasmania (UTAS)
Industry
PROJECT NUMBER • 2012-756
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED

Seafood CRC: Aquaculture Production Innovation Hub: Phase II – communication, extension and opportunities

This project was a continuation of the Aquaculture Innovation Hub (Project 2008/902). The Phase II Hub focussed on research extension activities in the finfish, crustacean and shellfish sectors and on increasing trans-Tasman communications among aquaculture producers and researchers. The Phase II...
ORGANISATION:
University of Tasmania (UTAS)
Industry

El-Nemo SE: extending the Redmap pilot to south east Australia: using citizen science for engagement and early indication of potential new opportunities

Project number: 2011-088
Project Status:
Completed
Budget expenditure: $60,000.00
Principal Investigator: Gretta T. Pecl
Organisation: University of Tasmania (UTAS)
Project start/end date: 5 Jul 2012 - 31 Oct 2012
Contact:
FRDC

Need

One of the major implications of climate change is the large-scale redistribution of species; as the environment changes, species shift in response to keep track of preferred environmental conditions.
This is happening faster in the ocean compared to land, and species are moving greater distances where the warming is greater (Chen et al 2011 Science) - such as the southeast of Australia.

To best respond to these changes we need to ensure 1/ we have an early indication of how species are shifting (what might be new opportunities?) and 2/ our industries and communities are aware of these changes and accepting of the science underpinning management responses. Redmap takes advantage of the collective observations and geographical area covered by fishers and divers to provide detailed, verifiable and low-cost observations of how and when our marine ecosystems are changing. Information collected can address key knowledge gaps in partnership with the southeast’s marine industries and coastal communities. Critically, it is also a valuable proven tool to promote awareness of climate change impacts. Range shifts is a concept which is tangible, visual and easily understood, in contrast with complicated computational projections or analyses which are not readily grasped (or indeed trusted) by the general community. Up to 80% of fishers do not believe climate change is occurring, or that it will affect their industry, yet given Australia approach of co-management it is absolutely critical that industry and community acknowledge climate change as a risk so they may better respond and adapt in a timely manner to the challenges ahead.

This project directly addresses high level objectives in the SEAP/DAFF deed, which are to:
• facilitate fishing and aquaculture sectors to make informed decisions on adapting to climate change; For example, as new species are reported to Redmap in a new jurisdiction, stakeholders will be able to consider the potential of future fishing opportunities.
• inform decisions on fisheries management arrangements to ensure they are responsive to a changing environment. For example, as new species are reported to Redmap in a new jurisdiction, fisheries managers will be able to review available data and consider the appropriateness of current management controls such as catch limits, closed seasons and size limits.

In terms of the existing DAFF deed milestones, this proposal clearly aligns with 'information products of climate change implications for the sectors'. It has demonstrated capacity to help increase awareness amongst the fishing and non-fishing community - increased awareness is a pre-requisite for effective stakeholder engagement and ultimately adaptation.

Objectives

1. Add VIC, NSW and SA material and species details to the Redmap website, make appropriate database connections and add VIC, NSW and SA scientists to the ghtings verification panel to ensure highest quality data.
2. Develop a facility where we can engage, inform and educate marine industries and communities in the southeast (using their own data) about marine climate change impacts and issues
3. Provide and test the framework allowing ecological monitoring of southeast coastal waters for observations of species shifting their geographical ranges.
4. Once deployed, utilise Redmap to increase awareness of climate change among SE marine industries, thereby indirectly improving adaptive capacity to respond constructively to climate change impacts.
Industry
PROJECT NUMBER • 2016-208
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED

Waste to profit in urchin fisheries: developing business opportunities to ensure fishery sustainability and safeguard reef dependent fisheries from destructive urchin grazing

This report examines two potential applications of Longspined Sea Urchin (Centrostephanus rodgersii) via pitot scale trials; processing waste as an agricultural fertiliser and use as Southern Rock Lobster bait. The biochemical composition of Longspined Sea Urchin waste products was analysed, and the...
ORGANISATION:
University of Tasmania (UTAS)
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PROJECT NUMBER • 2011-713
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED

SCRC: SCRC RTG 1.3 - Shrimp pathology course: Disease diagnosis and control, University of Arizona, USA + visit to Shrimp Biotechnology Business Unit, Thailand (Daniel Pountney, CRC PhD student, UTAS)

This research travel grant allowed Seafood CRC PhD student, Daniel Pountney to travel to Thailand and Arizona to investigate current research and industry practices in regards to prawn aquaculture. The initial travel involved a visit Bunjonk shrimp hatchery which is located in the Chachoengsao...
ORGANISATION:
University of Tasmania (UTAS)
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