International Fisheries Conservation Program

The International Fisheries Conservation Project seeks to catalyze development of a system to ensure the long-term sustainable management of marine fisheries globally. Since 2013, TOF has promoted science-based management of tunas in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans through its Global Tuna Conservation Project, and in 2019, launched the International Fisheries Conservation Project to build on our success over the last six years and to take a more holistic, global approach. Through this project, TOF is working to reform a diverse array of international fisheries, from giant bluefin tuna to the forage fish they depend on, from vertebrates to invertebrates, from extensively researched species to data-poor, and from the historically exploited Atlantic to the expanding fisheries in the Indian Ocean. Priority objectives for implementation in international fora include: precautionary, pre-agreed, science-based management approaches called harvest strategies; effective enforcement and compliance systems; standards for monitoring of industrial longline fisheries and transshipment activities; reform of procedures and oversight in ports where fish are landed; and measures that would help to reduce the negative impact of international fisheries on vulnerable species such as sharks, sea turtles, and seabirds.