The Marine Stewardship Council this month awarded a £5,000 Ocean Stewardship Fund Student Research Grant to Mishel Rañada for her master’s thesis using smartphone technology to better understand PETS encountered in a Surinamese fishery. She will be using the Mofi digital logbook app which was developed by project partner Anchor Lab and is a key technology in Marine Beacon’s approach to mapping and mitigating PETS-fisheries interactions in European waters.
Ms. Rañada will be working directly with members of the Surinamese corvina and acoupa weakfish trawl fishery, which is working towards a full MSC Fisheries Standard assessment. Her thesis will use engagement concepts similar to Marine Beacon’s to support the local fishers in implementing effective protocols around the Mofi app to gather data on PETS encountered, including species, images and geotags. Her award demonstrates the pressing need for improved knowledge around the intersection of PETS and fisheries around the globe and how technology can be used to improve the sustainability of fish production as well as the biodiversity of local ecosystems.
Marine Beacon congratulates Ms. Rañada on her award and will be be following her success with great interest!
A full description of her award and project plan is available at the MSC website.