| For countless centuries, fishing-dependent indigenous communities have protected their marine environments from over-exploitation. Understanding that proper conservation guaranteed food for future generations, many of these communities fished only during certain times of the year, or divided up fishing grounds based on familial ties. However, as these communities lost water rights following the formation of certain nation-states, and international fishing fleets moved into the world’s oceans, a need arose to devise new techniques for protecting marine environments. Not only is this protection necessary to maintain biodiversity, but also to guarantee food security and the cultural traditions of fishing villages around the world. In 1957, British biologists... |
