I came here on a reconnaissance mission to understand one particular set of ocean climate solutions: those categorized as marine carbon dioxide removal, or mCDR. Who is leading the charge on mCDR, how fast is the field moving, and what key governance and engagement onramps exist for injecting fishing community priorities into the conversation?

Thank you to everyone who joined the webinar on January 23 about “The “Transition to a Low Carbon Fishing Fleet” Initiative: A Tour of Recent Publications and a Preview of Next Steps”!

In the next year, writers at National Fisherman will be working with a ten-member steering committee convened through the Fishery Friendly Climate Action Campaign to produce a 20-article series on energy efficiency and next-gen power sources for fishing vessels.

“Leadership is accepting responsibility for enabling others to achieve shared purpose in the face of uncertainty.” Despite the seeming might of the world’s Goliaths, “David sometimes wins.” Learn these and other lessons in a new fellowship for emerging New England fisheries leaders.

In 2023–2024, five researchers with deep roots in the U.S. commercial fishing industry joined forces through the Fishery Friendly Climate Action Campaign to establish an evidence-based framework for fishing industry-led advocacy aimed at fostering a transition to a low-carbon fishing fleet. 

Sofia Morris of Brown University is working on her senior thesis with the Fishery Friendly Climate Action Campaign. Read Sofia’s guest blog on fishermen’s engagement in the Maine Won’t Wait climate plan.

Working with Roger Williams University, we procured an analysis of state and federal programs that can support a transition to a low carbon fishing fleet. Learn about DERA, REAP, and California’s Carl Moyer program, and how fishermen can organize for change.

In September 2024, Massachusetts fishermen and fisheries associations wrote a letter to the Massachusetts Office of Climate Innovation and Resilience. Read more, including the full letter.

States are developing climate action plans in 2024-2025 as part of the EPA’s Climate Pollution Reduction Grant (CPRG) program. Learn how fishermen can center fishery friendly climate action in these critical climate action planning processes.

This is an excerpt from an article published in National Fisherman. New England waters may soon be the location for a first-of-its-kind field trial to test a technique called ocean alkalinity enhancement (OAE) that could someday become a pivotal tool in the fight against climate change. But fishermen are concerned that the experiment could further disrupt an ecosystem and fishing industry already contending with the effects of offshore wind energy development and climate change.