SOS - Shark Observatory Society
The Shark Observatory Society is a project that has research, communication, and environmental education as pillars, which together will be applied in the preservation of shark species that inhabit Fernando de Noronha archipelago. The main objective of this project is to investigate the interaction between sharks and fishermen who work around the MPA, identifying the ecological causes that lead to this interaction and its political consequences for the conservation of sharks. The research aims to identify through interviews with fishermen and on-board monitoring, the species of sharks that interact with fishermen and which fish are selected by sharks. Communication will be held throughout the project through audiovisual content collected during the interviews and monitoring onboard, including underwater filming. Environmental education will occur through lectures with fishermen and educational activities in schools, with topics such as marine ecosystems, overfishing, and ocean decade.
- Problem solved by your proposal
- Fernando de Noronha is a tropical archipelago that shelters wide marine biodiversity, including 22 shark species, 11 of them are protected due to their threat classification. Part of the archipelago is a National Park, however, fishing by local inhabitants and recreational fishing occurs around and out of the park limits. Fishermen have reported the increased loss of their catch to sharks during fishing. Even sharks fishing being prohibited, during this competition with the fisherman, sharks ends up being killed and discharged. Therefore, it is necessary to characterize this interaction between sharks and fishermen and the ecological changes that led to this behavior, to be able to outline a management measure and teaching materials so that the shark populations are not impacted and so that fishermen do not suffer financial loss.
- What positive impact would/does your idea have on your community? Specific environmental or social improvements
- In the short term, the project will contribute to environmental education for different age groups, carrying out workshops and activities with island children and teenagers (SDG 4), in addition, we will hold lectures and training courses for fishermen (SDG 12). In the medium term, the project aims to contribute to local public policies, providing scientific information for the environmental agency to apply in its fisheries management measures (SDG 17). In the long term, the project intends to produce a short documentary about the history of fishing in the archipelago, with a focus on sharks (SDG 14). In addition, the project will also act as an umbrella for the protection of other pelagic species, including bony fish, the spinner dolphin (Stenella longirostris), green turtle (Chelonia mydas) and sea birds such as the frigate (Fregata magnificens) and the booby (Sula sp.), who can also interact with fishermen at the time of fishing and be injured (SDG 14).
- Why are you interested in taking part in environment and ocean-related matters?
- As a woman, researcher and diver, I notice that the environment around me is rapidly deteriorating. When I look at global changes, I see that we are reaching a no-return point for the ecosystem and for many overexploited species. However, on a smaller scale, as is the case of the small archipelago in the middle of the South Atlantic that I chose to live in, I see that there is still hope. Acting on a small scale and in partnership with environmental agencies and the population through research, communication and environmental education is the most effective way to achieve our goals and contribute positively to the SDGs and to spread oceanic culture. Above all, I want to get involved with the causes of the ocean, because the health and abundance of the seas is directly linked to the health and happiness of people on Earth. And as Sylvia Earle would say: "No blue, no green. No water, no life."
- SDG most related to the proposal
- SDG 14: Life below water
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