The Dried Fish Matters (DFM) team, represented by Dr. Derek Johnson, DFM Project Director and Professor of Anthropology at the University of Manitoba (UM), and Jessie Varquez, DFM student and PhD candidate in anthropology at UM, participated in the First Philippines Small-Scale Fisheries National Symposium (PSSFNS). Held from October 16-18, 2024, at the University of the Philippines Visayas (UPV) in Iloilo City, the symposium was organized by Too Big To Ignore (TBTI) Philippines and chaired by Professor Alice Joan Ferrer of UPV, who also serves as Executive Director of TBTI Philippines.
The symposium brought together around 600 participants, including fishers, academics, researchers, artists, advocates, NGO workers, students, government officials, and other stakeholders in small-scale fisheries (SSF). Plenary sessions covered insights from fisherfolk, fisheries managers, NGOs, development partners, and scientists. Seven themes structured the parallel sessions, focusing on inland and marine SSF, SSF management and governance, SSF economics, socio-cultural aspects of SSF, SSF resilience to climate change, gender in SSF, and SSF technology and innovation. The program also featured special sessions on post-harvest topics, a book launch, and discussions on the Philippine National Plan of Action for SSF Guidelines, along with poster presentations and student and vlog competitions.
Dr. Johnson’s presentation, titled “Moving Downstream in Small-Scale Fisheries Research: Dried Fish in Asia,” was co-authored with Jessie Varquez and aligned with the SSF economics theme. He discussed a shift in social science research on SSF that reorients focus from harvesting to downstream segments of the fisheries value chain. The presentation posed a central question: What does this shift imply for the concept of SSF, and how does it redefine production not merely as extraction but as processing and trade?
Highlighting the DFM project as an example of this downstream focus, Dr. Johnson emphasized the themes of rootedness, relationships, and craft. He illustrated these ideas through the case of boneless danggit (dried rabbitfish) from the central Philippines. The presentation argued that, by challenging the conventional notion of “small” in downstream SSF, it becomes clear that SSF is, in fact, complex and, indeed, “too big to ignore.”
Jessie Varquez presented a part of his ongoing dissertation research titled “Punot (Fish Corrals) as Enduring Structures in the Coastal Fisheries of Bantayan Island,” co-authored with Dr. Derek Johnson. This presentation, featured in the panel on technology and innovation in small-scale fisheries (SSF), examined the vital role of fish corrals—an ancient fishing technology in Southeast Asia—through the case study of Bantayan Island in the Philippines. The presentation framed punot, the local term for fish corrals in Bantayan, as enduring structures for two primary reasons. Spatially, punot are significant due to the sheer number installed across intertidal flats and reef edges, shaping both navigation and fishing practices along the coast. Socially, they endure through the knowledge, materials, and practices that deeply influence the lives of coastal communities. Punot’s importance goes beyond immediate food security for coastal communities, extending to the downstream activities of dried fish processing, which involve a network of actors—especially women and children in these households.In highlighting punot as essential and enduring structures, Jessie concluded that they, too, are “too big to ignore.”
Reflecting on his participation at the symposium as part of DFM Philippines, here’s what Jessie said: “Participating in this conference is momentous and enriching, not just for me but also for DFM. It’s a milestone because we participated in the first-ever national symposium on small-scale fisheries in the Philippines. We were enriched not only in meeting researchers with the same enthusiasm and interests for small-scale fisheries but also in interacting with conference participants from diverse orientations. I also think that DFM has positioned itself as a potential collaborator and knowledge hub in the ecology of Philippine small-scale fisheries research and networks.”
Aside from his panel presentation, Dr Derek Johnson also spoke at the opening program of the conference, where he represented TBTI Global and delivered the message on behalf of Professor Ratana Chuenpagdee, the TBTI Director. For representing TBTI Global, Derek was presented with a painting depicting SSF as a token of gratitude. In return, Derek has also furnished a copy of Dried Fish Matters: Exploring the Social Economy of Dried Fish, a key book publication of the DFM project, to the conference organizers.
As the DFM project moves into its Phase 2 work across South and Southeast Asia, we are committed to engaging in policy advocacy and outreach conversations, such as those at the TBTI Philippines Symposium. The work of DFM scholars and researchers like Jessie is crucial in amplifying the multifaceted challenges and opportunities within the dried fish economy in small-scale fisheries in the Philippines and the wider region.