4WSFC planning

This is a planning page for the 4th World Small-Scale Fisheries Congress (4WSFC).

Roundtables

The roundtable session reports on progress towards understanding the social economy of dried fish in South and Southeast Asia under the umbrella of the Dried Fish Matters project. Rather than a traditional paper presentation format, the session is organized around a series of thematic mini-workshops on themes of transdisciplinary collaboration, social economy, nutrition, and ‘improvement’. The first theme, collaboration, is embedded in the very design of the panel itself.  The three other themes are the focus of each mini-workshop. These begin with short presentations of key observations and emerging questions, articulated in relation to visual material, that open up into a plenary brainstorming session on each theme.

The 120-minute panel is designed to reflect the work-in-progress stage of the DFM project. It takes inspiration from the idea that out of uncertainty and contingency, valuable new insights and suggestions for new directions may emerge.

Each “mini-workshop” session will include 4-5 representative presentations from DFM research (5 minutes each), followed by panel discussion including comments and contributions from the broader group of participants. Groups from each workshop will meet in advance to coordinate the presentations and create a synthesis. The participants indicated within each below are just possibilities. DFM Central will facilitate discussions over the coming weeks to solicit volunteers to report on project findings in each roundtable session.

Mapping dried fish social economies

Guiding question: (Prompt for presenters: What are the top 3 surprising findings about dried fish value chains in your area or study?

• Sri Lanka: Maldive fish processing (Dilanthi, Nireka, Shalika)
• Bangladesh: Bridging scoping findings with recent fieldwork by Mahfuzar Rahman
• Gujarat: Scoping findings
• Andhra Pradesh: Scoping findings (Jeena)
• Telangana: Scoping findings
• Kerala: Scoping findings (Nikita and Holly)
• IMBeR synthesis (Nikita et al. / Kyoko and Ben / Madu)

Lead response: Sisir

Guiding questions for discussion: What are DFM’s key comparative findings about dried fish social economies in Asia and about the mapping of ‘knowledge’ as an emergent practice? How do dried fish social economies support small-scale producers and other actors?

Dried fish as food

Guiding question: What are the top three findings from your student on dried fish as food?

• Reflections on the design and findings of the Myanmar dried fish consumption survey (Ben/Si Thu/Wae Win, Jeena, Amal, Jenia/Amrita/Raktima)
• Thailand: Shopping online and in person (Nova and the DFM Thailand team)
• Nutritional analysis of dried fish samples (Rotimi and Huan)
• Sri Lanka nutrition study (Yasodha Hirimuthugoda and Maduka Subodini)
• Microplastics and other food safety issues in Bangladesh (Mostafa and colleagues)
• Summary of food science findings from the global literature review (Derek, Ben, Eric)

Lead response: Shakuntala

Guiding question for discussion: What is DFM's emerging understanding of the nutritional benefits of and threats to dried fish consumption for low income consumers?

Examining “improvement” in dried fish social economies

Guiding question: What are the top three findings from your research on "improvement" in DFM?

• Dried fish policy, governance, and development survey findings (Emdad and Mahed)
• West Bengal: Political ecology and dried fish (Jenia, Amrita, Raktima)
• Karnataka: Governance of dried fish value chains (Amal and Prof. Bhat)
• Bangladesh: policy to address nutritional consequences of changing preferences
• Global literature review findings (Derek, Ben, Eric)

Lead response: Kirit

Guiding questions for discussion: To what degree are policy, governance, and development attuned to the needs of actors in dried fish value chains? In particular, how do policy, governance, and development help or hinder small-scale actors?

Cross-cutting discussion and conclusion

Short reflections on process and co-learning in context of SSHRC PG program (Alexia and Fabiana)

Short reflection on findings (Melissa Marschke)

E-book

The Dried Fish Matters partnership brings together a network of interdisciplinary research teams in six countries to study the economy of dried fish in South and Southeast Asia. This session will be a pre-launch event for our partnership's eponymous e-book, which provides a commentary on why dried fish matters to us as researchers, to the communities where it is produced and consumed, and to the gastronomic heritage of humanity.

The e-book will be launched formally on June 18, to coincide with the global observance of Sustainable Gastronomy Day. Our volume celebrates the cultural value of dried fish as food, while promoting the idea that dried fish can contribute to sustainable development according to its economic, social, and environmental dimensions.

The session will include readings from six of the chapters, pre-recorded by the contributing authors, with introductions and thematic commentary by the volume editors. A selection of these chapters will be made available for early download to coincide with the pre-launch event. The formal presentations will be followed by a virtual reception and Q&A hosted by the editors.