We will need to provide full and detailed answers to each of the following questions from the Ethics Protocol form in submitting an amendment for your team. We have provided some draft content points below each question. Note the required attachments in boldface type (research instruments, consent forms, etc.) referenced in the answers to the questions below.

Methods

QUESTION 1

Describe the research methods and instruments. List and provide copies of all materials (i.e. questionnaires, interview guides, instructions etc.) to be given to participants and/or third parties.

Semi-structured interviews. Attach a core interview protocol based on the stacked value chains research model developed at the Cox’s Bazar meeting. Individual research teams can build on this core set of questions or probe further as appropriate. Interviews may be audio-recorded and transcribed with the explicit consent of participants. Transcripts or typed summaries will be shared via an online document server at the University of Manitoba (Dataverse institutional repository).
Photographs. All field researchers should collect photographs and/or short video clips from each site, capturing the main economic and social activities, fish species, and technologies used. Researchers will submit photographs along with a basic spreadsheet listing core metadata (location, subject of the photograph, etc.). The UM research team will coordinate a shared database of visual documents that will eventually be tied to a map visualization and query engine, to be developed in the second stage of the project. These images are intended to be public, so should not represent any sensitive information.
Fieldnotes. Observational fieldnotes will be typed up and shared on a password-protected cloud-based document server by each researcher for qualitative data analysis. The typed fieldnotes will not necessarily be complete transcripts, but will include key information in summary or point form. Personally identifiable information will be redacted unless the interviewee has opted not to remain anonymous.

Participants

QUESTION 2

Describe the participant population. Please provide the inclusion/exclusion criteria as well as how many participants you expect to recruit.

Fishers. People who engage in catching fish that are subsequently dried.
Processors. People who engage in sorting, gutting, salting, drying, or fermenting fish.
Traders. People who aggregate and resell dried fish.
- “Collectors” – people who buy directly from processors at production sites and sell to larger traders in markets
- Wholesalers – people who buy from collectors, processors, etc., and sell to smaller wholesalers or to retailers
- Brokers – people who coordinate sales between sellers and buyers to earn a commission (e.g., by organizing auctions)
Retailers. People who sell dried fish directly to consumers.
- Market retailers
- Mobile hawkers
- Supermarkets
Consumers.

Provide information about the numbers here: for example, 8-10 interviews with actors from each of these groups/sub-groups could provide 65-100 interviews.

QUESTION 3

Will the participants in your study be UNAWARE that they are participants? If yes, please elaborate.

There will not be any deception or hidden observation in this research.
Some observational activities or audiovisual/photographic data collection may occur in public spaces (e.g., open-air markets) in which there is no reasonable expectation of privacy. If known individuals are observed in these settings they will not be identified or linked to identifiable information without their prior consent.

QUESTION 4

Will information about the participants be obtained from sources other than the participants? If yes, please elaborate.

In the first phase of the research, general information concerning the dried fish value chain will be collected from published sources. These sources may include limited information about individual participants, which will not be linked to data collected through anonymous interviews or field observations.
We anticipate that some actors may speak about other, known participants in the study outside of their presence. The names of these participants will be redacted other than in the case of public figures.

QUESTION 5

Provide a step-by-step description of how you will identify and recruit participants. Attach copies of all material (i.e. telephone scripts, posters, etc.) that will be given/read to participants and/or third parties as appendices.

Initial recruitment will occur through known key informants in each community (fishers, processors?) Additional interviewees in each group will be sought through snowball sampling.
Traders and retailers may be contacted directly through site visits at markets and known purchasing points.
A sampling frame will be followed to ensure that the interviewees are sufficiently representative of the overall population in each community, according to factors of age, gender, caste/ethnicity, social class, and migrant status. As the full characteristics of each community are not necessarily known in advance, the sampling frame will need to be completed in each site based on information about the community collected in the initial scoping / exploratory interviews.
Researchers will use a recruitment script that invites the potential participants to take part in a semi-structured interview and/or be “shadowed” by the researcher as they go about their normal business.

QUESTION 6

Will participants receive any compensation for participating (e.g. honorarium, course credit, food, parking)? Please provide justification for these compensation arrangements.

Participants will receive small gifts in appreciation of their participation in the study. These gifts will not be of a sufficient value to be considered an incentive to participate, but will offset a portion of the time and effort expended by contributors. (e.g., mobile telephone units)
Examples of culturally appropriate gifts: …
Some participants will be offered small items with the project logo: tote bag, notebook, or similar. These will generally not be distributed to anonymous participants, insofar as it could compromise their anonymity.

QUESTION 7

Does this study involve participants who are not legally or practically able to give their valid consent to participate? If yes, please indicate how you will recruit participants through those authorized to speak for them. How will you obtain assent from the participant themselves?

As the participation of minors is prevalent in the dried fish economy, we expect that children will be involved to some degree in participant observation and interaction with researchers. The parents or legal guardians of children will be asked to authorize any applicable collection of information about children or minors.
Children themselves will be asked orally to agree to discuss their work.
In all cases, children will treated anonymously in the field data.

QUESTION 8

Are participants from a population that may be marginalized or vulnerable in the context of research? If yes, please explain how you will ensure participants do not feel pressure or obligation to participate.

Some low-caste/low-status/migrant individuals or groups may be involved in the research.
Many of the fishers and dried fish processors are expected to economically vulnerable.
Participation in the research will always be voluntary. This will be stated explicitly in the recruitment and informed consent process. Field researchers will be trained to respond to hesitation cues by reminding possible participants that they are under no obligation to participate in the research.
A large pool of potential research participants will deliberately be established during the sampling process, so as to reduce pressure on researchers to recruit specific individuals who may not wish to be included.
When using snowball sampling methods, those who are asked to refer other potential participants will be reminded that researchers are only seeking individuals who are confident in their willingness to participate.

QUESTION 9

Are research team members in any kind of conflict of interest relationship with participants (ie. students, clients, patients, family members, sponsors)? If yes, please explain how you will ensure participants do not feel pressure or obligation to participate or perceive that they may be penalized for choosing not to participate.

No conflict of interest is anticipated between academic researchers and study participants.
In some sites, the collaborating research teams may include members of government agencies or non-governmental groups that have standing relationships with fisher/processor communities. In such cases, field researchers will be instructed to make clear that willingness to participate in the research will not influence any aspect of ongoing relationships (i.e., no specific benefits that will be offered to those who participate, and those who decline to participate will not be treated negatively).
Participants will be reminded that, unless they instruct otherwise, their personally identifiable data will be anonymized prior to being shared with researchers, policymakers, or others who may have direct knowledge of them.
Field researchers will be asked to confirm that they are not in a personal conflict of interest with any participants.

Privacy and Confidentiality

QUESTION 10

Will participants be anonymous in the data gathering phase of the research (ie. to the researcher or anyone associated with the research)? If no, how will the identity of research participants be protected during and after the research?

Insofar as data will be collected primarily through face-to-face interviews and similar activities, the identity of each participant will be known to the field researcher.
Field researchers will assign pseudonyms or codes to each anonymous participant, so as to prevent the identities of those participants becoming known to others.
Each research site will be identified by a code.

QUESTION 11

Are there conditions in which privacy or confidentiality cannot be guaranteed (i.e., focus groups)? If yes, please explain the precautions you will take to protect privacy and confidentiality.

Some focus group or informal group interviews will be held. Participants will be informed, prior to the interview, that the identity of participants should remain confidential. Participants will also be encouraged to refrain from disclosing sensitive information during the interview.
Additionally, in situ interviews and participant observation sessions are expected to take place in non-private workplace settings. Information of a sensitive nature will not be discussed in public settings.

QUESTION 12

Will participants be given the choice to waive their anonymity? Please elaborate. A participant’s decision to waive anonymity should be explicitly documented, e.g., on the consent form or in a separate release form.

Participants will be given the explicit option to waive anonymity. This will be recorded during the informed consent process, as a distinct item on the informed consent form.

QUESTION 13

Who will have access to identifying information and how will the PI ensure that all research team members are aware of their responsibilities regarding participants’ privacy and confidentiality?

Field researchers will be responsible for assigning pseudonyms or participant codes. No one else will have access to the identifiers.
Each field researcher will sign an Oath of Confidentiality, promising not to disclose personally identifiable information without the consent of research participants.
The leader of each Research Team will be required to complete the TCPS CORE ethics tutorial and to coordinate an ethics training session for field researchers, focusing on privacy and confidentiality issues.

Data Management

QUESTION 14

Please complete the separate Data Management Plan.

The data management plan is attached separately.

QUESTION 15

What could the consequences be if the wrong person got access to this data?

As only anonymized data will be stored and stored and disseminated among project researchers for qualitative analysis (coding), no specific risks are associated with access to the primary research dataset.
Potential for negative or malicious use?
Informed Consent Process

QUESTION 16

Describe the consent process. Where and how will consent be obtained? If consent will not be obtained, justification must be provided.

See the attached informed consent form.
In general, the contents of this form will be discussed orally with participants. (In several of the research areas an oral agreement is often seen as bearing more weight than a written document, which may be perceived as a formality.)
In conjunction with the oral consent process, consent to specific points will be indicated through a checklist that will be completed together with the researcher and signed by the participant. Consent points include the following:
- Acknowledge having reviewed the purpose and nature of the study
- Acknowledge having been told about the expected risks and benefits of participating
- Understand that participation is voluntary
- Consent to be interviewed
- Consent to have the interview digitally recorded and transcribed; extracts from the transcript may be quoted/published (anonymously)
- Desire to be identified by name (waiver of anonymity)
- Permission to be photographed; photographs may be shared with other researchers and published on the Internet as part of a digital archive or by other means
- Provided contact details
- Received contact information of the researcher and their supervisors

QUESTION 17

For participants who are not able to provide their own consent, provide the steps for how informed consent will be obtained. Typically assent forms should be provided for children under the age of 18.

Children or others who are not able to provide their own consent will not be interviewed individually. Assent will be sought from parents or legal guardians when research is to occur in a group setting.

Feedback/Dissemination

QUESTION 18

Steps should be taken to provide participants with a brief, non-technical summary of research results as soon as possible after the data collection phase of the study is completed should they want it. Provide your plans for providing project results to participants. Participants should be given a choice of how they wish to receive a summary and should be told approximately when (MMYY) to expect it.

A plain-language report will be prepared by each Research Team alongside the Technical Report outlining their findings from the Scoping Research. This will normally be produced within six months of the completion of the data collection phase.
The summary report will be sent to each participant at the address provided on their consent form. This may be a postal address or email.
In sites where multiple participants have been recruited from a single workplace, organization, family, or other socio-economic unit, copies of the summary may be sent to a key contact in that organization, who will have agreed to distribute the findings report. Participants will be notified of this arrangement at the time of the field research.

QUESTION 19

If your publications will refer to individual participants, how will they do so (e.g., by their real name, by a pseudonym, by a general descriptor such as “one female student” or “one factory worker”)? How will information from or about your participants be presented (e.g., summary statistics for the whole group, direct quotations from their interviews)? This should also be clear in your consent form.

When providing quotes or ethnographic descriptions, participants will be identified using pseudonyms and occupational/regional descriptors (e.g., “Ayaan, a dried fish seller at a coastal market in South India”).
Comparative data may be presented in aggregated tabular form, linked to specific sites and/or activities.
Group interview results will be reported by group, rather than by individual.

QUESTION 20

List all types of venues where you plan to disseminate your results (e.g., thesis, journal articles, conference presentations, reports to sponsors). This should also be clear in your consent form.

Academic conference presentations, articles, book chapters
Technical reports
Non-technical summary documents
Policy briefs, proposals for follow-up interventions or research initiatives
Broadcast or text interviews
Online database of ethnographic records (photographs, fieldnotes)
Workshops and community events (knowledge mobilization in the community)

Withdrawing

QUESTION 21

How and when are participants informed of their right to withdraw? What procedures will be followed for participants who wish to withdraw at any point during the study?

Participants will be informed of their right to withdraw during the consent process.
Participants may state their wish to withdraw at any point during the interview or observation activity. If this occurs, and if the participant requests that data collected from them up to that point not be used, the research materials (recording or notes) will be destroyed immediately, in the presence of the participant.
Participants will be given the contact details of the supervising researcher and Principal Investigator, either of whom may be contacted within two weeks of the conclusion of the data collection to retract information provided to the field researcher.

QUESTION 22

Please indicate what will be done with the participant’s data and any consequences which withdrawal may have on the participant.

Participants who withdraw from the study will be asked to indicate what they wish to be done with the data collected from them up to that point. On request, all copies of the data will be destroyed and excluded from the study.
Withdrawal from the study will not have any specific consequences for the applicant.

QUESTION 23

Is there a deadline after which the nature of your data analysis would make it impossible for participants to withdraw? Please provide a MMYY.

Data will be aggregated and analyzed immediately after the field research stage, at which point it will become impossible to retract anonymized field records. Participants will no longer be able to withdraw data provided later than two weeks after the interview or participant observation session.
The project is designed as a multi-stage research process. Participants will be informed of the possibility of being invited to participate in a subsequent stage of the research, but that their participation in the current stage does not imply any expectation that they will remain involved in any follow-up studies. (Informed consent for each research activity will be taken as a distinct and separate process.)

Risks and Benefits

QUESTION 24

What are the expected benefits of the research? What are the indirect benefits for participants participating in the research? What are the direct benefits for participants participating in the research?

Policy benefits. There are almost no policy measures that directly address dried fish value chains. This research will provide evidence and analysis supporting efforts to address the needs of fishers, processors, traders, and retailers in the dried fish sector.
The second stage of this research will involve pilot interventions in areas such as food security, health, and sustainable livelihoods. The findings from this scoping research will directly inform the design of those interventions.
A direct benefit to participants and their collaborators will be their potential to take part in research and policy networks that address the dried fish value chain, as being established within the scope of the DFM partnership.

QUESTION 25

What are the risks (psychological, physical, emotional, social, legal, economic, or political) to participants, or to a third party? Provide a description of the risks, the steps that will be taken to reduce or eliminate them, and the steps that will be taken to improve any actual harm to participants, including (if appropriate) providing a list of helpful resources.

Economic risk: evidence of unsafe or unsanitary processing practices may be taken by consumers or policymakers as indicating that dried fish consumption is dangerous, potentially causing economic harm.
Psychological risk: Potential in some cases for psychological impacts associated with discussion of social stigma, economic hardships, etc. within the context of dried fish production.
Legal risk: There is a strong likelihood that this research will document evidence of illegal practices such as child labour, undocumented migration, unreported fish catch, circumvention of food safety regulations, tax evasion, etc. Use of illegal gear is widespread, and use of child labour in fish processing occurs in some locations such as the East coast of Sri Lanka, although it is not widespread.
Our partners and collaborators are sensitive to the challenges of working in situations in which legal risks are a possibility, and have developed strategies for avoiding these risks. Our colleagues at the International Center for Ethnic Studies in Sri Lanka, for instance, have implemented a practice of anonymizing participant names, as well as using pseudonyms for study locations. The latter is only pro forma, as local fisheries department and government officers know which villages the researchers are going into, given the need to write letters to the local administration seeking permission to conduct fieldwork in villages under their purview. The fisheries department officers also generally have a good idea where illegal gear is being used.
What is important is providing a good training to enumerators (especially those who are doing the quantitative surveys) to make sure that filled out forms/notebooks with the real names of participants do not fall into the hands of officials, either through carelessness or because police or intelligence officers (the latter are present in the North and East coasts of Sri Lanka) demand to see whatever documents/materials they are carrying in their hands. Once a form has been filled/data entered in a notebook they need to put it away inside their bags/backpacks and only carry introduction letters and empty forms in their hands. In case an officer demands to see whatever is inside their bag, they need to insist on confidentiality of the research data - the latter has never happened to us so far. But occasionally enumerators have handed the police their clip board to show the introduction letter, forgetting that they have filled out forms underneath. So a thorough training in research ethics is needed for those going into the field.
Please see the section "Minimizing risk" in the DFM Ethics Handbook.

QUESTION 26

When conducting research with distinct populations (e.g. teachers, nurses, members of a church), organizational and/or community permission may be required. If applicable, how will this be obtained? Please provide copies of any letters of permission received or sent to an organization/community.

Formal permission will be obtained from village heads for community-based research
Prior to conducting research in shared settings such as markets or fish processing centres, consent will be obtained from the site owners/managers or other appropriate organizational authorities.
Attach a letter of permission to be sent to each organization or community. This letter will outline the goals of the DFM project, the research methods, number and type of anticipated participants, and list of questions to investigate.

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