EBFM is a pillar in EU fisheries and environmental legislation, however implementation has stalled. After describing the current state of EBFM and the existing institutional frameworks in the Baltic, we aim to develop solutions to further implementation of EBFM.

On behalf of the Baltic Eye at Stockholm University Baltic Sea Centre, the International Council for Exploration of the Sea (ICES) and The Fisheries Secretariat we welcome you to a two-day workshop on how to operationalize Ecosystem Based Fisheries Management (EBFM) in the Baltic. . The venue is in central Stockholm, June 16-17, where we have also arranged an optional archipelago cruise with dinner after the first day.

EBFM is a pillar in EU fisheries and environmental legislation, however implementation has stalled. After describing the current state of EBFM and the existing institutional frameworks in the Baltic, we aim to develop  solutions to further implementation of EBFM. Considering the Baltic’s high environmental variability and development of the institutional framework in regionalisation, particularly the integration of advice, is critical to successful implementation and will be the focus of this workshop.

Participants in this workshop will join other scientists, stakeholders, decision-makers and policy advisers all working for a sustainable Baltic. Outcomes previous workshops such as the recent AORAC-SA FAO workshop in Copenhagen “Making the ecosystem approach operational” have informed this workshop’s design and themes.

We will focus on the following three themes;

• Ecosystem based fisheries management in the unique Baltic Sea context 
• Development of advice towards ecosystem based fisheries management
• Bridging the gap between advice and decision makers in fisheries policy

The discussions will build on a series of keynote talks and be summarized in moderator-led discussion groups at the end of the first two themes. A panel discussion with representatives from science, policy and fisheries will follow the final theme.

The organizers will analyse the outcomes of this workshop with the ambition to compile a list of recommendations for future policy processes and the implementation of EBFM in the region. We also hope you will find inspiration to develop your own approach to implementing EBFM in the Baltic. Your contribution during this meeting is thus highly valuable and we hope you can attend.

For further information and how to register, see http://www.fishsec.org/2016/03/29/ecosystem-based-fisheries-management-workshop/

WELCOME!

Sincerely,
Jan Isakson, Edward Stern & Christian Tsangarides – Fisheries Secretariat
Gustaf Almqvist & Maciej Tomczak – Stockholm University Baltic Sea Centre
Yvonne Walther - ICES

WORKSHOP AGENDA

Location: Bullkyrkan at Stadsmission, Stortorget 3, 103 17 Stockholm, Sweden
Rapporteur: Matilda Valman, Stockholm Resilience Centre

Thursday 16 June

08:30 Coffee & Sandwiches

09:00 Welcome by Convener Jan Isakson, The Fisheries Secretariat

09:15 Ecosystem based fisheries management in the unique Baltic Sea context  

• Is the Baltic Sea ready for ecosystem based fisheries management?
  Jeremy S. Collie, University of Rhode Island
• The challenge of moving from MSY to ecosystem based fisheries management
  Valerio Bartolino, Mareframe
• Challenges to Baltic fisheries management, managing multiple stressors in a dynamic environment Christoph Humborg, Baltic Sea Centre, Stockholm University

10:20 Coffee (15 minutes)

• The Baltic Sea policy perspective
  Marcin Rucinski, Polish Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries

11:15 Discussion groups (45 minutes, max 10 per group)

• What is currently being done toward implementing EBFM in the Baltic Sea, and what are the top five next steps toward implementation?
  Moderators: TBD. Led by Henrik Hamrén, Baltic Eye

12:30 Lunch

13:30 Development of advice towards ecosystem based fisheries management

• ICES advice and ecosystem based fisheries management
  Eskild Kirkegård, ICES
• Integrated approach to include environmental forcing and economics (?) in scientific advice
  Rudy Voss, Kiel University
• From quantity to quality – a fisherman’s journey
  Bengt Larsson, FiskOnline

14:30 Coffee (15 minutes)

• Integrating social and community aspects in EBFM: tradeoffs, harvest control rules, metrics
  Dorothy Dankel, University of Bergen

15:30 Discussion groups (45 minutes, max 10 per group)

• What can you do within your field of work to implement EBFM in the Baltic Sea?
  Moderators: TBD. Led by Henrik Hamrén

18:00 Archipelago cruise and dinner

Friday 17 June

08:30 Coffee & Sandwiches

09:00 Day 1 summary

09:10 Bridging the gap between advice and decision makers in fisheries policy

• Development and content of the Baltic Multiannual Plan
  Jarosław Wałęsa, European Parliament
• MSY in the EU: A Political History
  Michael Earle, Green party
• Adequate science is not the problem, but integration. How do we prepare to ask the right questions?
  Roland Cormier, Helmholts-Zentrum

10:15 Coffee (5 minutes, and available throughout)

10:30 Panel Discussion Moderator Yvonne Walther, ICES

• What do we need to do now to improve the implementation of EBFM prior to the next CFP reform?
  Panellists:
  Jarosław Wałęsa, Member of European Parliament
  Mart Undrest, Chair, Estonian Fishermen’s Association
  Marcin Rucinski, Polish Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries
  Sonja Feldthaus, Head of Section, Centre for Fisheries in the Danish AgriFish Agency
  Michael Earle, Advisor, Greens in the European Parliament
  Gustaf Almqvist, Scientist, Baltic Eye

12:00 Summary and Closing