• Acronym: FishGIS
• Term: November 2017 – March 31, 2020
• Project Science Team Co-Chairs:
  Mitsutaku Makino (Fisheries Research and Education Agency/The University of Tokyo, Japan)
  Mark Wells (University of Maine, USA)
• Project Coordinator:
  Alexander Bychkov (PICES)
• Funding Agency:
  Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) of Japan, through the Fisheries Agency of Japan (JFA)
• Parent PICES Committee:
  Human Dimensions Committee (HD)
• Mailing list

Natural and anthropogenic pressures are generating changes in the marine ecological system, and the effects of these changes on the well-being of people living in coastal areas are difficult to predict because of the lack of understanding and many uncertainties in social and ecological systems. Therefore, one of the most important tasks for marine researchers is to scientifically assist coastal communities in adapting to social and ecological changes for their sustainable livelihood and better well-being. This was the rationale for a PICES project entitled “Building capacity for coastal monitoring by local small-scale fishers" (acronym FishGIS) and funded by the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) of Japan, through the Fisheries Agency of Japan (JFA), from the Official Development Assistance (ODA) Fund.

PICES member countries have significant resources for monitoring environmental conditions and fisheries in coastal waters, while developing nations are far more limited in their capacity for collecting these essential data to advance their management practices. Citizen-based monitoring is an approach designed to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of monitoring efforts when technical and financial resources are not sufficient. There are successful examples of citizen-based monitoring in developed countries; however, this approach has not been widely applied yet to the collection of environmental and fisheries data in developing nations. The extensive use of smartphones in these countries offers a potential for creating smartphone-based monitoring tools to be used by local coastal communities.

The request to undertake the project was accepted by PICES Governing Council in November 2017.

The project is expected to interact with, and support relevant activities of, PICES Scientific Committees on Human Dimensions (HD) and on Fishery Science (FIS), PICES Technical Committees on Data Exchange (TCODE) and on Monitoring (MONITOR), and PICES FUTURE Science Program (Research Theme 3 on “How do human activities affect coastal ecosystems and how are societies affected by changes in these ecosystems?”).

The project is being directed by the Project Science Team (PST) formed in December 2017 based on principles and procedures detailed in the PICES Policy for approval and management of special projects (Decision 2017/A/7). All PICES member countries and all the above mentioned Committees are represented on the PST (see membership below), co-chaired by Drs. Mitsutaku Makino and Mark Wells. The PST Co-Chairmen are responsible for the detailed planning and execution of the project and annual reporting on scientific progress to MAFF/JFA and to PICES Science Board through the HD Committee.

The Project Coordinator, Dr. Alexander Bychkov, is responsible for the management of the fund and annual reporting on its disposition to MAFF/JFA and to PICES Finance and Administration Committee.

Annual reports to MAFF/JFA should be submitted within 90 days after the close of each project year ending March 31. Within PICES, Science Board takes the responsibility for reporting to Governing Council on the progress and achievements of the project, and the Finance and Administration Committee takes the responsibility for reporting to Governing Council on the financial and management aspects of the project.

Funding for Year 1 (FY 2017, ending March 31, 2018) was set at $96,385 CAD, and this amount was transferred to PICES in December 2017.
Funding for Year 2 (FY 2018, ending March 31, 2019) was set at $96,383 CAD, and this amount was transferred to PICES in July 2018.
Funding for Year 3 (FY 2019, ending March 31, 2020) was set at $96,383 CAD, and this amount was transferred to PICES in July 2019.

The overall goal of the project is to enhance the capacity of local small-scale fishers in Pacific Rim developing countries to monitor their local coastal ecosystems and coastal fisheries.

Indonesia was chosen as a developing Pacific Rim country to implement the project. The importance of having more effective fisheries management practices is widely recognized in Indonesia. This has led to support by the Indonesian government and the willingness of local communities and stakeholders to consider new approaches, such as development and implementation of a citizen (fisher)-based observation system, linked with fisheries scientists and managers.

The project key questions are:

1. How do global changes in climate and economy affect coastal ecosystems? and
2. How can enhanced capacity for monitoring activities by local fishers help to improve fisheries management in coastal areas?

1. Coastal ecosystem monitoring activities by local small-scale fishers to detect ecosystems changes (e.g., changes in water quality and in plankton community composition);
2. Coastal fisheries monitoring activities by local small-scale fishers to improve coastal fisheries management (e.g., information about fishing operations or species composition in the market);
3. Coastal and estuarine water monitoring activities by local small-scale aquaculture farmers to measure the effects of government clean water initiatives on water quality for aquaculture operations.

• Fourth PST meeting (February 28, 2020; Jakarta, Indonesia) [photo]
  Objectives: (1) to examine the results from the training workshops, along with on-going data collections from the four communities involved in the project, (2) to review issues related to the FishGIS database transition to the Indonesian government, (3) to finalize tasks for the preparation of a final scientific report and other project outcomes, and (4) to discuss the directions for modifying/refining smartphone-based observational tools (applications and protocols) developed within the FishGIS project for use in a new MAFF/PICES project on “Building local warning networks for the detection and human dimension of Ciguatera Fish Poisoning in Indonesian communities” (2020–2023).
  
  
• Training/capacity building workshops (February 25, 2020; Karangantu Port/Serang and February 27, 2020; Pelabuhan Ratu, Indonesia) [photo]
  Objectives: (1) to follow-up on the training of the FishGIS and HydroColor applications that was done in these communities in February and July 2019, and (2) to evaluate how the fishers and fish farmers were using/not using the observational tools, and what steps might be taken to increase their usage.
  
  
• Trial survey – smaller-scale in-depth on-site training for a “model” community (December 15–17, 2019; Pabean Ilir, Indramayu, Indonesia) [photo]
  Objectives: (1) to improve understanding of how the collected data would be used and would contribute to the daily life and well-being of the community and to maintain the enthusiasm for the monitoring activities, (2) to provide practical training with the project observational tools, (3) to develop an instructive video manual for community-based surveys, and (4) to collect information on local fisheries, target species and livelihood of local fishers and fish farmers for socio-economic research.
  
  
• Presentations at PICES-2019 (October 2019; Victoria, Canada) [photo]
  Objective: to present the project overview and details on the development of the smartphone-based observation tools:
  • Mitsutaku Makino et al. “Capacity building in Indonesian fishing communities using smartphone technology to monitor the environment and fisheries: The FishGIS project” (talk at the Science Board Symposium S1)
  • Shion Takemura et al. “Developing a community-based coastal environmental monitoring system in Indonesia using smartphone application” (poster at the MONITOR Topic Session S9: Coastal Ocean Observing Systems, Essential Biological Variables and Community-based Monitoring)
  
  
• Third PST meeting [photo] in conjunction with PICES-2019 (October 16, 2019; Victoria, Canada)
  Objectives: (1) to review the outcomes of the July 2019 training workshop and other activities carried out to date, (2) to examine on-going data collections from the four communities involved in the project (Muara Gembong, Indramayu, Serang and Pelabuhan Ratu), (3) to review the timelines for project final reports and products, and (4) to discuss the framework for the post-project assessment.
  
  
• Training/capacity building workshop (July 10–11, 2019, Karangantu Port/Serang, Indonesia) [photo]
  Objectives: (1) to review the goals of the project, seeking community feedback on the observational parameters of importance and suggestions for improving the design of smartphone-based applications, (2) to provide hands-on practice for fishers and fish farmers in the use of the FishGIS and HydroColor applications and phytoplankton observations with Foldscope, and (3) to collect data/information from community members using a combination of socio-ecology interview tools to assess the “wellness” of the human–fisheries connection and the first indication of the use of technology to improve community understanding of the present and future fisheries.
  
  
• Visit of PICES experts and BPPT staff to potential case study sites (February 4, 2019; Serang and February 6-7, 2019; Pelabuhan Ratu, Indonesia) [photo]
  Objectives: (1) to finalize the selection of additional case study sites, (2) to seek community feedback on the observational parameters of importance and suggestions for improving the design of smartphone-based applications, and (3) to provide initial training in the use of the FishGIS and HydroColor applications and phytoplankton observations with Foldscope.
  
  
• Trial survey – smaller-scale in-depth on-site training for a “model” community (December 11–13, 2018; Pabean Ilir, Indramayu, Indonesia) [photo]
  Objectives: (1) to improve understanding of how the collected data would be used and would contribute to the daily life and well-being of the community and to re-establish the enthusiasm for the monitoring activities, (2) to provide practical training with the project observational tools, (3) to develop an instructive video manual for community-based surveys, and (4) to collect information on local fisheries, target species and livelihood of local fishers and fish farmers for socio-economic research.
  
  
• Second PST meeting [photo] in conjunction with PICES-2018 (November 2, 2018; Yokohama, Japan)
  Objectives: (1) to discuss the overall project strategy and timelines for project activities and products, (2) to review the outcomes of the July 2018 training workshop and other activities carried out to date, (3) to examine on-going data collection and reporting activities for the two initially selected case study sites (Muara Gembong and Indramayu), (4) to discuss options for an additional case study site, and (5) to identify the main elements of the Year 3 workplan.
  
  
• Posters at PICES-2018 (November 1, 2018; Yokohama, Japan) [photo]
  Objective: to present results from the initial stage of the project.
  • Naoki Tojo et al. "Interactions within fisheries eco-/econo-system and impact of participatory research in a coastal community: in the model area of Indonesia" (FIS Paper Session)
  • Ayumi Kanaya et al. "Participatory research in resource production for sustainable fisheries and estimation of option value in Indoramayu, Indonesia" (FIS Paper Session)
  • Takaaki Mori et al. "Economic value of ecosystem services and utility of coastal fisheries in Indramayu, Indonesia" (W8: Taking stock of marine ecosystem services in the North Pacific — Exploring examples and examining methods)
  
  
• Training/capacity building workshop (July 10–12, 2018; Jakarta, Indonesia) [photo]
  Objectives: (1) to review the goals of the project and seek community feedback on the observational parameters of importance and suggestions for improving the design of smartphone-based applications, and (2) to provide hands-on practice for fishers, fish farmers and staff of government labs in the use of the FishGIS and HydroColor applications and phytoplankton observations with Foldscope (paper origami microscopes enabling cellphone photograph of phytoplankton community composition).
  
  
• Visit of PICES experts and BPPT staff to potential case study sites (March 20–22, 2018; Muara Gembong, Indramayu and Cilincing, Indonesia) [photo]
  Objectives: (1) to finalize the selection of case study sites, and (2) to identify the key local individuals who will participate in the project, the type of training needed, and the logistics for providing this training.
  
  
• Introductory workshop (March 19, 2018; Jakarta, Indonesia) [photo]
  Objectives: (1) to communicate the goals and plans for the project to BPPT colleagues and representatives from other Indonesian Agencies and to seek their advice on possible approaches for its implementation and suggestions on potential locations for the demonstration case studies, and (2) to sign a Letter of Intent (LOI) between BPPT and PICES as a basis for collaboration on the project.
  
  
• First PST meeting [photo] (January 17–19, 2018; Yokohama, Japan)
  Objectives: (1) to discuss the overall strategy and general direction for the project and develop timelines for project activities and deliverables, (2) to review and refine the Year 1 workplan, and (3) to identify the main elements of the Year 2 workplan.