Cycladorama- Fishers Forum: Empowering the voice of small-scale coastal fishers

The first CPF Fishers’ Forum 2025, themed “Empowering the voice of small-scale coastal fishers,” was held on Thursday, November 27, and Friday, November 28, in Piraeus, organized by the Cyclades Preservation Fund (CPF) and supported by the Blue Marine Foundation (BMF), as part of the Cycladorama initiative, which aims to empower and network the coastal fishing communities of the islands towards a more sustainable direction, with a focus on the Cyclades.

The two-day event aimed primarily to provide a platform to small-scale coastal fisheries in the region, highlighting the major challenges but also the good practices that are more widely followed in other areas in Greece and abroad on specific issues, such as fishing restriction areas, marine parks, recreational fishing, co-management, alien species, fishing tourism, etc. At the same time, it aimed to highlight common proposals agreed upon by fishers and to strengthen their communication channels with the state, the academic community, and environmental organizations.

A total of 19 fishers from 9 islands participated in the two-day event, following an invitation sent to the professional coastal fishing associations of the Cyclades as well as to individual fishers with whom there is cooperation and open communication with the organizers, both within and outside the Cyclades.

The first day of the event was devoted exclusively to dialogue among the fishers in a closed setting, without observers, as well as to recording their joint proposals, which were highlighted through interactive, participatory methodology (role playing), while the second day opened the discussion cycle with the participation of invited representatives from the administration, the scientific community, and environmental organizations.

The following also participated with greetings, statements, or presentations

• Secretary General of Ports, Port Policy and Maritime Investments of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs & Insular Policy,
• Director of Fisheries Policy and Utilization of Fisheries Policy Products of the General Directorate of Fisheries of the Ministry of Rural Development and Food,
• The President of the Panhellenic Association Ichthyologists of Public sector
• Representative of Natural Environment & Climate Change Agency (N.E.C.C.A.)
• Researcher at the Institute of Oceanography of the Hellenic Center for Marine Research (hcmr),
• Head of marine programs at the Blue Marine Foundation in Greece,
• Executive Director and scientific team for marine issues at the Cyclades Preservation Fund (CPF),
• Representatives of the environmental organizations WWF Greece, iSea, and the Thalassa Foundation,
• The Panhellenic Association of Professional Fishers for Fishing Tourism, representatives of fishers from the Amorgorama initiative and the Alonnisos National Park of the Northern Sporades, as well as the agencies Babel – Fisheries Collaborative and FishForma Co.
• The event was also attended by environmental organizations (Greenpeace, Hellenic Ornithological Society, Archelon) participating in the We Sea You initiative.
• The Ionian Environment Foundation, Argosaronic Environment Foundation, and Archipelagos Network.

During the two-day event:

• Fishers discussed and agreed on issues and joint proposals concerning fishing restriction areas and marine protected areas, monitoring and strict control of fishing activity, management of fishery resources, the reduction of fishing effort, seasonal bans, and finally the regulation of recreational fishing, an issue that seems to be of great concern to all small-scale coastal fishing professionals.
• Representatives of the Ministry of Rural Development and Food and Ministry of Maritime Affairs & Insular Policy, highlighted current policies for sustainable fishing, the key role of small-scale fishers in the conservation of marine resources, and the importance of cooperation between all stakeholders. The Secretary General of the Ministry of Maritime Affairs & Insular Policy made special mention of the need to preserve and utilize traditional wooden fishing boats, which, he noted, must remain active and continue to operate at sea. For her part, the representative of the Directorate-General for Fisheries of the Ministry of Rural Development and Food emphasized the opportunities for strengthening the trade union organization and representation of fishers, the priority that must be given to the productive sector of the sea, as well as the need for greater cooperation and less competition between the different fishing gear used in the sector.

• The N.E.C.C.A. representative informed attendees about the importance and timeline of the next stages in establishing new Marine Parks in the Ionian and South Aegean Seas.
• Examples of existing and new Marine Protected Areas were presented, with emphasis on the Alonnisos National Marine Park and the active participation of the local fishing association and the Thalassa Foundation in protection measures.
• The proposal to establish the first underwater protected landscape in Santorini from the Theraic Sea was discussed. Scientists and local fishers highlighted the contribution of protected areas to the recovery of ecosystems and fish populations, while new prospects were also pointed out.
• The importance of co-management of fishery resources was highlighted, with the participation of lawyers and experts on sustainable fishing from WWF Greece. Good practices from Greece and abroad were presented, while the need for institutional participation of fishers in decision-making and policy-making that directly affects them was highlighted.

• Particular emphasis was placed on the experience of fishing associations, which presented the benefits and challenges arising from co-management with the state, science, and environmental agencies. The case of Amorgos and the Restricted Fishing Areas was discussed at length as an example of a participatory process initiated by the fishers themselves.
• The Pick the Alien initiative, by iSea, and the need to promote edible alien species on the market were presented, and the need for targeted support, common management tools, and effective adaptation practices in a rapidly changing marine environment were discussed.
• The first official presentation of a short video on responsible fishing tourism was made, prepared by the CPF with the support of the BMF as part of the Cycladorama initiative, while a representative of the Panhellenic Association for Fishing Tourism, including fishers from the island of Kefalonia and scientists, presented experiences, new practices, and initial conclusions from the implementation of the activity in various regions of the country.

The CPF Fishers’ Forum 2025 highlighted the fact that empowering small-scale coastal fishers requires continuous dialogue, mutual trust, and cooperation, and concluded with a commitment by all participants to continue their joint efforts for sustainable Greek seas, strong fishing communities, and a new culture of participation in the management of marine resources. For their part, the organizers also committed to to share the joint proposals of coastal fishers with the professional associations of the Cyclades and then with the relevant state authorities in order to continue and consolidate a process of structured, participatory consultation process on issues of major importance for the future of small-scale coastal fishing in the Cyclades, but also more broadly in Greece.