International Marine Aquarium Conference (IMAC) -Speakers 2004

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STEVE ROBINSON

Steve Robinson has been collecting marines since 1974 when he stocked the lab tanks with local marinelife in the Biology department at San Jose State University. He was the only non science major to receive an A in Icthyology there. Since then he has been a commercial collector, exporter and importer since 1979 working in Mexico, Australia, Hawaii, Bali, Tonga the Marshall Islands and the Yucatan.

As an environmental consultant he has worked in the Cook Islands, Costa Rica, the Philippines and Mexico. He was contributing editor of FAMA magazine from 1982-1991 and a trainer of cyanide fisherman in various training programs in the Philippines since 1983.

As a founder of the International Marinelife Alliance in 1985 and an industry reform activist since the beginning... he was instrumental in exposing the nefarious trade in cyanide caught food and aquarium fish, and has actively campaigned for village training programs to convert fisherman to sustainable practices.

Steve is currently the president of AMDA, the American Marinelife Dealers Association, and founder of a Net Fund to supply fisherman with nets as an adjunct to pending training programs. You can visit his website at www.cortezmarine.com

ABSTRACT:

CONVERTING CYANIDE TROPICAL FISH COLLECTORS INTO NETSMAN

Cyanide fish collecting has persisted throughout the Philippines despite 20 years of NGO sponsored training programs to eliminate it. The reasons for the failure to solve this problem are clear, understandable and avoidable. Recently, new pilot trainings have been conducted and reveal the secrets of success that have so eluded reformers. The difference between success and failure to achieve complete conversions can be broken down as follows.

1] Appropriate field philosophy and attitude. Trainings are offered to village fisherman for economic purposes and liviihood improvement, first and foremost. Trainees are made to understand that they are worth more money after graduation thru enhanced catch totals, improved survival and saleability of fishes. We are clearly there for them and their benefit…not our own. Reducing suspicion and achieving respect as a fellow fisherman allows trainees to finally open up and teach trainers what will work with them and how to train them best. All other considerations are delt with secondarily to this fisherman- first ethic.

2] Competent team composition and expertise. Trainings cannot be conducted by people of lesser skill than the trainees. Commercial professionals of village training experience comprise the training teams.

3] Proper netting materials are absolutely essential to training properly and sustaining success. Much past backsliding can be attributed to training despite the lack of proper netting material for both barrier nets and hand-nets. Netting supply is to be made available during and after training.

4] Follow-up and market support. One diver trainer is left in the village for at least a week after each training to evaluate and work with divers on new found skills Futhermore, divers can be introduced to exporters who actually want netcaught fish supply if they so desire.. Backsliding and returning to cyanide fishing is avoided by actually converting the divers to a skill level of their own recognition and satisfaction. They will see that they catch more fish, lose less, make more money and stay legal. Actually achieving this is the only way to remove temptation to backslide. Training properly reveals cyanide use to be a handicap and an income reducer…a thing of the past and nothing to return to.

Converting cyanide fisherman to enhanced skill levels is like drivers training and can be verified by experienced trainers. Trainees are not given a hit and run course but stayed with to make sure they’ve got it, want it and stick with it…all for their own reasons.

Fisherman will change not so much for scientific, management, legal or foreign moral imperatives…but primarily for their own simpler reasons of improved income generating capability. It is the challenge of trainers to insure success based on this fundamental truth. Other benefits and realizations may flow after the fact, but first fisherman need to see that they can do better than before thanks to this training design. Cyanide fisherman are in fact easier to train than previously thought by non-fisherman.

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