What We Do

Med Sea Alliance Members work together to reduce and end destructive fishing practices and overfishing by participating in campaigns, projects and other activities aligned with our common strategy, at the local, national and regional level.

One crucial aspect of this project is to work with small-scale fishers who are highly impacted by illegal trawling. We want to protect their livelihoods together with fish stocks.

Vanya Vulperhorst, Oceana, Campaign Director Illegal Fishing and Transparency

Among myriad threats to the health and productivity of the Mediterranean Sea, the Alliance has identified 3 interrelated strategic issues to focus on:

• Trawling impacts, with a focus on overfishing and ecosystem damage.
• A culture of non-compliance and lack of enforcement of existing regulations.
• The need for a more extensive and coherent network of protected areas.

We will demonstrate that sustainable fishing and marine conservation make economic sense and that it is possible to fish less and earn more. We will reveal the costs of unsustainable fishing and generate economic arguments to move faster towards sustainable fisheries in the Med.

Aniol Esteban, Marilles Foundation, Director

The Med Sea Alliance will initially tackle illegal trawling in marine protected areas (MPAs), Natura 2000 marine sites, and fisheries restricted areas (FRAs). In the longer term, we will shift our focus from the enforcement of existing rules to achieving strategic goals related to the three focus issues related to trawling, enforcement, and protected areas.

The Med Sea Alliance can act as a multiplier of energies and knowledge, amplifying reach and impact, and become a catalyst for change. This is what we need today in the Mediterranean region.

Domitilla Senni, MedReAct, Executive Director