Emerging computational methodologies for transparency in fisheries

Abstract

Our ocean covers over 70% of our planet. It is the world's largest food system, supporting the food security of several billion people and livelihoods for hundreds of millions of people globally. Conservation of ocean ecosystems refers to the study of marine ecosystems and their functions while the act of ocean conservation is protecting and preserving ecosystems in oceans and seas through planned management in order to prevent the exploitation of its' resources. As the human population has dramatically increased, as has the pressure of human impact on ocean ecosystems resulting in overfishing and causing increased extinction rate of marine species and destruction of marine environments. Harnessing the great leaps the world has experienced in computational processing for marine applications is not a question of when, but how. This body of research lays the foundations for a novel field - computational marine stewardship. An assemblage of technical innovations that hold the potential for integrating greater transparency in seafood supply chains, this research informs the dialogue around developing fisheries management technologies towards greater marine stewardship efforts.