Today on international women’s day 2018 we collectively acknowledge and celebrate women’s achievements throughout history and across nations. It is also known as the United Nations (UN) Day for Women’s Rights and International Peace. Absolutely a day for shared and international celebration.
Throughout history and across the world women have fought and continue to fight for equality. We are the individuals, mothers, grandmothers, great grandmothers, sisters, aunties and wives who support ourselves, our families, our friends, our countries and our planet for the most part with quiet affection and definitely not for reasons of recognition or wider acknowledgement.
But it is important to recognise and acknowledge the role and achievements of all women, particularly those who are the silent backbone of their communities, where neither support nor recognition is widely offered. I could choose any number of amazing women to focus on here but would like to, very briefly, just draw attention to the women who play a significant yet quiet role in the world’s fisheries.
Women play a significant role in fisheries across the globe
Women (and children) are key providers for their families and communities across the globe though the work they do gathering seafood for food and for income. The fisheries involving women and children are generally low tech with minimal or no gear often where seagrass and reef flats are ‘gleaned’ by hand at low tide to collect valuable invertebrates (and sometimes fish) for food and for sale. These women and these fisheries remain ill acknowledged and unsupported by local, regional or international efforts to manage and maintain the sense of food security that they convey. But they make up a significant proportion of the small-scale artisanal fisheries that collectively contribute up to one quarter of the total global catch. These women work tirelessly to maintain a way of life or simply to provide protein and nutrition for their families. These are voices that need to be heard and have a significant role to play in the management and maintenance of local scale fisheries.
A woman gleans at low tide in Indonesia
These often ignored fishers can teach us all a lot about a lot of things, their ecological knowledge, dedication and hard work is something we could all learn from.
So this year I would like to celebrate and acknowledge these women on this important day.
I would also like to acknowledge and celebrate the amazing women who have always worked hard, led by example, encouraged (without question) and helped shape my own life (‘no matter what’). I am privileged to have and to have had these women in my life.
Happy International Women’s Day!
