Important Announcements

Dear students, 

 

During my stay as a postdoc at the Leibniz Centre for Tropical Marine Research (ZMT) in Bremen, I studied the shift from farming and capture fisheries towards aquaculture in Bulacan, Philippines. Bulacan is among the provinces in the country with the most economically valuable aquaculture sector. In my presentation, I will talk about how farming and fishing livelihoods gradually shifted to aquaculture due to environmental change. I will characterise the aquaculture sector in the area, and discuss a number of challenges including competition over land, how local smallholder aquaculture producers are being priced out of land, pollution (who is responsible, and who can adapt), governance of these issues, and the impending further loss of livelihoods due to the planned construction of an airport complex near fishing grounds. The main focus of my research then was institutional change. But for this presentation, I will focus on describing the transformation in the area and attendant social and ecological issues. 

 

For an overview of the place, I invite you to view this video that I created after my field work. (29) Fisheries and Aquaculture in Bulacan, Philippines - YouTube

 

Best,

Dr. Aisa O. Manlosa-Kirk
Assistant Professor 

Global Challenges Program — Earth, Energy, and Sustainability