Recently there has been a growing trend towards sustainability in wild capture fisheries. Several factors account for this trend including; concerns over fish population decline and overfishing, social issues and environmental changes, and the growing knowledge of how fisheries practices affect the marine ecosystem (FAO 2020, 2022b). In order to encourage sustainable fishing, many countries and organisations implement top-down approaches, for instance, fisheries management strategies involving setting rules and regulations such as catch quotas, enforcing gear restrictions, through monitoring and enforcement activities, and encouraging responsible fishing practices (MSC 2021). Millions of fishing-dependent people have benefited from these initiatives, which has also helped them improve their livelihoods (UN 2021). Unfortunately, various fisheries are continually fished at biologically unsustainable levels partly because that in many cases around the world, wild capture fisheries continue to fall within the pool of the “tragedy of the commons” (Ostrom 1990). Multiple stakeholders, including, those in fish-dependent communities who lack alternative sources of livelihoods e.g. (Xiao and Watson 2019), constantly use fish natural resources beyond their regeneration capacity, leading to a decline in fish stocks (FAO 2020, 2022b). Moreover, a lack of effective fisheries management and regulation has led to declines in the benefits from fisheries to communities (Meadows 2009; Tobey 2003). The need, therefore for practical management of the fishery resources is critical and ever increasing.
In India, fisheries production plays a great role in food security. Fish are a great source of proteins, vitamins, and minerals necessary for a balanced diet. Fish products frequently include omega-3 fatty acids, which provide immense health benefits while also being low in saturated fats (Belton and Thilsted 2014). Fish is a source of livelihood for over 14 million people according to India’s Ministry of Agriculture and farmers’ welfare (Government of India 2023). The open access system in most parts of India leads to an increase in fishing effort leading to overfishing and lower economic rent from the fishery (Government of India 2020; Joshua and Gopan 2021).
This calls for effective fisheries management for sustainable marine fisheries development-tackling the social, ecological (e.g., those related to overfishing, bottom trawling, habitat damage, by-catch of vulnerable species, discards, and pollution), economic and administrative issues (Bintoro et al. 2021; Government of India 2023). The ecological issues result from excess effort due to unlimited vessel entry and weak effort reduction schemes, inappropriate exploitation patterns due to the use of unselective gears, and failure to restore degraded coastal environment due to a lack of integrated top-down approaches like the marine spatial planning (MSP) and integrated coastal zone management (ICZM). Social issues refer to political, cultural and institutional forces such as family, law, politics and education (Cochrane 2001; Owusu 2020),including limited alternative employment opportunities which increases the number of fishers, improper management of intra and inter-sectoral conflicts, improper stakeholder engagement, lack of empowerment of artisanal fishers through co-management schemes, limited social legislation and inadequate welfare schemes (Chakraborty and Sivaperum 2019). Economic issues such as the decline in earnings among artisanal fishers owing to improper market systems and inadequate storage chains, and low fish product value due to post-harvest processes (Dutta, Chakraborty, and Hazra 2016). Administrative issues for instance weak fisheries policies lead to imbalanced welfare concerns thus hampering sustainability, ineffective implementation of fisheries regulations, and limited government resources for fisheries management (Apine et al. 2019).
Though global leaders are passionate about economic growth, according to Meadows (2009), they usually neglect the costs of economic growth on marine ecosystems. The economic growth that is required for the sustainability of specific fisheries species in a multispecies natural environment could mean slower growth, no growth or even negative growth. Concomitantly, according to Charles (2006), focusing on biological stock levels and overlooking other system components such as fisheries management in the natural system, and the human system may be inconclusive hence not attaining a well-balanced and inclusive sustainability. A qualitative holistic top-down approach maybe key to balancing the pillars of sustainable development.
An integrated approach, namely, the systems-thinking (ST) approach may be useful to delineate sustainability characteristics, including, social, economic and environmental aspects of sustainability (Charles 2006; Gallop 2003). Systems-thinking is a concept that has evolved substantially over the past decade (Arnold and Wade 2015; Hossain et al. 2020; Iacovidou, Hahldakis, and Purnell 2020). Various researchers and institutions engaged in community development have applied this conceptual approach to include various stakeholders in decision-making processes. In 1968, Ludwig von Bertalanffy outlined the general systems theory that led to the evolution of systems-thinking, which applies to all fields of science (Bertalanffy 1950, 1974). The general systems theory proposes that a complex collection of elements or components shares organising procedures or principles that can be observed and presented mathematically, and covers areas including holism, feedback loops, stock flow diagrams, resilience, collapse, as well as dynamics, such as the predator-prey relationships (Meadows 2009). The systems theory has often been applied to solve complex problems that were unsolvable when conventional reductionist thinking was applied. For instance, the general systems theory aided in understanding the complex socio-economic problems and the illogical behaviours of individuals, organisations, or countries (Monat and Gannon 2015).
The "systems-thinking” strategy, popularized by Barry Richmond in 1987, is advantageous when attempting to analyse complicated situations because it gives decision-makers a way to confront challenging problems in the context of their entire system (Arnold and Wade 2015; Devalt 2015; Shaked and Schechter 2017). Systems-thinking is an approach that fosters integration based on the belief that a system’s components behave differently when they are separated from the system’s environment or other components of the system (Allen 2021). Positivist and reductionist thinking are in opposition to systems thinking, which visualises systems in a holistic way. As noted by (Schiere et al. 2004) and (Zhang et al. 2018), systems philosophy correlates with systems-thinking, which describes and seeks to understand systems as a whole by examining the relationships and interactions between the different components of the system.
Systems-thinking can also be easily applied to the fishery system. According to Charles (2006), the main fishery system includes: (1) the fishery management system, including fishery policy and planning, fishery management, fishery development, and fishery research; (2) the natural system, comprising the fish species, ecosystem biotic and abiotic factors; and (3) the human system including fishers, post-harvest processors and consumers, fishing households and communities, and the social, economic, and cultural environment. Therefore, it is vital to first understand the spatial scales – size of space of the fisheries system for which we are considering to build strong systemic arguments, entailing understanding fisheries system as a whole system (Lorenzen 2008) as represented in Figure S1.
In essence, system-thinking helps inunderstanding the complex interconnections and interdependencies among and within human-ecological systems, the roots of our interconnected global crises, and the possibilities for holistic solutions (Anderson and Johnson 1997; Arnold and Wade 2015; Jackson 2004) as opposed to positivist and reductionist thinking (Dominici 2012).
The qualitative systems-thinking and modelling approaches have not been extensively used in fisheries research compared to quantitative systems-thinking (Spijkers et al. 2018) where models such as the comprehensive ATLANTIS modelling framework, and the models employed in Holling’s book “Adaptive environmental assessment and management”(Audzijonyte et al. 2019; Holling 1980). This situation is compounded by fisheries being traditionally focused on quantitative methods that require large amounts of data and statistical analysis, and the fact that fisheries management is typically driven by short-term economic goals, rather than holistic, systems-thinking. Previous studies, have shown a growing recognition that traditional coastal fishing communities’ management strategies are insufficient, and cannot address the complex, interconnected challenges facing global fisheries. The current study, is among the first attempts to employ a qualitative systems-thinking top-down approach, which focuses on understanding the complexity of the patterns and behaviour of the fishery system as a whole. A study by Bennett et al. (2019), is among the few examples where the qualitative systems thinking approach was utilised to develop a conceptual model of a small-scale fishery in Mexico. Theyargued that the approach is well suited to address the underlying drivers of sustainability challenges instead of simply treating symptoms. This study seeks to assess the efficacy of fishery management practices to enhance sustainability among coastal communities in India by using a systems-thinking approach in Alappad panchayat in Kerala. The systems mapping approach is used to visually present the different components of the fishery management system and how they interact. Systems mapping helps to operationalize systems-thinking and identify feedback loops, and stocks and flows a qualitative causal system dynamics – a system thinking branch that deals with how the system behaves and changes over time (Kim 1999; Meadows 2009). The study applies a holistic qualitative systems-thinking method to comprehend and examine the intricate, dynamic, and interrelated systems that influence the management of fisheries in the direction of fisheries sustainability. In order to establish efficient and sustainable fisheries management strategies, the study tries to identify the primary drivers and leverage points in the fisheries system. Additionally, it intends to assist stakeholders in creating more inclusive and participatory decision-making processes by assisting them in better understanding the trade-offs and unintended consequences of various management alternatives.