Abstract

Small-scale fisheries are dynamic and evolving socio-economic sectors throughout the world, often employing la-bour intensive harvesting, processing and distribution technologies to exploit marine and inland fishery resources to meet the demands of international and domestic markets. These interactions are typically embedded within a variety of often poorly documented institutional arrangements for stewardship that govern or guide the management of fisheries systems through community or organisational collective action. The paucity of research in this area within small-scale fisheries has resulted in major gaps in knowledge and information. Our understanding of marine fisheries steward-ship by individuals, organisations and communities in the Caribbean is not well developed. Understanding collective action and the roles that fisherfolk organisations may play in stewardship is essential given an increasing interest in co-management, other means of fisheries governance and the ecosystem approach to fisheries (EAF). The attention now being paid to the Caribbean Network of Fisherfolk Organisations (CNFO) by the Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mecha-nism (CRFM) and other organisations is evidence of this trend. Understanding the roles that fisherfolk organisations may play will be critical to success. This research examines the nature of stewardship in fisherfolk organisations in Guyana and Dominica, and the potential for enhancing stewardship within them by investigating individual and collective ac-tion that may lead to improved management of resources to the benefit of the fishing industry.

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