Many of the world's fish stocks are heavily overfished and some are severely depleted. At the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) in Johannesburg in 2002, governments committed themselves to restore fish stocks to levels that can provide a Maximum Sustainable Yield no later than 2015. To achieve these goals, functioning strategies for rebuilding overfished stocks are necessary.
The EU-funded scientific research project UNCOVER is presently evaluating alternative strategies to recover some of the important fish stocks in the ICES area. In the Northwest Atlantic and the North Pacific, there are similar situations of mixed success.
Research scientists, managers, policy makers and other stakeholders are invited to present and discuss recent status and strategies for the recovery of overexploited fish stocks. Biological, ecological, modelling as well as socio-economic and management aspects will be covered. The symposium should also serve as a forum to exchange ideas and views across disciplines and stakeholders.