Live with nature, don't fight against it

This is a three part series of stories profiling the lives of people active in the community of the Croatian island of Lastovo, as part of the WWF Nature & People platform. The people profiled in the series live in an area designated as Nature Park Lastovo Islands. The aim of this platform is to recognise the value of nature through the stories of people living closest to it. I developed these articles as a WWF Adria intern, working in Nature Park Lastovo Islands, with the help of the people involved.

2. Live with the nature, not fight against it

The rains pour down from the clouded skies, rippling the blue Adriatic surface with every drop. It’s a dark day but the air is still and quiet, this is the most important weather condition for fishing. No wind means our plans are still a go despite the rain. The fishing boat sets out over the calm Adriatic for its first trip of the day to collect five nets set out the day before. We are not alone, 10 others have joined us for an eco tour activity. We are all island fishermen today.

At the helm of the boat is Ivica Lešić. Ivica has been fishing for as long as he can remember. He comes from a long line of fisherman on Lastovo Island. The island has a long tradition of fishing and it is almost a sacred activity to an islander, a part of life. It is past down from one generation to the next and the traditional ways of net fishing are still used today. His wife is a hairdresser from Split but moved to the island, and is now acting ‘first mate’ to her husband. She knows her way around the fishing nets just as well as he does. Ivica is the first fisherman in Lastovo to start with fishing tourism.

The Mediterranean ocean is facing its biggest challenge as 85% of its fish stocks are being overfished. This is partly due to decades of a top-down approaches in fisheries management that has failed to consider marine ecosystem and create a sense of ownership and self-investment amongst local Mediterranean fishers.  WWF Adria is currently putting a number of Small Scale Fisheries projects in place through creating an inclusive framework for fishers to be involved in decision-making processes and providing them the opportunity to participate in solution making to work towards sustainable fishing practices and alternative forms of income.

As the depletion of fish stocks pose a new challenge to the livelihoods of local small-scale fishers, fishers like Ivica realise the important of finding more sustainable alternatives to fishing.  “With tourism we take guests out to learn the local ways of fishing and enjoy our local dishes, but the best part is that we only have to go out to fetch the nets once per tour group which means we are actually collecting less fish but still making as profit fro the tour group”.

We all gather to enjoy the catch of the day. The ocean looks even more blue than usual against the backdrop of the grey clouds. These trips offer an authentic way to learn about local fishing traditions, culture and customs from experienced local fisherman whose family's has lived off the sea’s resources for generations. This gives tourists a unique cultural experience to live in the shoes (or fishing boots) of a local for a day. In Ivica’s words to be a fisherman you must learn to “Live with the nature, not fight against it”.