A National Program for Engaging the Recreational Fisheries Community in Supporting Recreational Data Collection Programs

Filling the Information Vacuum:  Communicating with Saltwater Recreational Anglers

Sustainably managing our common ocean resources is a job too big for any one entity or agency. Keeping fish populations abundant and as accessible as science allows won’t happen without everyone’s engagement and participation. NOAA and recreational saltwater anglers should be allies in the science and management, but too frequently we are at odds over policy and process. Strengthening our relationship requires sustained interaction built on a solid foundation of trust and respect. It requires an ongoing series of conversations. 

In any conversation, we must be wary of the unasked or unanswered questions – aka the information vacuum.  This is where factual understanding goes to die.  It is the place of rampant rumor and misinformation and a frequent source of implementation roadblocks. Drawing on examples from ongoing initiatives, we will make that case that our responsibility as an Agency goes beyond simply providing information. That facilitating understanding is our real goal.