Sustainability of Global Inland Freshwater Fisheries: Role of Extension Educators as Information Agents Framing Policy Options

Achievement of healthy ecosystems and sustainable freshwater fisheries will likely require governance strategies that address coupled human and natural systems across local and global scales. This complex system with high levels of uncertainty, likely to be accompanied by diverse stakeholder values, will require trusted professionals who engage stakeholders in the creation of new policy alternatives to achieve sustainability of global inland freshwater fisheries. Extension Educators are professionals with University-based outreach programs trained to work with scientists, managers, communities, and other stakeholders. They do this by engaging a spectrum of stakeholders who often have differing perspectives on topics that have high levels of ecological or policy uncertainty. Trusted by stakeholders, scientists, and decision-makers, Extension Educators are skilled at designing programs to communicate science, conduct inquiry on stakeholder needs and interests, and facilitate planning and policy processes that expand understanding of issues and relevant science, and expand the scope of policy alternatives so enduring solutions can be developed and implemented. These professionals can help make the resources, knowledge, diverse perspectives, and policy options visible, and frame the discussion and policy options within a telecoupled systems integration approach.