An overview of the Climate Adaptation Framework for Fisheries (CAFF) to support climate adaptation

Climate change is affecting the productivity of fisheries — a trend that is projected to continue into the foreseeable future.

Many Canadians rely on fisheries for food and livelihoods, so the observed and projected adverse climate impacts on marine fisheries pose a significant threat to their well-being.

Currently, Canada lacks a clear overarching climate change adaptation strategy for its fisheries and climate change is not often considered in their conservation and management.

Read this open access paper on the FACETS website.

This study presents an overview of the Climate Adaptation Framework for Fisheries (CAFF), which we are developing to support climate adaptation in Canada’s marine fisheries.

The framework is designed to assess climate vulnerabilities operating across various social and ecological dimensions of fisheries (including harvested species, the infrastructures supporting fisheries, and their management and operation) to understand the barriers to adaptation and how best to overcome them.

By providing climate adaptation information for harvested species, fish stocks, fishing harbours, and fishing fleets, the framework is tailored to support climate adaptation across different organizations, regulatory agencies, rights-holders, and stakeholders.

Climate change is increasingly a source of uncertainty in fisheries. Our Climate Adaptation Framework for Fisheries will provide actionable information on the climate vulnerability of Canadian fisheries, helping to develop strategies to hedge against uncertainty and build resilience under climate change.

Read the paper — A prospective framework to support climate-adaptive fisheries in Canada by Daniel G. Boyce, Nancy Shackell, Phil Greyson, and Blair Greenan.