Global Ghost Gear Initiative Nominated for Award

The Global Ghost Gear Initiative, a multi-stakeholder collaboration founded by World Animal Protection in 2015, has been shortlisted as one of 16 finalists for the 2017 Seafood Champion Awards at the Seafood Expo North America which was held in Boston earlier this month.

The Global Ghost Gear Initiative (GGGI) is nominated for The Seafood Champion Award for Vision which recognizes distinctive visions that significantly advance the sustainable seafood community and inspire positive change. 

A staggering 640,000 tons of fishing gear is left or discarded in our oceans each year. Known as ghost gear, this haul of lines and nets, traps, injures, mutilates and kills hundreds of thousands of whales, dolphins, seals, turtles and birds annually.

The GGGI is tackling the problem of abandoned fishing gear on a global scale, working with stakeholders from fishers and companies to the United Nations to collect data, inspire best practice and develop model solutions that remove ghost gear from the ocean.

Ingrid Giskes, global head of Sea Change for World Animal Protection said: “The growing volume of ghost gear and lack of a global solution is devastating for marine animals and puts a strain on the livelihoods of coastal communities.

“To combat this enormous problem, we launched the GGGI as a collaboration bringing the public, private and NGO sector together to drive real solutions to this preventable problem.  

“We’re really proud of the recognition the GGGI is beginning to receive in such a short period and very much see the platform as a long-term driver of sustainable solutions.”

The annual Seafood Champion Awards program, now in its 11th year, recognizes individuals and organizations globally for excellence in promoting environmentally responsible seafood. 

Winners will be announced at the SeaWeb Seafood Summit in Seattle.