More to Sea is a project and book by Dutch marine governance graduate Mariëlle Klein Lankhorst. After her studies she travelled through Europe in her little marine blue car Babet to interview small-scale fishers. Her aim was to shed a different light on their livelihoods. Through the key question ‘’What keeps you from sleeping at night?” Mariëlle interviewed over forty fishers and combined interview quotes with photos on her website and social media. The book is organized around threats that fishers face and possible solutions. Fishers speak for themselves to these themes, illustrating situated knowledge and the importance of local responses to contemporary challenges.
My main objective of this journey was to understand how small-scale fishers in Europe are doing… What do they like about their jobs, which struggles do they face, which victories have they had, what future do they see? Through the course of a year, I interviewed more than fifty people who work in small-scale fisheries…
In general, when we talk about fishers, including in the news, we often focus on overfishing… This narrative was absolutely not satisfying to me. I doubted that the majority of fishers are greedy. There must be more to it, more depth and width, more narratives, more colour… The greedy fisher narrative is politically dangerous for small-scale fishing communities as it forms an easy ground for marginalization. We risk losing so much: employment, culture, knowledge, traditions, history, and access to nutritious and high-quality foods.
This photo-book introduces different themes I found across the region (there were plenty), after which photos and quotes follow. It illustrates people’s joy for the fishing life, the threats they face, solutions some found, and the bright spots now and on the horizon. Like fishers, I am a natural optimist and I have aimed to compose a book that is informative, hopeful and motivating.
Mariëlle Klein Lankhorst
‘More to Sea’ was introduced to us by Kate Barclay, a member and long-time contributor of TBTI, as the work of her student, Mariëlle Klein Lankhorst, who travelled around Europe, spending time with small-scale fishers and taking pictures and capturing their stories. We were impressed by the samples of photos that Mariëlle sent and agreed to puablish it in our series. The captivating images of fishers, the straightforward, no-nonsense depictions of their livelihoods, the insightful summaries by Mariëlle that weaved the material together – it was all there. Unlike other books, this one came as an already completed manuscript; thus, it just needed to be packaged into a familiar format of TBTI books and released into the world.
While we were not there at the start of Mariëlle’s journey, driving along the shorelines of western and southern Europe, we are thrilled to share this book with you as it speaks to the core of our work – the intrinsic values and the importance of small-scale fisheries. Just as importantly, the book does this candidly through the voices of fishers – women and men. Through example after example, the book illustrates the reasons why small-scale fisheries matter so much to those directly involved in this sector as well as to us consumers, and why it is worthwhile to fight for the world where small-scale fisheries are properly recognized, and governed in a way that is built on principles of justice and equity.
Vesna Kerezi
TBTI Global
The book is available for free, as an e-book in two sizes: smaller (8MB) and larger (50MB) file.
Click on the buttons below to download the e-book.
Mariëlle Klein Lankhors is a Dutch PhD student studying at the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences of the University of Technology Sydney in Australia. She is interested in opportunities for sustenance of small-scale fishing livelihoods through direct and local seafood markets. She is supervised by Professor Kate Barclay and Associate Professor Michael Fabinyi. Much inspiration for her PhD comes from her 2018-2019 photojournalism project More to Sea, Portraits of Europe’s Small-Scale Fishers during which she traveled along the coastlines of Europe to meet fishers. She commenced this journey after completing her master’s degree at Wageningen University & Research in Aquaculture and Marine Resource Management. Mariëlle holds an MSc degree in Marine Governance.
TBTI Global Book Series
Portrait of Small-Scale Fishers in the Philippines is the twelfth book published under TBTI Global Book Series. This publication series aims to highlight why we need to pay close attention to small-scale fisheries. The series will be of use to anyone interested in learning more about small-scale fisheries, especially about their important contribution to livelihoods, well-being, poverty alleviation and food security, as well as to those who are keen to help raise profile of small-scale fisheries in the policy realm.
TBTI Global Book Series
Portrait of Small-Scale Fishers in the Philippines is the eleventh book published under TBTI Global Book Series. This publication series aims to highlight why we need to pay close attention to small-scale fisheries. The series will be of use to anyone interested in learning more about small-scale fisheries, especially about their important contribution to livelihoods, well-being, poverty alleviation and food security, as well as to those who are keen to help raise profile of small-scale fisheries in the policy realm.
How to Cite
Klein Lankhorst, M. (Eds.). 2023. More to Sea: A portrait of Europe’s contemporary small-scale fisheries. TBTI Global Publication Series. St. John’s, NL, Canada.