- Now I'd like to introduce our fourth speaker,
Jo Miller, from the Marine Stewardship Council
from right here in the UK.
Marine Stewardship Council protects the oceans
and safeguards seafood and supplies
for the future through safe certification processes
among other strategies.
Many of you might have seen the MSC logo
either on restaurant menus or on packaging for seafood.
I know I see it in the US.
So let's give a warm welcome to Jo Miller.
(applause)
- Thanks Sarah.
So, I'm head of PR at the Marine Stewardship Council.
I've worked in communications and public relations
for my whole career, primarily working with organizations
trying to protect our environment and drive
behavior change towards people doing more to preserve
the beautiful world that we live in.
I want to start by telling you a little story
about my 30th birthday
which was before I worked at the MSC.
I was lucky enough to spend this special day
on a beautiful island in Southern Cambodia.
It's honestly one of the most magical places
that I have ever been.
In the morning my now husband and I went diving.
And in the shallows around the island
we saw beautiful coral,
millions of colorful fish,
but we were very saddened to sea that as we went
further out into the ocean, a lot of the coral
had been destroyed, it was broken and dead.
And we were told later that that was because
dynamite fishing used to be practiced in that area
and the reefs still hadn't recovered.
At lunch time, for a special treat we decided to go
to a beach restaurant, just really a table on the beach
which was run by a local fisherman.
And we'd seen some fellow travelers there a few days
before eating what looked like amazing Spider Crab,
like massive, and we thought that would be
a good birthday treat.
So we sat down and we asked for a crab.
And the fisherman looked at us with delight and said,
"You're in luck.
"I have only one crab today
"and you're the first people here so it's yours."
He then said, "If you'd come yesterday
"we wouldn't of had any crab and we didn't catch any
"the day before either.
"And, in fact, there's a lot fewer crab
"that we're catching now than we ever used to."
And we enjoyed that crab, it was delicious,
with a slight sense of guilt.
Was the fact that he was catching less crab
a result of the destruction that we'd seen
or perhaps the fact that more tourists
were coming to the area.
So fast forward two years, I found myself
in an interview for the Marines Stewardship Council
and one of the questions that I was asked was
what do you think the challenges are
of protecting our oceans and ensuring sustainable fishing.
And I went straight back to that remote place and
had a huge sense of empathy for that fisherman
who is providing for his family, making the most
of the opportunities that tourism was bringing,
but also a sense of sadness for what we'd seen
happening in the beautiful environment.
That they were so, you know, should be so treasured.
And I gave an answer about education and economics
and development, I can't remember exactly what it was
but it must've been good because I got the job (laughs).
And then,
over the last, ever since then, so the last three
or four years, I have just learned so much
about the world of seafood and oceans that
I never dreamed even existed before I got that job.
The challenge of protecting our oceans is enormous.
Oceans cover 70% of the Earth's surface.
We rely on them, everyone relies on them
for the oxygen that we breathe
Every second breath we take,
the oxygen comes from the ocean.
They regulate our climate
and the provide protein to billions of people.
About one billion people rely on seafood
as their primary source of protein
and the majority of them are in developing countries.
It's also an incredible source
of livelihood in communities.
More than two hundred million people
are employed directly in fishing.
And by the nature of fish they're global.
They don't observe jurisdictions or governments.
In fact, species like Tuna might swim
across 30 different government jurisdictions.
So tackling this problem needs to be
done at a global scale.
Today, according to the UN about 1/3 of all fish stocks
are over fished.
60% are at their maximum sustainable limit.
And both of those numbers are increasing.
So as our population grows and demand
for seafood increases, that pressure on our,
on our ocean is just getting bigger and bigger.
So I work in a global organization
and
the solutions that the MSC provides
and how it's trying to bridge the distance
between this infinitely global problem
and what's on your plate when your plate
when you're eating, it seems so simple.
I don't think most consumers would ever
imagine where their fish came from.
A fish caught in Alaska quite possibly traveled
to China to be processed and then back to your plate.
Fish is incidentally the most globally traded commodity,
more than coffee or sugar.
So the MSC tries to work with the industry
and create a tool and a mechanism
to drive change and bring people together
and close the distance
between this insurmountable and our everyday purchases.
20 years ago, when the MSC was created
through a partnership with WWF, BigNGO, and Unilever,
then one of the owners of one
of the biggest seafood brands in the world,
they wanted to bring together disparate voices
in order to create a single point
around which communities could collaborate.
So the Marine Stewardship Council's
sustainable fishing standard was created
in consultation with scientists, NGOs,
industry experts, fisheries managers,
to try and give a definition of sustainable fishing.
Which, incidentally, is very hotly debated
and constantly evolving because science and innovation
and conservation constantly change.
But what it means is that a responsible fishing organization
can choose to be independently assessed, to a standard,
to determine whether or not it's sustainable.
Retailers, chefs, brands,
like the one's you might see the label on,
can then choose to put that label on their packaging
to say that their fish has come from a responsible fisher.
And as more consumers recognize that label,
so the cycle continues, the incentive
for more fishing organizations, governments,
policy makers, to invest in their
communities and fishing operations increases
and hopefully there's more sustainable fish.
Now, the MSC has done a huge amount of work
in the last 20 years.
About 12% of all world caught fish is now eligible
to carry that label but there's still
an incredible amount to do and
that's where I feel that I can add value
through my work in PR and communications.
There's been a lot of talk about storytelling
at this conference
and what I try to do with my colleagues
is tell the story behind that blue logo.
So I've been very fortunate at the MSC
to travel to places as far as South Africa to Iceland
where I've met fisherman
who are incredibly proud of what they're doing
to preserve the environment,
avoiding fishing sensitive habitats.
And I want to tell those stories.
And we have so many tools now with which to do that.
Social media, digital platforms,
traditional media transforming the way
that we can get that message out.
Working with ambassadors and influencers
like chefs and brands and celebrity surfers as well.
So,
the message that I want to leave with you all today
is yes, the challenges are enormous, but the tools
that we have and the energy behind
correcting some of those is also
enormous as well.
So I feel positive for the future
and that's what keeps me motivated in my job.
(applause)
- So what you might not know is Jo
is also a brand new mother.
(laughter)
And, I think, just came back from maternity leave so,
- I'm still on maternity leave.
- So we're just gonna give her another round of applause.
(applause)
- You should give a round of applause to my parents
for looking after my baby. - Oh right!
- (laughs) They've had a hard job.
- Are there questions for Jo from the audience?
- I'm Christine from Army.
I'm doing TEDx here at one and a number of things
relating to development sector.
Mostly coaching leaders in development sector
to craft ideas, new projects.
So I'm really curious, what's the added value
of emerging leaders initiative
that you as a development sector work on PR
and communications is really important because
development sector is really failing
on telling their stories.
That's a major gap we have and, you know,
we need to do something about it.
So if you could share and if you could also,
from your perspective, advise
what type of development sector
worker should try to reach out to the program
and tell what they need and how they can get involved.
Thank you.
- So the emerging leaders program has been fantastic
I think for all of us in helping us to tell our stories.
We've had media training, we've been videoed,
we've been interviewed, so we've had lots of practice,
and I think we'd all agree that we've probably
changed our stories as a result.
Working in a scientific organization,
we really struggle to tell stories
about what the MSC does.
It's incredibly technical and you can get lost
in jargon very easily and I think
what's coming out of this forum
and everything we've been doing
is you need to look for those real life examples
and personal experiences.
Regarding who should
you know, who could join the emerging leaders program
I don't see that, you know,
I don't think there's barriers.
You just gotta look at the group here
to see how diverse it is and
everybody's got a story to tell
you just need to find it, I think.
- Thank you Jo.
Thank you so much. - Okay, you're welcome.
(applause)