History

The Ibero-American Research Network for the Sustainable Use of Fishery Resources (RED INVIPESCA) was born with the vocation of making the Ibero-American fisheries research into a world reference given the diversity and social, economic and cultural importance of fishing activity in these countries and the historical relationship that exists between them.

The founding of the Network took place in November 2009 during the “Working Table for Cooperation” held within the framework of the I Ibero-American Symposium on Reproductive Ecology, Recruitment and Fisheries (SIBECORP), in the city of Vigo, Spain. During this event, attended by 21 researchers from 12 countries in Latin America, Spain and Portugal, the need to advance in the development of joint activities between fisheries research institutions in Ibero-America was highlighted, given the fragile state of many marine and fresh water resources in the region, and the consequent threat to the sustainability of various fisheries.

Although most Ibero-American countries have sufficient fisheries research capacity, their integration through the establishment of cooperation mechanisms and the creation of potential synergies in areas of common interest would undoubtedly benefit the knowledge of fishery resources and, consequently, their assessment and sustainable management.

For this reason, it was unanimously agreed to promote the creation of this network, thus reinforcing Ibero-American fisheries research through cooperation and exchange of knowledge between institutions and researchers of reference in this field. One of its first results was the creation of the INVIPESCA blog and the map of Fisheries Research in Ibero-America.

Following the premise established in Vigo, a meeting was held in Curitiba, in June 2011, for the creation of the Brazilian section of the network, which brought together twenty researchers from different regions of Brazil, South America and Spain. During this meeting they discussed, among other issues, possible strategies to enable the integration of fisheries information between the different states that make up the Brazilian network.

The second SIBECORP was held in Mar del Plata, Argentina, in 2012, and three years later the third edition was held in Porto de Galinhas, Brazil. At both meetings, progress was made in reinforcing the network through various cooperation offers and joint activities.

SIBERCORP is one of the most important events of the INVIPESCA network that aims to establish every three years a forum for scientific discussion to promote the application of the ecosystem approach in the management of Ibero-American fisheries, based on the inclusion of biological, ecological, environmental and socioeconomic aspects in the assessment of resources.

In these years of life, the INVIPESCA Network has facilitated numerous joint activities in the field of fisheries research between different members of the network – research projects, publications, running of doctoral theses, courses, etc. – and is one of the main driving force of fisheries research in Ibero-America.