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The education aspect of the proposed solution would include informing people of the negative consequences of fish consumption in hopes to reduce it, such as toxic mercury content which can be found in certain ocean fish species:
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"For fetuses, infants, and children, the primary health effect of methyl mercury is impaired neurological development. Methyl mercury exposure in the womb, which can result from a mother's consumption of fish and shellfish that contain methyl mercury, can adversely affect a baby's growing brain and nervous system. Impacts on cognitive thinking, memory, attention, language, and fine motor and visual spatial skills have been seen in children exposed to methyl mercury in the womb. Recent human biological monitoring by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 1999 and 2000 shows that the majority of people have blood mercury levels below a level associated with possible health effects. Outbreaks of methyl mercury poisonings have made it clear that adults, children, and developing fetuses are at risk from ingestion exposure |
Other Risks
Fish may have bacteria, viruses, parasites and other disease-causing organisms. Unfortunately, fish can pass directly from the fishermen to the consumers without being processed by a regulatory body. Of late there was an global breakout of SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) which spread through chicken. If such a problem emerges with fish it would take a longer time to detect because fish are not as strictly regulated as chickens. Every commercial chicken farm needs to be registered with some regulatory body while it is not at all necessary for the fishermen to register themselves with any regulatory bodies in some cases
to \[the compound\]." (Health Effects, 2007). |
Another possible approach to reducing fish consumption would be to inform individuals of the advantages of becoming a vegetarian. Mission 2011 does not, however, support replacing the protein and nutritional value gained from fish with other animal meats, especially cattle: the beef industry is a large contributor to global warming through activities ranging from the clear-cutting of forests to methane production by cattle (Marian, 2007). We do endorse obtaining the necessary nutrients from combinations of grain/wheat/flour with legumes/vegetables/beans. Additional information on combining foods to achieve optimal protein intake from non-animal sources can be found on Protein in the Vegan Diet and on this Protein Information Sheet.
We also recognize that protein replacement in societies entirely dependent on fish, or in countries with little arable land, is much more difficult and less logical. Therefore, Mission 2011 strongly encourages people with access to other sources of protein to substantially decrease their consumption of fish.
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A decrease in fish consumption is recommended to some extent as a measure to decrease the number of fish extracted from the oceans. Such a decrease will likely cause companies to suffer. To ease this crisis- or even to prevent it- governments may provide subsidies encouraging the companies businesses to fish and trade sustainable fish, provided that only environmentally friendly gear is used. Training could also be offered by government bodies and NGOs to help fishing industry workers transfer to other fields. Companies should also be made aware that fishing more and more will only cause further damage. By educating them through workshops and competitions, companies will hopefully Educating companies through activities such as workshops, will hopefully enable them to realize that a change will allow them can provide an opportunity to become more efficient and, in the long run, more competitive.
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1. Encourage the government to provide subsidies to companies who fish more sustainably (employing equipment that does not harm the ocean environment) or who want to diversify to other fields.
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5. World Ocean Day : Currently there is a Oceans Day Program held by a collaboration between the Malibu Foundation for Environmental Education, California Coastal Commission, Spectral Q Aerial Art and regional partners along the west coast of North America. Having such programs worldwide would help create large-scale awareness in creative ways.
6. Advertisements: Advertising on popular Web sites like Google or Yahoo! will further help in increasing awareness. The Ad Council is currently running a campaign focusing on Oceans Awareness, using Ariel from the Disney movie "A Little Mermaid".
7. Campaigns in Public Places : Celebrity endorsement may also help raise awareness as well as money for the cause. Such events can be held at educational institutions or in other public places.
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