My research experience has shown me the importance of examining issues at the community level, where both struggle and change, both challenges and opportunities are tackled head on.
Jack Daly, Masters student
The island of Newfoundland offers a rich cultural history which has been influenced by global forces for hundreds of years. The fisheries of Newfoundland have shaped its culture greatly, with transition and change testing the viability of the communities that rely on it. It is this rich history and culture that attracts research to the island. My own research, examining local fisheries and communities during another period of change aims to document how communities respond when faced with social, ecological, and economic factors.
Having recently completed my fieldwork in the Great Northern Peninsula (GNP) of Newfoundland, my knowledge of the island and province more broadly has been contextualized by hearing firsthand the effects that fisheries stock decline, climatic changes, social pressures, and changing government policies can have on communities.
The GNP is a rural region of the province with a large reliance on the fishery and a willingness to adapt and change to an ever-connecting world. The GNP has a small population, with less than 15,000 people that are made up of fish harvesters, processing plant workers, small-business owners, healthcare workers, educators, civil-servants, and increasingly tourism operators. My fieldwork allowed me to meet community leaders such as Mayor’s and non-profit representatives, who see the future of their region as a mix of preserving their heritage and capitalizing on their skills to take advantage of opportunities in order to stem or reverse trends of depopulation.
One such opportunity is the newly signed Canada-EU Comprehensive Economic & Trade Agreement, which brings with it a reduction in seafood tariffs into the largest importer of seafood globally: the European Union. This agreement is not without controversy which has become an aspect of my research. Having spent time in the region has added rich and vital perspectives to my research which is now being further supplemented through conversations with decision makers in the provincial capital St. John’s, where I have lived and studied since moving to the province in September of 2017 in pursuance of my Master’s degree in Geography.
My research experience has shown me the importance of examining issues at the community level, where both struggle and change, both challenges and opportunities are tackled head on. This is especially useful when examining free trade agreements which can be abstract and hard to qualify in terms of people and communities. Looking into how such massive economic agreements are both viewed and implemented at a regional and provincial level can highlight mismatches as well as shed light on areas of opportunity and adaptation.
My project also offers me time to go back to my study region to present my findings to the communities, so knowledge is shared, and more importantly mobilized.
Written by: Jack Daly, Masters student, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John’s
