Women in the Seafood Industry of the Northern Territory: Participation, Contribution and Workforce Attraction and Retention
Charles Darwin University (CDU) and Northern Territory (NT) seafood industry partners who are collaborating to explore ways to improve women’s economic engagement in the NT commercial wild harvest and aquaculture sector.
Recognising that women have played crucial yet, often, formally unacknowledged roles in the NT seafood sector, this landmark study will document women’s historical contributions to the industry, explore barriers to current engagement and identify factors that will help the industry become more gender inclusive, robust and viable in the long term.
Project Overview:
The project involves a new partnership between Charles Darwin University and three industry partners – the FRDC – Fisheries Research and Development Corporation, Northern Territory Seafood Council (NTSC) and Women In Seafood Australasia (WISA) – a national peak body. Drawing on their expertise across gender, social science research methodologies alongside professional industry and research and development the project will work together to uncover knowledge to support an inclusive and sustainable seafood industry in the NT.
WISA’s Executive Officer Kirsten Abernethy believes that the collaboration between industry and research will lead to outcomes that can result in tangible benefits for women and the sector as a whole, the NTSC Chief Executive Officer Katherine Winchester considers the project crucial in terms of supporting the future of the industry and the role and participation of women in the sector.
Prof. Natasha Stacey (Leader Communities and Livelihoods in the CDU Research Institute for the Environment and Livelihoods) state: “The seafood industry is an important contributor to the NT’s economy, jobs, and food security and women’s contributions to the sector have been substantial but inadequately researched.” This collaboration will provide insights for not only the NT but have wider significance in other national jurisdictions.
PhD Candidate Nilanjana Biswas, who brings decades of research experience in the international gender and fisheries sector, is excited that the project will lead to a better understanding of gender relations in the context of the commercial seafood industry in the NT.
This project addresses a critical knowledge gap regarding women’s involvement in the NT seafood industry. The project is relevant to improving economic engagement of women and supporting value addition in NT seafood. It will provide an evidence-based rationale for gender-responsive policy making while the use of gender analysis in the context of the NT seafood industry will be a notable academic contribution.
Thank you to everybody involved in helping getting this project started and supporting the program (Dr Mohammad Sabuj, Natasha Stacey, Nilanjana Biswas, Kirsten Abernethy, Donna English, Katherine Winchester, Anthony Millgate, Bryce Logan)