Learn about some of the activities the Trust undertook in 2008.

We put seabirds in focus in 2008 by running our second photo competition.  Over 240 entries were received.  The international competition raised seabird awareness amongst fishers and the general public. 

New Zealand Geographic editor and competition judge James Frankham said, “Photographing fast-moving seabirds from unstable fishing boats in often severe weather offers one of the most difficult challenges a photographer can face. Anyone with a shot in focus is to be congratulated. But the shots that stood out were those of exceptional beauty, behaviour or insight. Some presented birds in a way we’ve never seen them before, others played with light, water and reflected birds on the wing.  They are powerful images, some of which may greatly contribute to the preservation of seabirds under threat.”

2008 photo competition sponsors were Aotearoa Fisheries Ltd, New Zealand Geographic, Te Ohu Kaimoana and WWF-New Zealand.  The photo announcement ceremony was hosted by Te Papa.

View some of the winning photographs.

Southern Seabird Solutions Trust teamed up with the Seafood Industry Training Organisation (SITO) to produce a learning resource on seabirds and seabird bycatch reduction.  The resource has been developed for new recruits, as well as people already in the fishing industry – from skippers to factory managers to crew members.  The learning resource covers topics such as the ecological, marketing and economic consequences of accidentally killing seabirds, and ways to avoid these interactions.

Funding for this learning resource was provided by the Ministry of Fisheries.  The resource is available on SITO's website. 

In 2008,  Australia’s South East Trawl Fishing Industry Association held a forum to take a close look at seabird and other types of bycatch within their fishery.  Richard Wells, fisheries advocate and Trust Management Committee member, was invited to speak at the workshop to share some of the lessons learned by New Zealand’s deepwater fleet regarding bycatch.

The Trust turned six years old in 2008  There have been a lot of developments since the Trust was established, so we decided it was time to take a fresh look at the how the Trust can be most useful in working to reduce seabird bycatch.

Learn more about review workshop which was held on 10 and 11 November 2008 in Nelson, New Zealand. A summary of the review workshop is also available.