WOSHECO

Women and Shellfish in Commons. An inter- and transdisciplinary approach to address the adaptive co-management of shellfisheries in West Africa

Coordination

Clara Therville (IRD, UMR SENS)

Project type

International

Funding

ANR-JCJC

Project duration

Start Date

08/09/2026

End Date

08/09/2026

Links

Coastal areas in the Global South are facing significant challenges due to climate change and increasing anthropogenic pressures, resulting in compounded vulnerabilities. In these socio- ecosystems, small-scale fisheries represent a vital means of livelihood and resilience that may collapse. In this context, any action-research aimed at addressing sustainability challenges must confront several key issues:

conceptualizing fisheries in a dynamic and integrated manner, extending beyond extraction and adopting a broader socio-ecological and territorial perspective;
addressing their adaptive co-management and polycentric governance;
implementing co-built approaches that are widely applicable while maintaining a reflexive stance.

The WOSHECO project proposes such an interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary approach to support the monitoring, management, and governance of poorly understood small-scale fisheries: women’ shellfisheries. It focuses on the case of the bloody cockle (Senilia senilis), a widely distributed mollusk primarily harvested by women along West African coasts. Initial development of tools and reflections will take place in the Sine Saloum delta in Senegal, where women have observed a concerning decline in this resource and have collaborated with natural scientists on this issue for 25 years. Along this pathway, WOSHECO integrates ecological modeling, characterization of the social dynamics at play, and exploration of collectively constructed socio-ecological management and governance scenarios, both at the fishery and territorial levels. It mobilizes various methodologies (computer modelling, in-situ experimentation, serious games, surveys, life stories, participatory theater) and places women and institutional stakeholders at the heart of the process. The project supports up-scaling by providing a toolkit whose genericity will be tested on other ark fisheries in Senegal and subsequently disseminated regionally.