Oceana Appoints Dr. Patricia Majluf to Lead in Peru

WASHINGTON, March 16, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Oceana is pleased to announce the appointment of noted fisheries expert Dr. Patricia Majluf to lead the organization's fisheries campaigns in Peru. Dr. Majluf will serve as a key member of Oceana's Global Management Team and head up conservation and ocean advocacy efforts in the world's top fishing country. Peru is home to the anchoveta, the target of the largest single species fishery on earth.

A native of Peru, Majluf earned a Ph.D. in zoology at the University of Cambridge and served as a scientist for the Wildlife Conservation Society for almost 20 years. She also served as Peru's Vice Minister of Fisheries and most recently directed the Center for Environmental Sustainability at Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia in Lima. In addition, she has received awards and fellowships from the Pew Charitable Trusts, the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, Fundacion BBVA, and others.  Majluf's work has focused on the Peruvian anchoveta fishery.

Up to 98 percent of Peru's massive 6-10 million ton catches of anchoveta are destined to be 'reduced' to create fish oil and fishmeal products, including food pellets for livestock and farmed salmon. Majluf has championed efforts to encourage people to eat anchoveta directly, as doing so would make available tens of millions of pounds of heart-healthy and protein rich food source to Peruvians and others worldwide. She created the acclaimed "Anchoveta Week" program in Peru, working with noted chefs and restaurants to create anchoveta dishes in order to raise public awareness about direct consumption of the fish. By engaging fishing and processing industries, activist chefs, and the international sustainable seafood movement, Majluf aims to raise the profile of anchoveta worldwide and improve the sustainability of the world's largest fishery.

"Patricia is recognized as one of the world's leaders in using science and campaigning to change how we manage so-called forage fish and to end the wastefulness of reduction practices. Changing how we manage reduction fisheries and getting people— rather than salmon, pigs and other animals—to eat these fish is the single biggest change we can make to save the oceans and feed the world," said Oceana Chief Executive Officer Andrew Sharpless.

The new Peruvian office will extend Oceana's reach in South America, where shared waters off Peru and Chile are influenced by a cold current that creates one of the world's most critical marine habitats. "The Humboldt Current is the most productive fishing region in the world," said Jim Simon, Oceana President. "Sixteen percent of fishing at the global level takes place in these waters, so the area is of vital importance for both the fishing industry and the lives of Peruvian people, as well as that of many marine species. Patricia's expertise will be critical to Oceana's efforts to protect this key marine habitat and to support the goal of feeding more people sustainably worldwide." Majluf said "as a conservation scientist and as someone who is deeply invested in issues of food security, I am looking forward to contributing to Oceana's goals. The organization is unique in how it campaigns on the link between ecosystem and human health as far as our oceans are concerned. Winning real change that can protect marine biodiversity and also feed and sustain people has long been a passion of mine."

Oceana's Peru office was made possible in part by a generous grant from the Wyss Foundation. With the addition of Peru, Oceana will be now be active in areas that control over one third of the wild fish caught in our oceans.

Oceana is the largest international advocacy organization focused solely on ocean conservation. We run science-based campaigns and seek to win policy victories that can restore ocean biodiversity and ensure that the oceans are abundant and can feed hundreds of millions of people. Oceana victories have already helped to create policies that could increase fish populations in its countries by as much as 40 percent and that have protected more than 1 million square miles of ocean. We have campaign offices in the countries that control more than a third of the world's wild fish catch, including in North, South and Central America, Asia and Europe. To learn more, please visit www.oceana.org.

Contact:
Shannon O'Neill
Email
Phone: 1 (202) 467-1933
 

SOURCE Oceana

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