A Global Perspective on Sustaining Fisheries in the 21st Century: Transitioning Beyond Existing Paradigms to an Integrated, Ecosystem Approach

World fisheries yield 90 million metric tons of fish per year (over 70% of the world's commercial fish production) and play key roles in global food and income. Marine fisheries have long been driven by single-species management strategies in attempts to maximize yields without compromising future catches. However, single-species approaches overlook ecological linkages and interactions, and the ability of marine environments to sustain multi-species fisheries. Hence, some populations have been fished to collapse and others have become economically inefficient, often with consequences for non-target populations. Our science and management must operate in harmony with established ecological principles, if we are to conserve fisheries and avoid the declines of the past. Fishery professionals must also harmonize approaches for solving ecosystem-level problems. Most importantly, we must be willing to consider new approaches that (1) improve our capabilities and skills in multidisciplinary fisheries science, and (2) embrace new conservation paradigms that involve fishers and avoid managing species as if they existed in a vacuum. The recently revived World Council of Fisheries Societies can be a key global voice for helping implement such visions, and for uniting our professionals, fishers, and policymakers in ways that promote healthy world fisheries in the 21st century.