CIM-UVigo leads the scientific contribution to the project Mariscando conCiencias. Activities begin tomorrow, Wednesday, with a workshop on artisanal fishing in Redondela
Shellfish harvesters, scientists, and artists united in a common project, working toward a sustainable future for Galician shellfishing. This is the aim of the project Mariscando conCiencias para el futuro, an initiative that seeks to imagine and develop sustainable alternatives for hand-gathered shellfishing—a traditional, female-dominated profession that today faces threats from the impacts of climate change on the marine environment.
This is a collective project coordinated by the Galician cooperative Cidadanía, in which the Future Oceans Lab group of the Marine Research Center (CIM) at the University of Vigo leads the scientific contribution. They are joined by numerous shellfish harvesters from Redondela—“experts in territorial management and sustainability, whose concern for the future of their trade sparked this work”—the maritime tourism association Amarturmar, the artistic collective Sinha Paca – Artelixo, and the Redondela City Council, where the initiative was presented just a few days ago and where the first workshop will begin tomorrow, Wednesday.
Elena Ojea: “Our team will provide the scientific perspective.”
The project aims to create new narratives that highlight the importance of this sector and strengthen social awareness about the need to care for the sea at the local level. “Our team will provide the scientific perspective to connect data and research with the daily reality of the shellfish harvesters, fostering a creative and transformative dialogue,” explains Elena Ojea, Oportunius researcher—a program by the Xunta de Galicia to attract excellence talent—and leader of the Future Oceans Lab group at CIM-UVigo. This team will be responsible for linking scientific evidence with the shellfish harvesters’ daily experience, providing a scientific perspective on the impacts of climate change on marine socio-ecological systems.
Multiple activities open to the public throughout 2025 and 2026
The various scheduled activities will take place between 2025 and 2026 in the San Simón bay and include community gatherings to recover the memory of artisanal fishing, guided visits to shellfish beds, beach cleanups, and creative workshops using recycled materials… all activities open to local residents so that, together, popular knowledge, milestones, key figures, and sustainable marine practices can be collected and shared.
The first call is for the workshops O pasado da pesca artesanal, which begin tomorrow, Wednesday, at the Redondela Tourist Office and will continue on December 3 and 10. These are participatory spaces for discussion among attendees, held from 6:00 pm to 8:30 pm on all three days, where participants—12 of whom are already confirmed—are invited to bring objects, documents, photos, and other materials related to maritime work.
One of the project’s standout activities will be the MARabismo Laboratory, led by FOL, where participants will collectively work on imagining sustainable futures for local artisanal fishing. There will also be a final day gathering all experiences and results. In this regard, Elena Ojea explains that “art will play a leading role: photography and dance will accompany the process as languages capable of transforming and communicating shared experiences.” The artistic dimension of the project will include a dedicated space for dance, coordinated by UVigo postdoctoral researcher and dancer Xochitl Édua Elías Ilosvay. Through body expression, her proposal will connect the physical work of the shellfish harvesters with reflection on the future of the sea, offering an artistic and sensitive interpretation throughout the process, culminating in a choreographic proposal.
Funded by the Daniel and Nina Carasso Foundation
The initiative is one of nine projects selected nationwide by the Daniel and Nina Carasso Foundation under the call Componer saberes para imaginar y construir futuros sostenibles, endowed with €600,000. The program seeks to bring together artists and scientific researchers to create collaborative processes that generate new perspectives for addressing ecosocial challenges in a creative and experimental way.
The CIM holds the CIGUS certification from the Regional Government of Galicia, which attests to the quality and impact of its research, and its activities are co-financed by the European Union through the 2021–2027 FEDER Program.
Source: DUVI
