© Jeremy Shelton
The SHOAL Blueprint for Conservation Action for 1,000 Freshwater Fishes by 2035
The Blueprint sets out a plan for how a significant collaborative conservation effort focusing on action for freshwater fishes could be deployed for global conservation impact. This global collaborative, given the right investment and intensity of support, will lift freshwater fishes and potentially thousands of other neglected freshwater species to a new elevated platform of conservation attention and in doing so greatly enhance freshwater conservation efforts globally. This is not a plan just for 1,000 fishes. It is a plan for hundreds of critical freshwater habitats, vital to thousands of other species and thousands of communities, very often the poorest on the planet, that rely on these fish and the freshwater provided by their habitats for their everyday lives. This is also a plan that can demonstrate that by working together, we can achieve global change in a relatively short period of time.
“The Blueprint shows the level of ambition and determination we need to turn back the tide on the freshwater biodiversity crisis, and halt extinctions and recover populations of the world’s most threatened freshwater fish. It is collaborative to its core and puts local communities at the forefront of impactful conservation action. It is urgent that we now push on and mobilise the conservation actions outlined by The Blueprint – our planet’s freshwaters depend on them.”
The Blueprint sets out a plan for how a significant collaborative conservation effort focusing on action for freshwater fishes could be deployed for global conservation impact. This global collaborative, given the right investment and intensity of support, will lift freshwater fishes and potentially thousands of other neglected freshwater species to a new elevated platform of conservation attention and in doing so greatly enhance freshwater conservation efforts globally. This is not a plan just for 1,000 fishes. It is a plan for hundreds of critical freshwater habitats, vital to thousands of other species and human communities, often the poorest on the planet, that rely on freshwater habitats. This plan that will demonstrate that by working together, we can achieve global change in a relatively short period of time.
Ultimately, more than 1,000 freshwater fish species will be placed on the path to recovery by 2035. Costs of action for individual or groups of freshwater fishes are often extremely low in comparison to known spending for some single charismatic species recovery plans. The SHOAL 1,000 Fishes Initiative offers an unmissable, cost-effective opportunity for those interested in saving many species and making a measurable impact on biodiversity conservation. It reaches into some of the most threatened landscapes on Earth and will support the development of a myriad of local initiatives that will enable communities to care for their vital freshwater systems and the species they support, while producing many wider benefits.
We invite everyone who wants to make a difference to be part of the SHOAL. To participate is to be part of a landmark achievement for conserving global biodiversity.
Let us show that by working together – as a strong and determined shoal – we can change the trajectory for freshwater fishes from neglect and rapid decline to demonstrable recovery. Let us demonstrate that when hundreds of local organisations are empowered, they make a global impact. Together as a single shoal we will demonstrate that collaborative conservation can save the world’s freshwater ecosystems and biodiversity.