From 11–14 May 2026, leading fisheries experts and young scientists gathered at GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research in Kiel, Germany, for the second Review Panel for Global Stock Assessments workshop under a Minderoo Foundation funded-project. The workshop brought together experts from across Europe, North America, and Asia to strengthen the scientific foundations of global fisheries assessments and improve collaborative workflows for sustainable ocean management.
Participating organizations included GEOMAR (Germany), the University of British Columbia’s Sea Around Us initiative (Canada), Istanbul University (Türkiye), the University of Hawaiʻi (USA), Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (Greece), the Fisheries Research Institute (Greece), and Quantitative Aquatics (Philippines). The workshop marked an important milestone toward refining global stock assessments using CMSY and BSM methodologies, with a strong focus on transparency, methodological consistency, and reproducibility across regions and fisheries.
Throughout the four-day workshop, participants reviewed methodological updates related to stock classifications, catch reconstruction, CPUE handling, and disaggregation procedures for fisheries data, guided by GEOMAR advisors Dr. Rainer Froese and Dr. Eva Papaioannou. Collaborative review sessions also addressed particularly challenging assessments, allowing scientists to collectively evaluate model assumptions, data quality, and diagnostic performance to improve confidence in assessment outputs.
The workshop further emphasized the value of practical and transparent assessment approaches for data-limited fisheries. Reflecting on the review process, Dr. Rainer Froese noted that “the simple data-poor models (CMSY and BSM) often gave much more realistic results than the over-parameterized official models.” The statement underscored the growing importance of accessible and reproducible methodologies in supporting evidence-based fisheries management, particularly in regions where data availability remains limited.
One of the workshop’s most significant outcomes was the continued standardization of review protocols across regions and stock types. Participants also clarified timelines and responsibilities for assessors, reviewers, and data contributors as the project advances toward completion of remaining assessments by July 2026 and final database synthesis by August 2026.
Representing Q-quatics, Vina Angelica Parducho contributed to discussions on assessment progress and ongoing regional evaluations. Q-quatics’ participation highlighted the growing role of Philippine-based organizations in international fisheries science collaborations and underscored the importance of inclusive global partnerships in addressing marine sustainability challenges.
