Comparative institutions and management resiliency in Latin American small-scale fisheries

Encroachment by commercial fleets on small-scale fishing territories throughout Latin America over the last half-century is increasing inter-sector conflict. Small-scale fishery production is crucial to communities that rely on fish as a key source of protein in daily consumption and for supplying increased demand. As the continued viability of local management is threatened, we need to properly understand under what conditions informal institutions are resilient. Seven published Latin American case studies test which model management principles correlate with resilience. Shoreline exchange is identified as an effective practice promoting reciprocity and rapid collective action in the face of external threats.