On Wednesday, 21/5/2025, a seminar will be held at the National Maritime Museum in Haifa under the title "On Fish, Fishermen and What's in Between." The seminar is being held as part of the renewal of the "Sea Day" tradition, which is celebrated every year on Iyar XNUMX. This year's seminar will be in connection with the exhibition currently on display at the museum: "On Fish and Fishermen"; and will deal with the heritage of fishing in Israel, questions related to fishing as a source of livelihood today and its impact on the marine environment, and culinary delights that come from the sea. The event will be held in collaboration with the Israel Institute for Marine and Lake Research and the Fisheries Division at the Ministry of Agriculture.
From the dawn of humanity to the present day, all over the world, the sea has been an important source of life. Fishing, which is of enormous importance to human nutrition and livelihood, has influenced the shaping of the human living environment – the formation of fishing villages and port cities, the movement between the coast and the sea, the nature of docks and markets, and more.
With the transition to industrial fishing in modern times, the ecological health of fish has been undermined. Overfishing, rising fish prices, and the decline of many fish populations – all of these are currently provoking a lively public debate regarding fishing. Will we be able to find the balance between the needs of the world's population for available protein and the economic interests of industrialists and the necessity to preserve marine nature? Will we be able to preserve the heritage of sustainable fishing and take responsibility for the continued existence of the sea as a source of life? And what is the relationship between the sea and the plate? How is local cuisine developing and what are the forces that influence the fish dishes we encounter in restaurants? This year's symposium will address this and more.
According to Adi Shelah, curator of the National Maritime Museum: "Few people have such a close and intimate acquaintance with the sea as fishermen, who go out to sea every day and earn their living there. However, in a reality where the ecological health of marine nature is under heavy pressure, controversy has arisen around the question of whether and how fishing can be done sustainably."
"The seminar day is an opportunity for the general public to be exposed to the range of opinions on the subject and to hear directly and indirectly what hurts people whose work focuses on the sea – fishermen, nature and marine environmentalists, people whose daily occupation is supervision and regulation, research and the search for solutions."
The seminar will be held between 9:00 AM and 14:45 PM and is open to the general public free of charge, but advance registration is required on the website.
